Background

I am originally from Atlanta, Georgia where I grew up playing in the woods and creeks around our house with my little brother. These early experiences, and parents who didn't readily let us stay in the house on nice days, helped foster and cement what was to be a life-long fascination with nature.
    After attending the University of Georgia for my undergraduate degree in Ecology, I worked for a couple years as a biological laboratory and field technician for projects in Maryland, Virginia, and south Georgia. I then went on to complete a master's degree in Biology at Purdue University followed by a doctoral degree in Wildlife Ecology at The University of Georgia, Athens.  I am currently a postdoctoral associate at The University of Florida working in the lab of Madan K. Oli on the population ecology of the threatened Eastern Indigo Snake (Drymarchon couperi).
    My research interests predominantly center on problems in wildlife conservation, particularly those concerning herpetofaunal species in the eastern United States.  I am interested in understanding ecological factors that influence patterns of species composition and local population persistence or extinction.  Paralleling this, I am concerned with wildlife use of specific resources within a landscape, including spatial requirements and habitat features which are critical for the persistence of populations in a geographic region.  Broadly, these research interests are aimed at biodiversity conservation through understanding environmental requirements of populations and communities.