This summer I am working at Manassas National Battlefield Park (MANA). The park was formed on the basis of historical conservation and its cultural resources; however, I will be working on the natural resources this summer. MANA was the site of two battles in the Civil War, the...
Hello, my name is Aliya Khan. I am a Mosaics in Science intern working at Manassas National Battlefield Park this summer. I am originally from Washington DC but grew up abroad in Malaysia, Thailand and Spain before moving back to DC and attending high school in Maryland. Currently I...
Over the course of the last 12 weeks I have participated in a number of projects for the NPS; however, my primary task has been to conduct field work and write the preliminary report for a study on the effects of deer browse in the...
[caption id="attachment_7923" align="alignleft" width="367"] Pictured: Me and my friend, Caroline Black, a member of the invasive species removal crew sampling plants in the meadow. Caroline is recording the species that we find as I lean down to identify a plant.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_7924" align="alignright" width="366"] Pictured: The...
Two weeks ago, we began the Big Meadows Sampling in Shenandoah. The Big Meadows is a large open area on the ridgeline of the Blue Ridge Mountains that was cleared by Native Americans. After Europeans settled the area they kept the meadow open through grazing...
Last Thursday I completed my last day of cross-training. I trained with the fish electro-shocking crew. The fish crew goes out at 6:30 every morning and visits the different streams within the park to sample for fish populations. When I went out with them we...
During the course of my internship I have participated in multiple cross-training activities with other departments in the park, as well as training courses to be recertified in first aid/CPR/AED and training to learn proper search and rescue technique. The cross- training I have received...
Founded in 1935, the goal of Shenandoah National Park was to create a national park in the East. The first national parks were created in the late 1800’s and were mainly in the West. In the east, the land was already developed and settled, making...
Living in Canada and studying Natural Resource Conservation at the University of British Columbia, I am not very familiar with the common plants of the Eastern forests. I am currently learning to identify the common plants found within Shenandoah National Park, along the Blue Ridge...
This summer while at Shenandoah I will be working as a member of the Natural Resources Division on the botany crew helping with long term monitoring of rare and endangered plants. Within the park there are over 90 known populations of rare or endangered plants...