Lucy joined our lab as the new Wyoming North American Bat Monitoring Program (NABat) Coordinator and Assistant Research Scientist. In this new position, Lucy is responsible for coordinating bat acoustic monitoring throughout the state, uploading and sharing data for partners and collaborators, and getting undergrads involved in bat acoustic studies. Lucy first started working with bats while a technician in Yellowstone National Park in 2019 and has continued to study the taxa from Ohio to Alaska!

Academic Background:

M.Sc., Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Ohio University, 2022

B.Sc., Wildlife Conservation, University of Rio Grande, 2019

Some of the 2025 field crew assisting with captures and vaccination at a site in Wyoming. From L - R: Andrew S. (volunteer), Noah Y. (COTO crew), Dante C-D. (COTO crew), Julia Y. (COTO crew), Melissa M. (WGFD, soon to be Bernard Research Lab), and Riley Bernard (PI Bernard Research Lab).

Renee joined the Bernard Research Lab in Fall 2021 and is investigating bat population and community composition world at Wind Cave National Park, Mt. Rushmore National Monument, and Jewel Cave National Monument. Her research will be used to help the National Park Service make informed management decisions that will aid in the conservation of WNS-sensitive species. She is looking forward to collaborating with the National Parks Service and the Wyoming Natural Diversity Database to make natural resource conservation more inclusive and accessible to all. Renee's research is funded by the National Park Service.

When she is not taking classes and collecting field data, she enjoys rock climbing, hiking, birding, and camping (especially in the National Parks). She also enjoys visiting her hometown of Lakewood, CO, and catching up with friends over a nice cup of espresso.

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State University, 2020

Media:

USFWS - To catch a bat, you must become a bat

Julia joined the Bernard Research Lab as the Lead technician for the Guernsey Bat Project in June 2023 and transitioned to her Master's project Fall 2023. The focus of Julia's master's project is to improve our understanding of Corynorhinus townsendii (COTO; Townsend's big-eared bat) roosting and movement behavior. The information gained from her project will be implemented in the Wyoming Game and Fish COTO management plan.

When not out in the field, Julia enjoys caving, horseback riding, hiking, downhill and cross country skiing and spending time with her cat. She is very outgoing and loves hanging out with old friends and meeting new people. 

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Forest Resources/Fisheries and Wildlife (Wildlife Sciences emphasis), University of Georgia, 2021

Media:

Wyoming Military - University of Wyoming student's research project to protect Camp Guernsey bat population

Platte County Record-Times - Rocks and bats: SHAPPS host a pair of speakers

Pronouns: She/Her

Ashley has been a part of the lab, as a seasonal technician, for two years and started as a Masters student in Spring 2025. Her research project is focused on helping the South Dakota Bureau of Land Management fill data gaps related to bat occupancy and habitat use in the Northern Black Hills. 

She got into bats during her first internship in college while netting for southeastern myotis in western Kentucky. Since then, Ashley has been working with bats as a technician in the southeastern and western US. Her hobbies include wildlife photography, rock climbing, hiking, and camping.

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Wildlife and Conservation Biology, Murray State University, 2022

Pronouns: she/her

Morgan joined the lab in Spring 2025 to start working on a project investigating the effects of forestry management practices on bat habitat selection and use in a fire prone ecosystem in eastern Montana. Morgan will continue to work closely with Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, as well as with the Miles City outpost of the Bureau of Land Management.

Morgan's interest in bats started when she dressed up as a little brown bat in the third grade. Then, in 2023 and 2024 she worked with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks for two seasons to study the impacts of WNS on bat populations in Montana. Morgan spends her free time in the woods and on the water. She enjoys dog sledding and skiing in the winter, and spends her summers climbing, backpacking, and rafting. 

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Biological Sciences, Montana State University, 2021

Pronouns: she/her

Melissa will join the lab in August 2025 to start working on a project that involves surveying bridges around Wyoming in search of bats! Melissa will work closely with Wyoming Department of Transportation to monitor bridges to investigate what time of year our Wyoming bat species will be arriving and leaving for the season. 

Melissa’s fascination with bats started when she was on a college study abroad trip back in 2017. After graduating with her undergraduate degree from Texas State University, she became a Subterranean Crew Lead Technician with Bat Conservation International surveying Texas caves. Melissa spends her time on trail runs, hiking, rock climbing, and swimming.

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Wildlife Biology, Texas State University, 2018

Bio to come!

Riley joined the Bernard Research Lab in Fall 2024 to work with graduate students and PIs on recently gathered acoustics and game camera data collected from the field. Riley is currently working as a research technician for the lab. Additionally, he will begin undergraduate research with the lab and the Wyoming Research Scholars Program (WRSP), focusing on Hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) habitat use during fall and spring migration seasons in Wyoming. This research aims to help guide wind energy development to reduce Hoary bat mortality during migration. Outside the lab, Riley enjoys gaming, music, hiking, and learning something new every day.

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Wildlife & Fisheries Biology & Management, University of Wyoming, Anticipated Spring 2026

A.S., Biology, Northwest College (Powell, Wyoming), Spring 2024

Noah joined the Bernard Research Lab in Fall 2022 to assist Renee Lile and Nick Kovacs with ectoparasite identification. Noah is currently working as a Wyoming INBRE undergraduate researcher for the lab. His research focuses on ectoparasites loads found on bats in the eastern Wyoming and western South Dakota regions. As research in these regions on bat ectoparasites is sparse he hopes that this research will help build more knowledge in this area. In his free time Noah enjoys reading, hiking, birding, playing games (board and video), and going to coffee shops.

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Wildlife & Fisheries Management, University of Wyoming, Anticipated 2026

Logan completed his Master's Fall 2023. His project investigated the use of bridges by bats in Wyoming. Logan's research was funded by the University of Wyoming Department of Zoology & Physiology, University of Wyoming Arts and Science, Wyoming INBRE, Wyoming Department of Transportation and Wyoming Game and Fish Department (Wyoming Governor's Big Game License Coalition Grant). He worked collaboratively with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and Wyoming Department of Transportation.

Academic Background:

M.Sc., Zoology & Physiology, University of Wyoming, 2023

B.Sc., Biology, University of Wyoming - Casper, 2020

A.Sc., Biology, Casper College, 2017

Nick was with the Bernard Research Lab from Summer 2021 to Fall 2023 and led research teams on Camp Guernsey Joint Military Base. Specifically, he and the teams collected data to determine the habitat and roost selection of bats that have experienced dramatic declines in the eastern extent of their range. Nick's research was funded by the Wyoming Military Department and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Fish & Wildlife Management, Eastern Kentucky University, 2016

A.Sc., Fish & Wildlife Management Technology, Haywood Community College, 2013

MacKenzie joined the Bernard Research Lab as a Work Study student in Fall 2023. Her primary task has been to create the Wyoming Bat Working Group web page, which will be used as a landing page for public questions about bats in the state!

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Zoology, University of Wyoming - Casper, 2025

A.Sc., Casper College

Taylor joined the Bernard Research Lab as an undergraduate researcher in Fall 2021 working on identifying Eimeria in bat guano collected from bridge roosts. After some time trying out other fields, she joined the lab as a summer technician on Renee Lile's PhD project in the South Dakota Black Hills in 2023. Now she is diving into her own research trying to investigate when VHF signals are lost in rock and crevice roosts, a question that plagued her and the team this summer. 

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Zoology, University of Wyoming - Casper, 2024

A.Sc., Biology, Casper College

Andrew joined the lab as a work study student in Fall 2022 and quickly dove into the data (acoustic data collected in Guernsey and South Dakota and camera data collected under bridges). He started asking questions about changes in bat species composition as WNS moved through the region and presented data at two WY-TWS meetings. Andrew has also be instrumental in helping graduate students with their research, including counting bats in caves!

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Wildlife and Fisheries Management, University of Wyoming, 2024

Caroline joined the Lab in Fall 2023 as an INBRE research student. Her primary foci will be to identify prey consumed by bats captured at Guernsey Joint Military Base (2021 - 2023). She is also working on her honors project focused on Big Brown bat diet via isotopes. Caroline is majoring in Botany and is planning on pursuing her Masters in Botany upon graduation Spring 2025.

Academic Background:

B.Sc., Botany, University of Wyoming, 2025

A.Sc., Casper College, 2023