Plains, Poles, and Polar Bears…Biology Grads Following Their Passion

HELP WANTED: Must love the outdoors and working with animals. Must travel to interesting destinations and work in places others only dream about. People skills needed. Biology degree from a great school required.

Maybe finding your dream job... the one that doesn't feel like work... isn't as easy as picking up the Sunday classifieds, but for three graduates of the Mesa State Biology program, their career paths have led to diverse experiences and exciting challenges.

Newton
Wes Newton graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Biology from Mesa State in 1981. After completing a Masters Degree in Applied Statistics at Utah State University, Newton joined the United States Army for four years. In 1990, Newton went to work at the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in North Dakota, where he has worked ever since. His research on the wildlife of the Great Plains has focused on creatures like waterfowl, non-game wildlife, and bison.

Newton's latest endeavor is raising bison with his wife and children on a 250-acre ranch in North Dakota. His 50 head make him an "S.T.O." [small time operator] but it is a task he loves. Newton is also working to complete his Ph.D. in Ecology at North Dakota State University and says he may some day return to Colorado.

Now 20 years removed from Mesa State College, Newton says life has been interesting. He says he didn't really plan on being a wildlife statistician and a bison rancher, but instead thought he would be teaching high school biology. A stint researching fruit pests in the Grand Valley after graduation however turned him on to the world of statistical analysis. Newton says, "It's funny where a random walk in life can take you".

Kalxdorff
For 1986 Biology graduate Susanne Kalxdorff, the 'random walk' has made a stop in Anchorage, Alaska. Kalxdorff is a Wildlife Biologist with the Marine Mammals Management wing of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Kalxdorff's research has included writing technical reports "Distribution and Abundance of Marine Mammal Carcasses Along Beaches of the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas, Alaska, 1995-1997" and "Collection of Local Knowledge Regarding Polar Bear Habitat Use in Alaska". Her work makes her the ONLY female polar bear researcher in Alaska.

Kalxdorff says she went to Alaska "on a whim" in 1988 and did volunteer bird habitat work, but the Exxon Valdez accident led to a full-time job. Her career with F.W.S. has included work with endangered species, coastal programs, environmental cleanup, and mammal management - where she remains. Currently Kalxdorff continues to research stranded marine mammal carcasses such as whales, walrus, and seals, to determine how those species become food for female "denning" bears, and "sub-adult" bears that can't compete for primary food sources out on the ice with bigger adult males.

Berry
Being "out on the ice" has a whole new meaning for 1997 Biology grad Lisa Berry. Berry just returned from a stay "down South"... as far south as you can get. Berry spent the winter (February - October) at the South Pole.

If you've ever complained about the winter cold at your home, you can appreciate what Berry experienced as temperatures dipped to -164 (with the wind-chill factor). You might however fail to realize that the Antarctic plateau is one of the driest deserts in the world. With virtually no snowfall, water intake must be closely monitored and the temptation of a warm cup of coffee or tea should be avoided. Living with six weeks between sunrise and sunset can also be a troublesome adjustment for workers near the pole. Berry says workers come in two types: those that sleep on set schedules (sunlight or dark), and those that sleep when they get tired and wake when they are rested. The non-scheduled sleepers or free-cyclers, dubbed "beakers" by pole dwellers, are easy to recognize according to Berry. "They are the ones who are usually the most tired looking of the crew."

As part of the largest group ever to winter at the pole, Berry says you learn quickly about the need for personal space and private time. The Antarctic crew this year was made up of 50 people with only eight women. The gender mix also led to interesting speculation about dating possibilities, but Berry says once relationships were established "if they were going to be, we are all pretty much genderless" and just work together.

So what does a biologist at the South Pole study? "Not much", according to Berry. "The only living things here are us", she says. "And the living can be tough." Scientists have isolated bacteria in the ice, however they are still studying whether the bacteria lives in the ice or just blows in from somewhere else. So most of the study turns to psychological and physiological looks at the human body in the rough climate and cramped space. Human physical conditioning is one element that undergoes a lot of scrutiny. "The physical altitude at pole is just less than 10,000 feet." Meaning that scientists are living on top of roughly two miles of glacial ice. Altitude is also affected by a lack of oxygen producing fauna and a phenomenon where the earth's rotation leads to an atmospheric bulge at the pole.

"Of course there are lonely times and homesick times that come and go from time to time", Berry concedes. "When you have a bad day, usually a walk outside to look at the stars or out to look at the telescopes makes you realize what an incredible and rare opportunity that this lifestyle provides. After all, you never lose your car keys, never pay for gas, and you get to go grocery shopping with a forklift."