I strive to conduct research that concurrently explores the evolutionary ecology of species and results in the provision of data-driven research products and spatial tools relevant to the management of wildlife species of conservation concern. I am involved in a large-scale conservation genetics project that aims to understand population structure and to identify landscape and environmental features critical to maintaining genetic connectivity for greater sage-grouse. Our efforts are in close collaboration with state and federal agencies responsible for sage grouse management across the species’ range. For the last few years I’ve been working to identify critical habitat for two different woodpecker species of conservation concern. Lewis’s woodpecker, reliant upon post-wildfire habitat and the tree snags therein for foraging, nesting, and brood rearing. White-headed woodpecker, reliant upon in-tact forested landscapes. I leverage habitat selection models and occupancy models to determine critical habitat and to quantify the effects of management decisions on species occupancy, then create spatial tools from these models for use in decision support for natural resource managers. [Website] [Google Scholar]

I received my Bachelor of Science in Biology from another UW, the University of Wyoming, in 2000.  After working in a variety of capacities in wildlife research and management, I returned to the University of Wyoming and received a Master of Science in the Ecosystem Science and Managements Department in 2012.  My Master’s project focused primarily on predicting greater sage-grouse selection and fitness on a landscape scale in an area influenced by energy development and assessing microhabitat vegetation conditions that are most important to female greater sage-grouse during the reproductive period in xeric sagebrush habitats. My interests broadly lie in applied research informing science-based wildlife management and conservation planning. To date, my research has focused on the sagebrush-steppe ecosystem and sagebrush obligate avian species such as the sage-grouse. My research has explored sage-grouse habitat at microhabitat and macrohabitat scales, primarily in human-altered sagebrush landscapes. Specifically, my research explores how habitat quality—the ability of the environment to provide conditions suitable for individual and population persistence—is compromised by human features and activities, such as oil and gas development, and what can be changed to reduce the impacts of these activities. e-mail: chriskirol@gmail.com

As an outdoor enthusiast I am interested in using applied wildlife research to develop sustainable wildlife management strategies, specifically for game species. I completed my MSc at the University of New Brunswick, where I researched the effects of commercial forestry on the distribution of American black ducks. Prior to that I completed an honours BSc in Biology at Trent University. I am excited to combine sophisticated statistical modelling and spatial ecology techniques in my PhD research in the Fedy lab. For this project I will be analyzing movement data from sandhill cranes outfitted with GPS transmitters. Sandhill cranes were once close to extinction but have made a remarkable recovery and are re-occupying their historic range. Cranes often feed in agricultural areas, and the crane population growth has been associated with an increase in crop damage, particularly in agricultural areas along the edge of the Boreal forest in Ontario and Quebec. My research, in partnership with the Canadian Wildlife Service, will fill information gaps in crane habitat use and spatial ecology which will then be used to determine areas most susceptible to crop damage and develop mitigation strategies to minimize crop loss. e-mail: kelly.mclean@uwaterloo.ca

From a young age I’ve been passionate about the preservation of the natural world and biodiversity which has led me to pursue research in the field of ecology. I received my BSc and Certificate of Specialization in Animal Behaviours and Environmental Impact Assessment at Dalhousie University. During this degree, I researched the effects of chronic stress on reproductive fitness in field crickets, and the effects of glutathione on illness induced anorexia in *Manduca* caterpillars. For my MSc at the University of Waterloo in Dr. Rooney’s lab, I examined the determinants of avian communities in Rocky Mountain peatlands. Currently, I am pursuing a PhD in Dr. Fedy’s Lab at the University of Waterloo. For my thesis, I will analyze greater sage-grouse genetic and movement data and examine the abundance and distribution of avian predators. This research will address fundamental questions in ecology and contribute to the conservation and management of the greater sage-grouse and sagebrush steppe habitat. e-mail: jordan.reynolds@uwaterloo.ca