PhD Student (2026-present)

Howdy! My research is part of a long-term Canada Jay population monitoring project in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario. I will be using 50+ years of data to assess potential drivers and consequences of population decline. Climate is a well-known contributing factor affecting Canada Jay cached food stores, but the population may also be affected by climate in other ways or be affected by non-climate factors including interspecific interactions or inbreeding depression. I will examine how these factors affect not just the Algonquin population but also Canada Jay population trends across the species range.

I graduated with a BS in Wildlife Science and a minor in Environmental Writing from SUNY-ESF in Syracuse, New York in 2017. I spent five years working as a field technician on numerous projects and study species, including moose, trees, bats, skunks, bobcat, and songbirds. In 2025 I earned my Master’s from Oregon State University researching common ravens and greater sage-grouse population management. Away from my work you’ll either find me outside looking for birds or instead drawing them!

Publications

Perry, L. R., R. L. Kelble, V. N. Brewer, C. E. Christensen, M. E. Kerstens, T. M. Owens, M. A. Sampognaro, D. L. Zahor, R. A. Zitomer, S. H. Austin, J. M. Cornelius, J. B. Dinkins, S. J. K. Frey, C. E. Frisinger, S. M. LeQuier, C. G. Lundblad, J. Oskowski, H. R. Perlman, W. J. Price, R. Rich, K. A. Ruth, V. M. Schroeder, S. B. Szabo, and J. W. Rivers. 2024. Ten simple rules for implementing a successful field season. PLOS Computational Biology, 20, e1012189. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012189