When Tiffany Muellner isn’t talking about Blue Mounds State Park as part of her job as park naturalist, she’s busy visiting other parks.
“It is almost kind of funny that when I am not at work at the park, I am visiting parks for vacation,” she said.
Her life goal is to visit each Minnesota State Park and all of the national parks.
She’ll enjoy each park visit for various reasons.
“I literally can’t pick a favorite park because they are so unique and different. There is something I have loved at every park I have ever worked in or ever been to,” she said.
Muellner became the park naturalist at Blue Mounds in June. She was immediately drawn to the area’s Sioux quartzite rock outcrops.
“It’s small in earth scale but it’s so unique to here,” she said. “It is a really cool rock, which is a weird thing for a farm girl to say — I’ve picked a lot of rocks — but this one’s pretty.”
Muellner’s rock picking was at the family’s dairy farm near Sauk Center, in central Minnesota. On her days off, she often finds herself helping her mom and dad along with her brother on the farm.
“Whatever I can do to be outside, that is the main goal,” she said.
In high school Muellner knew she didn’t want a career in agriculture. She found a possible focus in the natural resources field, while attending the state FFA convention one year.
“I knew I wanted something that would allow me to be outdoors and something that, at least, sometimes worked with animals,” she said.
Muellner competed in the FFA fish and wildlife contests for several years, and her interest in wildlife and natural resources has only grown.
She attended the University of Minnesota Crookston, receiving degrees in natural resources and wildlife management. For nine years she worked in various resource positions before coming to Luverne full time.
“I’ve pretty much been in every corner of the state,” Muellner said. “Between school, living and working I’ve been around the state. Luverne is the farthest south I’ve been.”
And she wants more people to experience the Sioux quartzite in southwest Minnesota and the bison.
“I’ve learned so much about bison in my first position and there is so much more to learn,” she said. “It has been incredible to come and work and see these big beasts outside my window.”
Muellner will share her bison knowledge from Memorial Day through Labor Day as she leads the scheduled 10 tours a week. Her predecessor, Amber Brooks, secured the bison buggy and launched the tours two years ago.
“All the logistics are here and I can make the tour my own for visitors to meet such a cool animal,” she said.
Last fall and now into the winter season, Muellner has organized education classes through Luverne Community Education and has conducted or will conduct different educational events at the state park.
Her more recent was the New Year hike on Jan. 1.
She has several more events scheduled before and after the snow melts that include beavers, a candlelight hike and possibly an activity with her favorite bird, the red-tailed hawk.
“To me, if I pique people’s interest, that’s a win,” she said. “And if I make them think of something that they may never have thought about before, I feel like I’ve done my job.”