The Midden

 

GRBA's woodrat discovering the plethora of information in The Midden.

Emily Page Hale

The Midden is a biannual newsletter published by the Resource Management division of Great Basin National Park. Current and select past issues can be accessed from this page. For additional past issues, please e-mail us.

Current Issue of The Midden:
Summer 2024 (Vol. 24, No. 1)

Minerals and Microbes in Lehman Caves
A Winter in Great Basin National Park
Determining Dust Impacts on Great Basin National Park
Sounds in Lehman Caves
Snake Valley Christmas Bird Count Breaks Record

Past Issues of The Midden:

Winter 2023 (Vol. 23, No. 2)

Monitoring Habitat Use by Rattlesnakes
Human Connections with Historic Cave Inscriptions
Mountain Pine Beetles Camping out near Wheeler Peak
Leave it to Beaver...Dam Analogs
The Highs and Lows of Monitoring Temperature inthe Park
Restoring the Sagebrush Sea, One Carbon-coated Seed at a Time
Fish Move Postponed
Bringing Fire Back to the Landscape
What's Dripping in the Cave?

Summer 2023 (Vol. 23, No. 1)

Understanding Woodrat Distribution
Uncovering the Mystery of Cave Turnips
Meet the 2023 USA Cave Animal of the Year: Cave Crickets!
Geologic Fundamentals of Great Basin National Park Caves

Winter 2022 (Vol. 22, No. 2)

Shifting Baseline
Hidden Stories of Snake Creek Cave
Life at the Top: Range Shifts of Four High Elevation Plants
Genetic Analysis of West Desert Bonneville Cutthroat Trout
Mark and Recapture Study for the Model Cave Harvestman, Sclerobunus ungulatus
A Closer Look at Nevada Primrose
Preserving Historic Lehman Orchard

Summer 2022 (Vol. 22, No. 1)

Thinning Project Outreach
Results of 2021 Christmas Bird Count
Bats in Spring Valley
Lint Camp Recap
Mountain Lions are Keystone Species
Changing Faces: A Recent History of Snow Surveys in GRBA

Winter 2021 (Vol. 21, No. 2)

Treatment of Baker Lake to Restore Bonneville Cutthroat Trout
Detecting and Forecasting Change in High Elevation Species
New Techologies to Help Win the War against Cheatgrass
Researcher Awards
Cool Bug Facts: The Pinyon and the Engraver
Lehman Caves Temp and Humidity before, during, and after Closure
Reptile BioBlitz Results

Summer 2021 (Vol. 21, No. 1)

International Year of Caves and Karst 2021
2021 Reptile BioBlitz
Short Recap on Strawberry Creek Canyon
Nevada Bat Plan
A Peek Inside the Wheeler Cirque Glacier
Changes in the Park

Winter 2020 (Vol. 20, No. 2)

Creating a Refugium of Bonneville Cutthroat Trout
A Season of Change at Baker Lake
Temperature Changes across an Elevational Gradient
Resource Management Videos
Highlights of the Hemiptera BioBlitz
New Virtual Tour of Lehman Caves
Reflections on 20 Years of The Midden

Summer 2020 (Vol. 20, No. 1)

Bat Blitzes Show Many Species in Park
Lehman Caves Cave Shield Study
National Invasive Species Awareness Week 2020
Evidence of a Sulfuric Acid Origin for Lehman Caes
Where Did Lehman Caves Dirt Come From?
A Brief History of Great Basin National Park's Green Team
Making the Cave Less Green
USA Cave Animal of the Year

Winter 2019 (Vol. 19, No. 2)

Nineteen Species of Terrestrial Mollusks Found in Park
Bonneville Cutthroat Trout Reintroduced to Snake Creek
New Nevada Book
Lehman Caves Geology Reveals New Discoveries
Strawberry Fire Burned Area Rehabilitation Plan Complete
Cave Management Plans Finalized
Christmas Bird Count 2019

Summer 2019 (Vol. 19, No. 1)

Lichen Diversity in Great Basin National Park
SNPLMA-Funded Strawberry Creek REstoration Project Complete
2019 Snow Survey Results
Don't Move Firewood
GLORIA 2019 Update
Lehman Caves Geology Part III
Night Sky Assessment Shows More Light from Ely
What Happens to Small Mammals with More Trees?
Citizen Science in Action

Winter 2018
Summer 2018
Winter 2017
Summer 2017
Winter 2016
Summer 2016
Winter 2015
Summer 2015
Winter 2014
Summer 2014
Winter 2013
Summer 2013
Winter 2012
Summer 2012
Winter 2011
Summer 2011
Winter 2010
Summer 2010
Winter 2009
Summer 2009
Winter 2008
Summer 2008
Winter 2007
Summer 2007
Winter 2006
Summer 2006
Winter 2005
Summer 2005
Winter 2004
Summer 2004
Winter 2003
Summer 2003
Winter 2002
Summer 2002

 

Woodrats - also known as packrats - are the animals that create middens.

NPS Photo

What is a midden?

"Midden" is the fancy name scientists use for piles of debris that packrats collect near their nests. These piles are made up of seeds, twigs, animal bones and other materials cemented together by urine. Because packrat families will often build onto the same midden for hundreds or even thousands of years, they can be a treasure trove of information for plant ecologists, climatologists and other scientists who want to learn about past conditions dating as far back as 25,000 years ago! Great Basin National Park contains numerous middens. The reason we call our scientific newsletter "The Midden" is because it's also a treasure trove of valuable information. Check it out!