The College of Life Sciences Range Management Team took first place in the Undergraduate Range Management Exam (URME) and the plant identification competition at the Utah Society for Range Management (USRM) meeting.
BYU students also won individual awards in the URME and the plant identification competition.
- Eliza Cash took first place in both categories.
- Russell Torgersen took second place in the URME exam and third place in the plant identification competition.
- Cole Kempton took third place in the URME.
- Raechel Hunsaker took second in the plant identification competition.
Curtis Drake, wildlife conservation graduate student, and Matt Madsen, plant and wildlife sciences professor, coached the URME team. Janetta Teichert, environmental science graduate student, and April Hulet, plant and wildlife sciences associate professor, coached the plant identification team.
Brigham Young University, Southern Utah University, Snow College, and Utah State University were the four schools represented at this year’s event.
According to the USRM website, the URME covers topics such as rangeland ecology, grazing management, range improvement, rangeland inventory and analysis, and multiple-use relationships. The plant identification contest requires participants to identify 100 plants using specimens and a list of 200 different species.
“We are super proud of the team and will continue preparing for our international competition in January 2024,” Hulet said.