Natural History of the
Southwestern United States
Most recent update for pages on this website: 23 June 2006.This website is comprised of text and images associated with a spring fieldcourse through deserts and sky islands of the southwestern United States. The course is offered by the Department of Biological Sciences at Fort Hays State University, Hays, Kansas. Mark Eberle (meberle@fhsu.edu) is the instructor. The 7-day fieldtrip is held periodically during spring break, which usually is the third week of March. The itinerary for the next trip is available through a link provided below. Links on this website will take you to a course description, illustrated summaries based on previous trips, and other files associated with the course. Some files include several images (all taken by FHSU students and faculty). Some of these images are panoramic photos, so the webpages look best on at least a 15" monitor (11.25" viewable width).
- Class of 1999: Angela Barnes, Connie Chen, Niki Lambrecht, Jason Luginbill, Jessica Marshall, Scott Newland, and Trisha Perret.
- Class of 2000: Matt Bain, Aaron Baugh, Jeff Conley, Kirk Lang, Mark Omura, Cheryl Schmidt, Jan Steier, and Karen Wolfe.
- Class of 2003: Carol Blocksome, Melissa Johann, Curtis Schmidt, Matt Withroder, Curtis Wolf.
- Highlights from Previous Fieldtrips: A virtual fieldtrip.
- Overview of Information for Course Topics
- Study Guide: Completed by students prior to the fieldtrip.
- Keys to Woody Plants: pdf file (get Adobe Reader)
- List of Taxa Identified on Trips: pdf file (get Adobe Reader)
- Links to Additional Websites Associated with the Places We Visit
Image above: Sonoran Desert from Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson. Image below: Students hiking across gypsum dunes, White Sands National Monument, New Mexico. Both images by Mark Eberle, March 1999.