Laura Perry discussing poster from students who completed internships with the U.S. Forest Service in Asheville, NC – the three students could not attend
Alyssa Drake discussing soil organic matter between two creeks in Bexar County
David Lind, Benjamin Weber, and Cesar Lopez discussing a study that evaluated rehydrating aquatic biofilms
Miguel Rivera discussing the effects of metal nanoparticles on nitrifying bacteria in soils
Jasmine Stanley and Tracy Cabrera discussing documenting plant species in Leon Creek Greenway
Natalie Martinez discussing forest structure and composition in Leon Creek Greenway
Participants at the Mini-Conference
Top row (L-R): Tracy Cabrera, Alicia Elizalde, Alyssa Drake, Natalie Martinez, David Lind, Jasmine Stanley, and Miguel Rivera
Bottom row (L-R): Benjamin Weber and Cesar Lopez
Tracy Cabrera and Natalie Martinez filtering biofilm samples for carbon analysis
Alyssa Drake and Kennedy Wood filtering soil samples from Leon Creek for carbon analysis
Alyssa Drake and Natalie Martinez adding nitrogen and phosphorous to biofilm samples for a protozoa and meiofauna study on rehydrated biofilm
Laura Salazar and Natalie Martinez filtering biofilm and soil samples from Leon Creek Greenway
Alyssa Drake filtering soil samples at week 4 for carbon analysis
Maddison Orquiz training new students in the lab on the steps to analyze microplastics from soils
Kennedy Wood counting protozoa and meiofauna from biofilm samples
EcoJEDI students measured forest structure and composition in Leon Creek Greenway. Data for soils, ground cover, shrubs, and trees were collected from multiple plots across the greenway to evaluate differences among upper, mid-slopes, and the dry creek bed from the east to west side.
May 28, 2024
Alicia Elizalde, Natalie Martinez, Ananya Seth, and Paulina Zamora
Natalie and Alicia sampling a cedar elm
Ananya and Paulina in a Texas persimmon shrub thicket
Ananya, Natalie, and Paulina in the dry creek
Alicia and Natalie working in the mid-slope
Ananya and Paulina measuring
a large live oak along the dry creek bed
Natalie, Alicia, Ananya, and Paulina
May 29, 2024
Alyssa Drake, Alicia Elizadale, David Lind, Cesar Lopez, Natalie Martinez, Ysabel Morales, Jazmine Stanley, Benjamin Weber, and Paulina Zamora
Alicia and Cesar working in an upper slope plot
Jazmine and Paulina setting up an upper slope plot
Alyssa collecting soils
(part of summer Independent Study to analyze
organic matter and carbon in soils along a gradient)
Paulina, David, and Jazmine in oak mott habitat
Jazmine measuring diameter of a small sugarberry
Alyssa and Ysabel deciding which trees to measure
using the Point-Quarter sampling method
working as a team to finish sampling in a plot
Bottom L-R: Jazmine, Ysabel, and Natalie
Top L-R: David, Paulina, Alyssa, Benjamin, Cesar, and Alicia
June 12, 2024
Tracy Cabrera, Alyssa Drake, Alicia Elizadale, David Lind, Cesar Lopez, Natalie Martinez, Jamine Tiijerina, and Benjamin Weber
Jamine and David measuring
a large live tree in an upland plot
Alyssa, Cesar, and Benjamin working
in a disturbed plot dominated by small shrubs
Natalie and Tracy working in an upland plot
Alyssa and Alicia setting up a plot
to take measurements on shrubs and trees
finishing up sampling in a plot as a team
Bottom L-R: Natalie, Jamine, and Tracy Cabrera
Top L-R: David, Alyssa, and Alicia
June 13, 2024
Tracy Cabrera, Alyssa Drake, Alicia Elizadale, Cesar Lopez, and Natalie Martinez
Natalie, Tracy, and Alyssa measuring ground cover
Cesar measuring diameter of an Ashe juniper
Alicia recording data in an Ashe juniper stand
Tracy and Natalie measuring cedar elm
diameter and distance from plot center to the tree
Tracy measuring multi-branched Ashe juniper
June 18, 2024
David Lind, Natalie Martinez, Lorraine Shanahan, and Jamine Tijerina
Lorraine and David measuring distance to cedar elm
Jamine and Natalie working in the dry creek
Natalie and Lorraine measuring cedar elm diameter
taking a break with half the sampling completed
group working together to finish sampling in a plot
David and Jamine preparing to measure
a large black willow in the dry creek
David, Natalie, Lorraine, and Jamine
July 8, 2024
Tracy Cabrera, Alyssa Drake, and Natalie Martinez
Natalie, Tracy, and Alyssa measuring trees
using point-quarter method
Natalie and Tracy measuring trees
using point-quarter method
Alyssa, Natalie, and Tracy measuring trees
using point-quarter method
EcoJEDI students measured forest structure and composition in Salado Creek Greenway. Data for soils, ground cover, shrubs, and trees were collected.
July 10, 2024
Tracy Cabrera, Alyssa Cook, Alyssa Drake, Alicia Elizalde, Natalie Martinez, Ananya Seth, and Jazmine Stanley
Ananya and Natalie measuring
Natalie and Alicia measuring
Jazmine and Tracy measuring
Alicia and Natalie measuring
Ananya and Alyssa measuring
Tracy, Alicia, Jazmine, Alyssa, Anaya, and Natalie
July 15, 2024
Alyssa Cook, David Lind, Natalie Martinez, and Jazmine Tijerina
Salado Creek Greenway trail map at S.R. 1604 trailhead
David and Natalie
Natalie and Jazmine
Alyssa and Jazmine
line transects for examining ground cover
David, Alyssa, Natalie, and Jazmine
July 17, 2024
Tracy Cabrera, Alyssa Drake, Alicia Elizalde, Natalie Martinez, Kennedy Wood
Natalie measuring the d.b.h. of an Ashe juniper tree
Alicia and Kennedy on the east slope
Kennedy and Alyssa
on the edge of oak mott and Ashe juniper habitat
Alicia and Tracy
Kennedy, Alyssa, Alicia, Tracy, and Natalie
July 29, 2024
Alyssa Drake, Ananya Seth, and Kennedy Wood
Alyssa, Ananya, and Kennedy
Ananya and Alyssa
Alyssa measuring live oak diameter
Kennedy, Alyssa, and Ananya
Alyssa and Ananya
Alyssa, Ananya, and Kennedy
Kennedy, Ananya, and Alyssa
July 31, 2024
Alyssa Drake, Alicia Elizalde, and Natalie Martinez
Natalie, Alicia, and Alyssa
Alyssa, Alicia, and Natalie (behind tree)
Alicia, Alyssa, and Natalie along dry creek edge
Natalie and Alicia
Alyssa, Alicia,and Natalie moving to the west side
August 5, 2024
Tracy Cabrera, Alyssa Drake, and Natalie Martinez
(in 96 °F heat)
Natalie and Tracy
Alyssa and Natalie
Alyssa, Tracy, and Natalie on west slope
measuring distance from center plot
and diameter of an Ashe juniper
August 7, 2024
Tracy Cabrera, Alyssa Drake, Alicia Elizalde, Natalie Martinez, Ananya Seth, and Jasmine Stanley
Jasmine, Alyssa, Natalie,
Ananya (behind tree), Alicia, and Tracy
Tracy and Alicia setting up center of the plot
Natalie reviewing data along the dry creek
Jasmine and Natalie measuring large live oak diameter
Alyssa and Ananya working on the west slope
a bee hive in a live oak crevice along the dry creek
August 8, 2024
Natalie Martinez and Jasmine Stanley
measuring live oak diameter
working on the steep east slope
tree sampling
measuring Ashe juniper diameter in dry creek bed
using point-quarter method from a center plot
to estimate density of trees
working in an Ashe juniper thicket
end of summer field work
Attending the USDA meeting and AHSIE Conference offered a number of different perspectives from faculty and students, talks and workshops to enhance the inclusion and equity skills of current educators, displaying multiple different projects aimed to serve underrepresented students. My favorite talk was given by Rosa Clemente who is an organizer, producer, academic, journalist, and scholar-activist. Her speech was empowering and addressed the current and former struggles underrepresented groups have dealt with in the past and currently experiencing in the United States. I’m absolutely honored to have been in her presence and to have learned as much as I did at this conference.
—Claire Littlefield
USDA HIS Directors Meeting in Monterey, California on March 17
opening session of the USDA HIS Directors Meeting
discussion among USDA HIS Grant recipients
AHSIE Conference in Monterey, California on March 18-20
opening session of the AHSIE Conference
student presentations at the AHSIE Conference
AHSIE luncheon
Claire Littlefield at the AHSIE Conference
Claire Littlefield and Rosa Clemente
Jeffrey Hutchinson and Claire Littlefield on a
whale watching boat ride in the Pacific Ocean
Four EcoJEDI members and six other undergraduates from UTSA attended the Texas Academy of Science Annual Meeting in Odessa, Texas. Three EcoJEDI students presented posters and one gave an oral presentation.
Dr. Briana Salas presenting a talk on the EcoJEDI product at the STEM session at the conference.
Dr. Salas first slide on her presentation on EcoJEDI research program at year 2.
A packed classroom at the Aquatic Science session
Maddison Orquiz presenting a talk at the Terrestrial Ecology session on microplastics in different forest age classes at the USFS Bent Creek Experimental Forest in Asheville, NC.
Claire Littlefield discussing her poster on microplastics in biofilms with a USGS employee.
Angel Velasquez discussing her poster on organic matter in ephemeral pools with a graduate student.
Kate Kampman’s poster presentation on the forest structure and composition of porcupine use of live oaks in Leon Creek Greenway. Kate won first place in the undergraduate student competition.
A part of a poster from Tara Hansler from Texas A&M Kingsville on "superworms" (adults and larvae) consumption of Styrofoam.
Kate and Angel networking with undergraduates from other universities in Texas.
EcoJEDI students and lab members checking out graduate school opportunities at other universities
EcoJEDI students and lab members during a break between sessions.
Angel, Claire, Kate, and Dr. Salas at the conference dinner and awards presentation.
Jazmine Blancas, Kate Kampman, Claire Littlefield, Maddison Ortiz, and Angel Velasquez presented posters at the SWAN conference in San Antonio, Texas.
Poster Presentations
- Jazmine Blancas - Exploring microscopic life in ephemeral pools: A preliminary analysis of meiofauna in Leon Creek, San Antonio
- Claire Littlefield - Restoration of a spring run silted in by a dam along Honeycut Springs, C.L. Browning Ranch, Johnson City, Texas
- Kate Kampman and Angel Velasquez (joint presentation) - Diurnal rest sites and forest structure and composition used by porcupines in the upper Leon Creek Greenway, San Antonio, Texas
- Maddison Ortiz - The occurrence of microplastics within differently aged forest stands
June 6-8, 2023
Kate Kampman and Angel Velasquez analyzing forest structure and composition of porcupine diurnal rest trees and habitat in the upper Leon Creek Greenway.
June 13, 2023
Students collecting leaf litter and humus from plots as part of a long-term study in the upper section of Leon Creek Greenway.
June 2023
Claire Littlefield and undergraduate students collecting biofilm samples. Last image is biofilms being processed for analysis of microplastics.
March 7, 2023
September 26, 2023
examining Xenopus eggs for viability
