From birding to scientific inquiry in the Iowa grasslands

Sarah Osburn, a rising sophomore at Earlham College, has been hard at work researching birds and conservative strategies alongside professors Jaime Coon and Wendy Tori as part of a summer research program in the grasslands of Iowa.

“We’re currently studying Dickcissels specifically,” says Osburn, “and studying how the nest microclimate impacts the egg hatch rates, as well as nestling success rates.”

Key for Osburn and students like her are career-discerning experiences. Earlham offers summer research opportunities that provide just that: space and opportunity to grow and explore. Research is essential for both personal growth and standing out to employers, and Earlham’s natural science division makes sure to give plenty of experience with it.

Special to this experience for Osburn is feeling like she’s been able to be on equal footing with Coon and Tori and that the team can learn together.

“Obviously, our professors have had a lot more experience than us with research, but we still get to do the same things they do. They work hard to start from the beginning and teach us the techniques so that we can all be on the same page.

The research is part of a data set spanning more than 10 years and includes threatened grassland birds ranging from bobolinks to meadowlarks.

“We’re researching them, as well as the grasses near their nests, and all surrounding areas,” says Osburn.

“For measuring bird abundance, we have a method called censusing, where we walk alongside the birds and count every one we see, or hear, within 50 meters. Other methods include nest searching, where we find the birds’ nests and take data on them and see how the birds’ eggs and nestlings are doing. It’s such a unique type of research that not everyone knows about, and it’s been so wonderful to be a part of.”

For Osburn, the best part has been getting to know the birds. “I started birding about 2 years ago,” she shares, “and I’d never thought I’d get to be finding the nests of birds and studying them that way. It’s been really cool to see that specifically and get to see such a hidden part of a bird’s life.”

One of the group’s main activities is the censuring — which is difficult, says Osburn, because researchers have to be able to hear every little chirp and sound. Birds make so many different sounds. “It’s not easy to differentiate between the ones we’re studying and the ones we’re not,” she admits, but says the nest searching can help aid in identification, since researchers get to spend so much time observing bird behavior while searching.

Osburn has been birding for about two years and has seen about 150 species so far — and she hopes to make a career out of it, building on the experiences she’s had at Earlham.

“I’m hoping to do something with the national park system and work with wildlife. I think this has been such a lovely experience, participating in field research now, and then being able to apply what I’ve learned later on.”

***

About Earlham College 

Earlham College and Earlham School of Religion foster a collaborative learning community that inspires and motivates students with transformative opportunities and experiences so they can become catalysts for good in a changing world. Located in Richmond, Indiana, Earlham is one of U.S. News & World Report’s Top 75 national liberal arts colleges and offers one of the top 20 classroom experiences in the nation, according to the Princeton Review.