Bringing awareness of social justice issues in ecology to the classroom.
Northern Colorado American Robin Project
This research project investigates the behaviors of one of the most proliferate "urban birds", the American Robin in a rapidly urbanizing area. I use leading techniques to measure noise, light, and landscape along an urban to rural gradient in Weld County, Colorado. I will couple these data with data on bird song characteristics, nesting location, and reproductive output to understand how this species is responding to environmental changes. I have completed my final field season in 2021 and am preparing this data for my dissertation defense in March 2021. For more information on this project click the link below!
Barriers to Biology Doctoral Student Degree Completion
There are a myriad of barriers that keep doctoral students from completing their degrees. These barriers may disproportionately effect students from historically minoritized groups in STEM. In this research, we tested for the effects of demographics, science identity, sense of belonging, and grit (passion and persistence) on how doctoral students perceive barriers. We surprisingly found that only grit contributes to perceived barriers. This manuscript is currently under review for publication. Check back for a link to the document!
Spotted Towhee song over a 45 year time-period
In collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley, we are investigating how bird song in a population of Spotted Towhees has changed over 45 years. We have a data set of recordings from 1970 and 2015 from the same localities near the bay area and Berkeley, California. A manuscript for this project is currently under review for publication.
Previous Research Experience
After leaving Rio Tinto, I went on to work with the Utah Division of Wildlife where I helped manage the brineshrimp population on Great Salt Lake as well as participated in several shorebird, waterfowl, and seabird management tasks.
My career in ecological research began at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, UT. There, I studied the bioaccumulation of methyl-mercury from an aquatic environment to a terrestrial environment. In addition to this project, I studied female Northern Mockingbirds singing and singing on their nests.
After college, I worked as an intern for Rio Tinto Kennecott where I helped to manage the Inland Sea Shorebird Reserve (ISSR) where I conducted a predatory study on several shorebird species (and is where I snapped that awesome picture of the snowy plover to the left!).