Why Conservation Is Awesome (A few of the best fieldwork fails)

I love it – #fieldworkfail has to be the best thing that ever happened on Twitter (right after #IamaScientistBecause). All the best made plans rapidly unravel whenever you put scientists into the field, and here’s how.

Tagging Weddell seal pups, Antarctica. Failed to spot mum. 2 canines in right buttock. Tagged for life #fieldworkfail

— Jonathan Grey (@ProfJGrey) August 1, 2015

When your drugged zebra finds the ONE tree on the Namibian plains, which also has a neck-height fork #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/2iUx2uxGNB

— Carrie Cizauskas (@CarrieCizauskas) August 3, 2015

For 20% of my camera traps, this was their fate: death by elephant #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/7egiXCsv1G

— Aditya Gangadharan (@AdityaGangadh) July 31, 2015

Rough, passing supplies from boat. Case of beer fell in sea. Dangled field leader by ankles. Retrieved beer, lost leader. #fieldworkfail ? — Hannah Grist (@hgloki) July 31, 2015

Having to switch on my laptop 1hr before using it so resident ants evacuate & I can use my keyboard #Borneorainforest #fieldworkfail

— Carly Lynsdale (@CarlyLynsdale) July 31, 2015

Swatting away a wasp whilst holding a bat. Accidentally threw the bat at the wasp #thewaspfled #fieldworkfail — Dave Bennett (@hammerheadbat) July 31, 2015

Spent 15 min. in W. Texas trying to identify rodent in live trap. Field guide failed to help. It was a Hamster. #fieldworkfail

— Corey Welch (@CoreyWelch_STEM) July 30, 2015

@AnneWHilborn thinking you are alone having a peaceful pee, only to see a male leopard walk right past you! #fieldworkfail — Katherine Orrick (@KaggleRock) July 30, 2015

Accidentally glued myself to a crocodile while attaching a radio transmitter. #fieldworkfail

— Agata Staniewicz (@AgataStaniewicz) July 30, 2015

Sank the boat in the middle of a crocodile survey. Twice. #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/cYSQ9DkA4F — Agata Staniewicz (@AgataStaniewicz) July 30, 2015

When you lose any entire wheel on drive. I mean an entire wheel. #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/jumKxa0bZI

— Katherine Orrick (@KaggleRock) July 30, 2015

bobcat wouldn’t leave cage trap. jumped/hissed at him to scare him off. he jumped/hissed back. bobcat spit in my mouth. #fieldworkfail — Rebecca April (@beckoftheyukon) August 1, 2015

Went all the way to Antarctica to study scallop swimming, scallops attached to rocks and don’t swim. Ever. #fieldworkfail

— David Bailey (@davemarinebio) July 31, 2015

.@AnneWHilborn How about your advisor getting two trucks stuck in the same spot in < 30 minutes? #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/J9cB9NjKPn — Chris Rowe (@chrisrowebot) July 30, 2015

Thinking you are alone having a peaceful pee, only to straighten up and find cars full of tourists looking at you. #fieldworkfail

— Anne Hilborn (@AnneWHilborn) July 30, 2015

Waiting 45 minutes to see if there was a cheetah hidden in this shrubbery was a #fieldworkfail. There wasn’t. pic.twitter.com/XqIgZ2spuY

— Anne Hilborn (@AnneWHilborn) July 30, 2015

I hit a southern brown bandicoot driving home from my day restoring habitat for southern brown bandicoots :-/ #fieldworkfail

— myrtle violet (@myrtleviolet) July 31, 2015

Radio tracking tuna. Hailed by battleship. Warned they’re doing live missile drills. Cap’n “but we’re doing science’ #fieldworkfail #byetuna

— Rebecca Bew (@Ragbag01) August 1, 2015

Vintage #FieldWorkFail Park new snowmobiles on frozen lake & go to bed. Unusual warm front arrives in night. Result? pic.twitter.com/NmM7xbRqqb

— Jim Elser (@ArizonaJJE) August 1, 2015

“We don’t need an off-road vehicle. The roads aren’t so bad.” Turns out they were bad. #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/JF8kseQ8qf

— Simon Proud (@simon_rp84) August 1, 2015

When a sperm whale baby gets entangled in your recording rig. Big mama arrives and is not amused. #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/3TtT8KyZDG

— Markus Fix (@lispmeister) August 1, 2015

@beckoftheyukon “Count the crab burrows, they said. It’ll be easy, they said…” #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/DXZmmOyfzj

— Sabah (@reina_sabah) August 1, 2015

.@reina_sabah #FieldWorkFail JUST COUNT THEM WHATS THE BIG DEAL pic.twitter.com/ZL5BuO7IXa

— Rebecca April (@beckoftheyukon) August 1, 2015

Not quite a #fieldworkfail, but a naturalist fail: Got super excited by a “field” riddled with “puffball mushrooms”: It was a driving range.

— Rob O’ Sullivan (@Rob0Sullivan) August 3, 2015

Did my PhD measuring CO2 flux above a forest, suddenly wasn't there anymore…! FC felled wrong forest #fieldworkfail pic.twitter.com/wnzcALOOlx

— Sigrid Dengel (@sigrid_dengel) August 4, 2015

Hand-scooped a weird-looking sea cucumber in Boracay. "Sea cucumber" turns out to be dog poop. #PoopRollingInTheDeep #FieldworkFail

— biologe ໒( ﹒ ͜ر ﹒ )७ (@biologypls) August 4, 2015