
Will Bass
wbass@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Zach Klein)
Hometown | Atlanta, Georgia
BS | Auburn University
MS Thesis Topic | Stocking strategies and species interactions of Hybrid Striped Bass in Caballo Reservoir, New Mexico

Aaron Blount
aaronblo@nmsu.edu
MS | Plant and Environmental Science Department (Advisor: Wiebke Boeing)
Hometown | Las Cruces, New Mexico
BS | New Mexico State University
MS Thesis Topic | Monoculture vs Polyculture Systems in Aquaponics, focusing on the following: Plant growth, fish growth, water quality and bacteria load in the media/substrate

Kelley Boland
kcboland@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Martha Desmond)
Hometown | San Diego, CA
BS | California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
MS Thesis Topic | Effect of light pollution on bird mortality on the White Sands Missile Range

Scott Boyle
sboyle@nmsu.edu
PhD | Biology (Advisors: Dr. James Cain & Dr. Fitsum Gebreselassie)
Hometown | Littleton, Colorado
BS | Colorado State University
PhD Dissertation Topic | Cause-specific Mortality and Survival of Elk (Cervus canadensis) in the Mexican Wolf Recovery Area in New Mexico and Arizona

Charles Britt
crbritt@nmsu.edu
PhD | Plant and Environmental Science (Advisor: Dr. Fitsum Gebreselassie)
Hometown | Mesquite, Texas
BS | University of Texas – Austin
PhD Dissertation Topic | Application of advanced quantitative techniques to examine long-term raptor datasets in the southwest

Elizabeth Brock
lizbrock@nmsu.edu
MS | Water Science and Management Program (Advisor: Wiebke Boeing)
Hometown | Isleta Pueblo, New Mexico
BS | Haskell Indian Nations University
MS Thesis Topic | Species Composition of the Rio Grande River Macro-invertebrates

Jessica Buskirk
jbuskirk@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: Fitsum Abadi Gebreselassie & Matthew Gompper)
Hometown | Seattle Washington
BS | Washington State University
MS Thesis Topic | Ecology of the desert kit fox (Vulpes macrotis) on the White Sands National Park

Renae Cox
MS: Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: Wiebke Boeing)
Hometown: Boydton, VA
BS: Oregon State University…Go BEAVERS
MS Thesis Topic: Aquatic Ecosystems in an Arid Landscape

Giulio Del Piccolo
giuliodp@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Zach Klein)
Hometown | Basalt, CO
BS | Colorado State University
MS Thesis Topic | Habitat use, movement, and population dynamics of Chihuahua Chub in the Mimbres River, New Mexico

Jordan Ellison
jte1@nmsu.edu
MS | MS, Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: Martha Desmond and Fitsum Gebreselassie)
Hometown | Los Angeles, California
BA | Los Angeles, California
MS Thesis Topic | Burrowing Owl Translocation
Website | Ellison Website

Joanna Raye Ennis
jennis@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: James Cain)
Hometown | Gulf Breeze, Florida
BS | University of Florida
MS Thesis Topic | Identification and characterization of migration routes for mule deer, elk and pronghorn in northern New Mexico

Ashley Evans
adevans@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: James Cain)
Hometown | Otisco, New York
BS | Paul Smith's College
MS Thesis Topic | Effects of human recreation on desert bighorn sheep in southwest Colorado

Kelsie Field
kelsiefield@gmail.com
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Colleen Caldwell)
Hometown: Billings, Montana
BS | University of Montana Western
MS Thesis Topic | Habitat Suitability for Gila chub Reintroduction in the Upper San Francisco River

Breanna Graves
bre94@@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Dr. Zach Klein)
Hometown: Nine Mile Falls, Washington
BS | University of Idaho
MS Thesis Topic | Reproductive success of My Brook Trout

William Grooms
wgrooms@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Dr. Jennifer Frey)
Hometown: Las Cruces, New Mexico
BS | New Mexico State University
MS Thesis Topic | Critically Rare Peñasco Least Chipmunk in a Post-Wildfire Disclimax Community in the Sacramento Mountains to Inform Sound Management

Hailey Jacobson
hnj@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Jennifer Frey)
Hometown | Missoula, Montana
BS | Brown University
MS Thesis Topic | Occupancy analysis on the Organ Mountains Colorado Chipmunk

Matt Keeling
mkeeling@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: James Cain)
Hometown | Baltimore, Maryland
BS | Frostburg State University
MS Thesis Topic | Black bear resource selection: responses to wildfires and forest restoration

Anna Kirby
akirby16@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Dr. Matthew Gompper)
Hometown | Brentwood, New Hampshire
BS | Colorado State University
MS Thesis Topic | Eco-epidemiological, population and community ecology implications of RHDV2 emergence in new world lagomorphs

James Lee
jlee97@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Abby Lawson)
Hometown | Wading River, New York
BS | State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
MS Thesis Topic | White-tailed Ptarmigan Reintroduction

Sam Martinez
smarti12@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: James Cain)
Hometown | Albuquerque, New Mexico
BS | New Mexico State University
MS Thesis Topic | Kill Rates and Prey Composition of Mountain Lions and Mexican Wolves

Coral Matos-Sepulveda
coralm@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: Abby Lawson and Timothy Wright)
Hometown | Miami Beach, FL
BS | College of the Atlantic
MS Thesis Topic | Mexican duck and other dabbling duck use of stocks tanks (diked wetlands) in southeastern Arizona

Michael Miller
mwmiller@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Colleen Caldwell and Zachary Klein)
Hometown | El Jebel, Colorado
BS | Colorado State University
MS Thesis Topic | Population Dynamics and Movement Patterns of YY-male Brook Trout in New Mexico

Bunali Miunika Jagodage
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Wiebke Boeing)
Hometown | Colombo, Sri Lanka
BS | The Open University of Sri Lanka
MS Thesis Topic | Riparian Restoration

Clare O'Connell
clareoc@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Jennifer Frey)
Hometown | East Northport, NY
BS | Humboldt State University
MS Thesis Topic | Multi-scale habitat selection by the Oscura Mountain Colorado Chipmunk

Julia Olson
jolson5@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: James Cain)
Hometown | Eau Claire, WI
BS | University of Minnesota- Twin Cities
MS Thesis Topic | Influence of Mexican gray wolf recovery on elk behavior and foraging ecology

Dylan Osterhaus
dylano@nmsu.edu
PhD | Biology (Advisors: Martha Desmond and Tim Wright)
Hometown | Topeka, Kansas
BS | Emporia State University
MS | Iowa State University
PhD Dissertation Topic | Light pollution and bird migration in the desert southwest

Colton Padilla
coltonp@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: Matt Gompper and James Cain)
Hometown | Tomé, New Mexico
BS | New Mexico State University
MS Thesis Topic | Effects of Forest Fires on Parasites of New Mexican Wildlife

Ruth Passernig
rpass@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: James Cain)
Hometown | Austin, Texas
BS | University of Portland
MS Thesis Topic Mountain lion ecology

Mark Peyton
nmcatmap@nmsu.edu
PhD | Biology (Advisor: James Cani)
Hometown | Vernon, Arizona
BS | Northern Arizona University
MS | Texas Tech University
PhD Dissertation Topic | Mountain lion resource selection and behavior in the Jemex Mountains of northern New Mexico

Savannah Perez
srperez@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: Martha Desmond and Fitsum Gebreselassie)
Hometown | San Diego, California
BS | University of California - Santa Barbara
MS Thesis Topic | The effects of Burrowing Owl translocations in Arizona.

Iona Rohan
irohan@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: Jennifer Frey and Theresa Laverty)
Hometown | Clinton, WA
BS | University of Washington
MS Thesis Topic | Effects of Wind Energy Development on Terrestrial Mammals

Amber Schwartz
ambersch@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Jennifer Frey)
Hometown | Roswell, NM
BS | Georgia Southern University
MS Thesis Topic |

Bianca Sicich
bsicich@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Dr. Martha Desmond and Fitsum Gebreselassie)
Hometown | Austin, Texas
BS | University of Texas at Austin
MS Thesis Topic | Arthropod abundance and habitat characteristics of Pinyon Jay foraging locations in the Lincoln National Forest and surrounding areas

Carleen Silva
cnsilva@nmsu.edu
PhD | Biology (Advisor: Matthew Gompper and Kathryn Hanley)
Hometown | San Antonio, TX
BS | Iowa State University
PhD Dissertation Topic | Effects of an emerging infectious disease, RHDV2, on lagomorphs at the individual, population and community level

John Smith
jsmith97@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Dr. Zach Klein)
Hometown | Emporia, Kansas
BS | Emporia State University
MS Thesis Topic | Sampling designs for the long-term monitoring of lentic and lotic crayfish in Kansas

Maret Smith-Miller
maretsm@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Zach Klein)
Hometown | New York, NY
BA | Colorado College
MS Thesis Topic | Population persistence of Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout in high mountain lakes in northern New Mexico

Brandi Stevenson
sbrandi@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Theresa Laverty)
Hometown | Houston, Texas
BS | University of Houston – Clear Lake
MS Thesis Topic | Ecology of nectar-feeding bats in the southwest

Dan Vargo
djvargo@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Dr. Martha Desmond)
Hometown | Cleveland, Ohio
BS | Cleveland State University
MS Thesis Topic | Bendire's Thrasher Territory Selection

Whitney Watson
wwatson@nmsu.edu
PhD | Biology (Advisors: Abby Lawson & Tim Wright)
Hometown | Minneapolis, Minnesota
BA | Macalester College
MS | University of Wisconsin – Madison
PhD Dissertation Topic | Ecology of rosy-finches in northern New Mexico

Leah White
leahw42@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology (Advisors: James Cain and Fitsum Gebreselassie)
Hometown | Fayetteville, North Carolina
BS | Appalachian State University
MS Thesis Topic | Impacts of forest restoration treatments, prescribed burns, and wildfire on occupancy of large mammals in the Jemez Mountains

Joe Youtz
joeyoutz@nmsu.edu
PhD | Geography (Advisor: Dr. Jennifer Frey)
MS | Arkansas State University
Hometown | Edgewood, New Mexico
BS | Cleveland State University
PhD Dissertation Topic | Wildlife-Habitat-Thermal Relations in Pinyon Woodlands

Heather Zimba
hzimba@@nmsu.edu
MS | Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology (Advisor: Abby Lawson)
Hometown | Cooperstown, New York
BS | Suny College of Environmental Science and Forestry
MS Thesis Topic | Bolson Tortoise Reintroduction Ecology