Dr. Holly Jones
“It is so exciting to be around a group of people that are so passionate about prairie restoration and that passion inspires my students and me.” —Dr. Holly Jones
Assistant Professor at Northern Illinois University Recipient of research grants awarded by Friends of Nachusa |
Dr. Holly Jones earned duel Bachelors of Science degrees in marine biology and ecology and evolution at the University of California, Santa Cruz and earned her Ph.D. from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Currently at Northern Illinois University, Dr. Jones is an Assistant Professor joint-appointed to the Department of Biological Sciences and Institute for the Study of the Environment, Sustainability, and Energy. Dr. Jones advises numerous students, whose research at Nachusa includes impacts of bison reintroduction and prairie management on small mammals, grassland bird nesting success and habitat use, ecosystem functioning, and plant and seed diversity. Other student-led studies include characterizing bison and coyote diet.
Restorations at Nachusa Grasslands are going well. Why should prairie lovers care about research? Research is important to make sure restorations go well in the future! Research helps inform managers which techniques are best for specific animals like Blanding's turtles, Henslow's sparrows, regal fritillaries, and other rare, threatened, and endangered species. Knowing how biodiversity in prairies responds to restorations can help these denizens of the prairie continue to thrive with climate change and other threats. Research can help us predict the impacts of management and can help us measure them. It can help us fine-tune management strategies. How does Nachusa Grasslands compare with other research sites? Nachusa is the best research site! It's like a restoration ecologists' playground! The fact that it has sites that were restored from 1987 makes it easy to look at restoration progress through time. Because it has bison on half its acreage means we can quantify their impacts. Nachusa managers and stewards work with us and support us in ways rarely seen at other research sites. Everyone is so generous with their time, knowledge, and even equipment, that it makes doing research at Nachusa easy and so much fun. |
What's it like for you and your students interacting with the volunteer stewards?
The stewards are one of the best things about Nachusa! They work so hard, and have such depth of knowledge of the prairie that they are invaluable to our research program. We love working with them, talking to them, and how welcoming they are to all of us. It is so exciting to be around a group of people that are so passionate about prairie restoration and that passion inspires my students and me. What would Friends be surprised to know about the research experience at Nachusa Grasslands? I have worked a lot of great places but I have never felt more welcomed, supported, and encouraged to do research than I have at Nachusa Grasslands. We scientists can be a burden but you'd never know it by our interactions with Bill Kleiman, Cody Considine, and Jeff Walk. It is a convivial and vibrant atmosphere — with people who are full of great ideas — that it's a huge bummer when our field season comes to an end and we can't be out there as much. Working at Nachusa recharges my batteries as a scientist and I am so thankful for the support we get for our research from Friends of Nachusa Grasslands and The Nature Conservancy. What will it take to make Nachusa Grasslands a prominent grasslands research center? I think it already is becoming that! However, it would be good if TNC got a scientist on staff to help manage the burgeoning science mission out there (to take the pressure off of Bill and Cody who it seems already do the job of five people). It would be excellent to get more research infrastructure out there (e.g. research lab space, wireless internet, research housing) and to have supported graduate student research assistantships. Graduate students are the research engines of our labs and in many cases, their teaching load is so high that they can't focus on the research as much as we'd like them to. Research assistantships would make a huge difference. 
Photo by Steph Kong
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