Fieldwork Reflection: An overview (Europe)

Last year I embarked on the most exciting (and nerve-wracking) experience of my life. I had just begun my PhD in plant ecology at UNSW Sydney and less than 3 months later I was on a plane halfway across the world to conduct intensive fieldwork. Armed with my passport, luggage and giant red backpack (which would hardly leave my side for the next 8 months) I landed in Europe to start what would be the next 8 months of my life.

In a nutshell, I was to visit 5 sites in Europe and 5 sites across Australia, over 8 months, to collect data on herbivory, leaf chemistry, invertebrate communities and pollination of species that are native to Europe and introduced to Australia (commonly known as weeds).

Every part of my trip was meticulously pre-planned and I had several itineraries stored in my phone, laptop, luggage and backpack (in case I forgot where to go next). My clothes shared space with my scanner and leaf measuring instruments, and I took two pairs of shoes with me (one for fieldwork, other for anywhere else). It didn’t take long for problems to arise… I soon learnt that the long, metal, pointy, leaf penetrometer I had in my carry on was better suited to being in my checked-in luggage when security at Madrid airport spotted it on an X-ray. I, an English speaking, solo-travelling young scientist, managed to convince the Spanish speaking guards to let me keep my instrument by clumsily demonstrating how it’s used in a crowded, backed up security line. I got a lot of stares, but rather than feeling embarrassed, I felt accomplished, because I didn’t get it confiscated and I learnt to put it into checked baggage to avoid a similar encounter.

Once I arrived in Spain, my fieldwork officially kicked off. I would be out in the field every day (one or two days off were earnt here and there) with the help of my amazing field-assistants to sample plants, inverts and observe pollination. After Spain, I went to France, Austria, England and Estonia (a few times back and forth) over the course of 4 months. I was guided by my incredible supervisor Prof. Angela Moles (from Sydney) and several overseas collaborators that made me feel really welcome and supported during my time in their labs, including Prof. Jeff Ollerton (England), Dr. Vincent Lesieur (France), Prof. Robert Junker (Austria), Prof. Begoña Peco (Spain), Prof. Meelis Pärtel (Estonia) and Dr. Riin Tamme (Estonia). They, along with my field assistants, worked hard to ensure I was kept on track and data collection went smoothly.

I am so grateful to everyone involved in my European field sampling, it was truly a massive collaborative effort! It was the most wonderful, tiring and empowering experience of my life and I feel so lucky to have been given this opportunity.

While I may have finished my fieldwork overseas, my journey is not over. There’s plenty of data analysis + thesis writing that I have left to do!

Stay tuned to hear about my Aussie fieldwork experience!

– Zoe