Skip to Main Content

FNR Field Reports Heltzel

Throughout the summer, Purdue Forestry and Natural Resources will be featuring various students and their work in the field.

Amanda Heltzel, a junior studying Wildlife and minoring in Fisheries & Aquatic Sciences, is working as a seasonal research technician at the University of Missouri. Her responsibilities consist of conducting avian point counts and vegetation surveys in the Mark Twain National Forest.

The data that she and her colleagues are collecting will be used to inform management of pine-oak woodland restoration by the U.S. Forest Service and brown-headed nuthatch reintroduction.

“I'm enjoying my time in the Ozarks where I have observed wildlife I don't normally see such as elk and armadillo,” Heltzel said. “My favorite experience so far was target netting for eastern whip-poor-wills that were previously equipped with GPS tags. This was part of a research project being conducted on whip-poor-will migration by a PhD student. I'm excited for the opportunity to gain further career experience while working in a different part of the country than what I have before.”

Heltzel was named as the wildlife junior academic merit award winner, the Durward Allen Memorial Award and Stanley Coulter Leadership award honoree for 2019-20.

Check back throughout the summer to see what other FNR students are up to as they take their studies from the classroom to the field.

Heltzel eggs
Heltzel with a bird
Elk

Featured Stories

Bryan Pijanoski with sound equipment
The sound of the world

It’s summer, but Bryan Pijanowski is as busy as ever. He’s working on several grant...

Read More
Purdue College of Agriculture.
Virtual Tour Brings Forest Management for the Birds to Life

How does forest management affect wildlife, specifically birds? Which birds prefer which types of...

Read More
Students on the Sweden study abroad trip stand in front of a church
FNR Field Reports: Lucas Cacula Offers Week 2 Update from Sweden Study Abroad Program

Throughout the 2024 Sustainable Natural Resources study abroad course in Sweden, FNR...

Read More
Attendees of the Science-i Bridging Worlds Workshop stand together in front of the Hall for Discovery and Learning Research at Purdue
Science-i Bridging Worlds Workshop Facilitates Strategic Partnerships, Collaboration on Global Forest Issues

Researchers from across the globe traveled to Purdue for the Science-i Bridging Worlds Workshop,...

Read More
buoy
Gearing up for a Great Lake day 

Off the shores of Southern Lake Michigan, three yellow buoys bob up and down. Among ships and...

Read More
Songlin Fei, director of Purdue’s Institute for Digital Forestry and professor in the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, standing among the trees in Martell Forest.
The Society of American Foresters honors Purdue professor with Award in Forest Science

The Society of American Foresters (SAF) annually recognizes individuals for their outstanding...

Read More
To Top