I’ve been working under this internship for about 5 weeks in the Angeles National Forest and I’ve learned so much. Coming from Los Angeles itself you always see those mountains in the far distance but actually being there is a whole other experience. Watching the rivers and creeks flow downstream, watching the water flow. Seeing dragonflies over the water and birds above flying over such wide landscapes. It’s very beautiful seeing such a variety of these animals and plants. There’s so much life even when you can’t see it out explicitly you can look around and find such interesting bugs. Learning the native plants and animals in the Angeles National Forest. Another great thing is meeting a variety of people in the park. Talking to those people can lead you to learning new things not specifically around the park but from around the world. An example of this would be when tabling at the Red Box location. On that hot day during the weekend there was at least 60 visitors passing by. Sharing with them what local wildlife life in the Angeles National Forest. One person said they came from Louisiana and talked about the Nutria Rat and how it is invasive and devastating for wetland habitats. We related that to invasive species at the park. Such as the red eared slider (turtle) and bullfrogs. These eat and take space that is meant for native species. Not only that but we learned a bit of the history from a local volunteer who was part of the native community nearby. He talked not only about the local wildlife they have seen but the history of the mountains. What was once there before the Spanish Mission System. Talking about the local communities and how they sustained themselves of the land. Those stories and informative talks help me understand and appreciate the park even more so.