PhD Student
I am positively obsessed with optimizing and expanding the use of detection dogs for non-invasive ecological research. While at OSU, my research will focus on wolf-sea otter interactions in southeastern Alaska. The wolf scat that the dogs find in Alaska will help us answer questions regarding wolf diet, sea otter consumption, and what that means for other terrestrial animals. Separately, I hope to study connectivity and carnivore populations in Central America’s Northern Triangle countries (El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala). We hope to gather information on population numbers for wild felids, mustelids, and carnivores in these under-studied areas and provide information on high-priority areas to be connected as part of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor.
When not working, I am an avid cross-country skier, trail runner, puzzle-doer, and swing/salsa dancer. I am owned by two detection dogs and a tyrannical cat.
I earned my B.A. in ecology at Colorado College and was awarded the NSF-GRFP to support research that leverages conservation detection dogs. I grew up in northern Wisconsin and have lived on and off in Central America for much of my adult life.
CATEGORIES: People