“My recollection of Itasca involves going out early in the morning during a summer session of ornithology to identify birds with Dr. Oscar Owre who taught in Florida during the regular school year. Ovenbirds, red-eyed vireos, parula warblers, Wood Thrushes … his enthusiasm for birds was infectious and, although I already loved birds, Dr. Owre made watching birds even more fun!” —Melissa Nagel Shackford (B.S. Biology ’82)
“I attended summer biology session at Itasca in 1980. It was a great time. My field research partner and I paddled across the lake several times during the course of a single day to collect insects along transects. We gathered 76 samples, some including hundreds of insects. Our original intent was to characterize the samples as completely as we could down to the species level. After a good start we were distracted by volleyball, canoeing, etc.
“By the time we got back to our samples, they were mostly bags of mush. However, the odonates and treehoppers were still distinguishable, so we counted them. I stayed up all night and wrote the report. … Recently I contacted Jon Ross, Itasca’s resident biologist, to request a copy of my paper. His assistant found it in the library where it has been archived for 28 years.” —Lee Pederson (B.S. Biology ’81)
“I took my final classes at the Itasca field station in 1990. It was a great way to pull together all that I had learned at CBS. We spent most of the time trapping and putting radio collars on raccoons followed by dark nights tracking them. I learned that baby raccoons are very mean and adults are friendly. The experience sparked a life-long interest in urban ecology.” —Tony Erickson (B.S. Biology ’90)
“My time at the Itasca Biology Station was during spring quarter of 1978. Professors Don Gilbertson and Jim Underhill ran a program that included five weeks of classroom work in the Twin Cities followed by five weeks in the field at Itasca. About 28 biology students took part. It was the most valuable experience of my college career. Not only did I get to collect the specimens with which I worked, I got to live and socialize with a small group of students and two professors. Never before or since have I spent as much time with faculty members. I learned a lot and made some great friends. I hope that all future biology students have the opportunity to spend time at the Itasca Biological Station.” —Dave Kinnear (B.S. Biology ’79)
“I spent two summers at Itasca—in 1960 and 1966. I have many fond and vivid memories of the time there. One time, the custodial staff shot a bear that was raiding the disposal site. The kitchen staff served the bear meat to us at the dining hall. It tasted good! It was like beef, except a darker color. Then there were those of us guys who stored drinks in the peat bogs under the moss layer. We occasionally fell through the floating bog mats trying to retrieve the bottles. I could almost write a book about it all, but that is for another time!” —Gordon Houk (Ph.D. ’66)
