Ikh Nart Day 1: Getting started!

After breakfast (porridge, bread with cheese, omelette, peanut butter,...) we gathered under the shelter and each went to talk to one of the researchers. Their specialities are: Hannah - wolves and foxes, Tom Batdorj - hedgehogs, Jerry Batdorj - vultures, Nandia -bats and reptiles, Uka - kestrels, Odmaa - plants, Oogii and Moogii - argali and ibex, Roger - bats, Remu - small mammals.

After lunch we went out in the jeeps to set up transects for a lizard survey. We were very slow at it and eventually we had to leave most of the students to finish it off whle we went with Remu to set his small mammal traps. There are 2 sites with 100 traps at 10 metre intervals in rows 10 metres apart. We put the traps out, baited them with couscous and wedged and weighted them down with rocks.

After dinner, we went along the dry creek by camp to set up mist nets for bats. We put up 3 nets and most of us went back to camp. Overnight they caught 6 bats, all the same species: myotis aurascens. It was a very cold night after a hot day and Ciera and Chelsea were so cold they ended up sharing Chelsea'a sleeping bag out there with the bat team. The rest of us decided to wrap up well for batting when our turn came round!