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University of Montana - Ph.D. in Wildlife Biology - Projected to Graduate Spring 2029

Project Title: Blackfeet Bison Restoration: trophic cascades, extreme heat, and predation risk

Prior to my fellowship, I was a grizzly bear manager for Montana, Fish, Wildlife and Parks on the East Front of the Rockies where I developed new techniques to keep people safe and bears out of trouble. For my master’s research, I studied mountain goat response to shrinking snowpack and their interactions with bears and people. Beyond that, I lived in Mongolia for a year as a National Geographic Young Explorer and worked on a number of other projects as a field technician. I am a Blackfeet Descendent and grew up in Colorado. Both my master’s and bachelor’s degrees were from the University of Montana. I enjoy hunting, spending time with family, exploring new places, working with dogs/horses, and tinkering on my small farm. 

Blackfeet Bison Restoration: trophic cascades, extreme heat, and predation risk

I am currently at the University of Montana where I am studying bison reintroduction on the Blackfeet Reservation and Glacier International Peace Park for my PhD project with the Boone and Crocket program. I started this PhD program in 2024 and am focused on studying how bison restoration will influence the land and how predators and climate change will influence bison reintroduction success.  Specifically, I will test if bison restoration causes a trophic cascade across multiple species at wetlands. Secondly, I will look at three pathways of how extreme heat will impact bison – thermoregulation, insect harassment, and reduced forage.  Finally, I will experimentally test how bison respond to predation risk. I am broadly interested in predator-prey dynamics, community ecology, human-wildlife conflict, landscape conservation, and how species will respond to extreme weather.