I hail from Hoosick Falls in Upstate New York. My undergraduate education was at Hobart and William Smith Colleges with degrees in Biology and Environmental Studies. Prior to starting my career in wildlife, I worked as an environmental educator at the Finger Lakes Institute, and served as Assistant Director of the Environmental Studies Summer Youth Institute.

My start in wildlife began as a technician for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, where I captured and collared pheasants during frigid Minnesota nights. Just as the weather got nice, my wife and I moved down to boiling hot Starkville, Mississippi, where I earned my M.S. degree in Wildlife, Fisheries, and Aquaculture at Mississippi State University. My thesis research studied population genetics of white-tailed deer in the Southeast. I also pitched in on a project studying the genetic effects of restoration on the recently restored population of elk in eastern Kentucky.

I recently completed my PhD at the University of Georgia, where I studied coyote populations in South Carolina using noninvasive genetic sampling. The project was a collaborative effort including the UGA Deer Lab, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Forest Service, and the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory. The study was designed to estimate coyote densities across the state through spatial capture-recapture, investigate resource selection and diet, and assess population genetic structure.

In my spare time, I enjoy hanging out with my wife, kids and our menagerie of rescue animals, and exploring the outdoors through hunting, fishing, and hiking. I’m an avid cook, passionate about introducing people to the delight of field to fork dining.