#3 - putting the calf out - 4/1/25

Here (Fig. 1) is the wheelbarrow I used to carry the calf into the woods behind my dorm. You can see the calf in the cage in the background of the image (also shown in Fig. 2).

When wheeling the calf, it was strikingly heavier than I thought it would be, and it took more effort to put the calf back in when the wheelbarrow tipped over. It took me nearly an hour for the whole process - including having to get the wheelbarrow from my school's work shed, pulling the calf out of the freezer (as it had been in there for a while, it was rather stubborn to get out), and the actual act of lugging the wheelbarrow/calf into the woods, and then taking the empty wheelbarrow out of the woods and back to the shed.

In Fig. 2, you can see the calf positioned in the cage surrounded by the cameras. The calf was frozen for a solid few months, and my teacher and I decided that not thawing the calf would be best due to time constraints.

I expect some delay/irregularity with the insect succession at the beginning of the lab due to the lack of thawing. However, as I do not know much about insect succession or the necrophagous insects of Vermont, I could be completely wrong!

I also added a picture of the calf directly out of the freezer (Fig. 3) which I found to be intriguing - probably because of the lack of frozen animals I see day-to-day! And so I thought it was worth including in today's post.

I'm so incredibly excited for the real start of this lab, and to be able to collect data surrounding the insects! As much as I enjoyed the tedious prep work, I'm overjoyed to begin the (still tedious) process of insect collection and preservation, as well as learning more about the carrion insects of Vermont!