Lab

Current Lab Members

Nate Rice, MS Student

Nate is pursuing his MS degree at the University of Idaho, under the co-supervision of Dr. Dave Ausband (Idaho Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Unit). Nate’s project focuses on habitat selection and connectivity of grizzly bears in the Cabinet/Yaak, Selkirk, and Bitterroot ecosystems using GPS tracking data.

Walker Field, MS Student

Walker is pursuing his MS degree at the University of Idaho. His primary research interests include management-based research for imperiled species, working with landowners to meet conservation goals while mitigating conflict, and studying interactions between wild and domestic species and how those interactions are influenced by both biotic and abiotic covariates. His MS research is focused on greater sage-grouse and cattle in a spatial context; specifically, how grouse and their broods use the landscape in the presence of cattle, and what factors contribute to successful and unsuccessful brood rearing.

Past Lab Members

Ronan Hart, MS 2022

Ronan earned his MS degree at Utah State University in 2022, under the co-supervision of Dr. Tal Avgar (Biodiversity Pathways, Canada). Ronan's project focused on the effects of anthropogenic linear features on the space use behavior of mule deer and pronghorn in Utah: using GPS-tracking data from the Utah Migration Initiative, Ronan quantified how these two sympatric ungulates are affected by roads and fences, and whether they respond more strongly to the presence of roads or the traffic on them. Ronan is now a Spatial Ecologist in Dr. Gavin Jones' lab at the University of New Mexico and the Rocky Mountain Research Station!

Courtney Check, MS 2023

Courtney earned her MS degree at Utah State University in 2023, under the co-supervision of Dr. Tal Avgar (Biodiversity Pathways, Canada) and Dr. Garrett Street (Mississippi State University). Courtney's project focused on competition between wild and domestic ungulates: using a combination of GPS-tracking and camera trap data, Courtney tested a set of alternative hypotheses to identify the mechanisms driving competition between cattle and mule deer in Utah. Courtney is currently pursuing her PhD as an NSF GRFP Fellow under the supervision of Dr. Clark Rushing at the University of Georgia!