Have you ever taken a stroll in the woods, along a beach, or in a park and spotted a new animal and wondered what the curious critter was and why it was there? I do that all the time, especially when I notice often overlooked (literally) itty bitty insects. Lucky for me, I get to spend my summer searching out insects, plants, and animals at First State National Historical Park (First State NHP) in their Brandywine Valley unit situated along the Delaware-Pennsylvania border.
Before diving into my work, a bit more about me. I’m Laura Hancock, a PhD student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst where I study the distribution patterns of wildlife and the driving processes that create the patterns we see. From childhood, I was always interested in how the natural world worked, and learning about the diversity of plants and animals that are a part of it. As I’ve gotten older, I was lucky enough to merge my personal interests with my academic training, leading me from a bachelor’s degree in biology to a Ph.D. in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology – and into the SIP Fellows Program where I get to spend most of my time musing about wildlife management, monitoring, and mapping of an invasive insect, the Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula)!
This summer, all of my work will happen within the landscape of First State National Historical Park’s Brandywine Valley. At Brandywine Valley, there aren’t just natural resources like beautiful landscapes, rivers, and wildlife viewing, but also cultural resources like historic buildings and landscapes (agricultural fields, a vineyard) that visitors can access to learn about nationally significant historical topics. For me, this is important to know because it helps to frame the work that I do, since much of the land within First State NHP’s Brandywine Valley unit is managed through a historical and cultural lens, as well as a natural one. Prior to starting the SIP Fellowship, this wouldn’t have been something I would have thought about when thinking of natural resource management in a national park. Is that the same for you? If you’re interested in learning more about this management framework and the distinction between national parks, national historical parks, national preserves, and the many other titles that might be used within the National Park Service, click here.
A problem relevant to First State NHP is that Spotted Lanternfly (SLF) threatens dozens of agricultural crops, native tree species, and general plant communities in the mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and New England area (and is predicted to spread)! So how can we protect the cultural and natural resources — such as SLF’s host plants — in First State National Historical Park to allow visitors to be able to enjoy these resources for years to come? Through research and outreach! This is where my summer project and I come in. As a SIP Fellow working in First State NHP this summer, I’ll be working to:
1) continue and/or create monitoring plans for Spotted Lanternfly,
2) collect relevant life cycle, abundance, and presence/absence data using tools like circle traps and transect surveys,
3) analyze the resulting data in a way that will help inform the Park’s (adaptive) management strategies, and
4) develop ways to engage the public in what SLF is, why some invasive species are harmful to the local ecology, and how visitors can help stop the spread of invasive species like SLF in and around the park.
It is hard to believe I’ve already been working at First State NHP for over 4 weeks. Thanks to the incredibly supportive, funny, and kind park staff, I’ve been having a great time here. If you’re interested in hearing about more of my adventures in the park check back for more blog posts from me soon. And if you’d like to get additional updates from me and the other SIP Fellows located at national parks around the United States, you can also follow the SIP Fellows Instagram page, where we will be posting throughout the summer!