The second ever Black Mammalogist's Week will begin May 1st, 2022!Get ready!

Black Fishers

Black Hunters

9/13: Sunday Kickoff

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Black Mammalogists Week logo!

9/14: Misunderstood Mammal Monday

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Spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta)!

9/15: Technique Tuesday

American badger (Taxidea taxus)!

9/16: WeOutHere Wednesday

Leopard (Panthera pardus)!

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9/17: Threatened Mammals Thursday

Red panda (Ailurus fulgens)!

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9/18: Forage Friday (1)

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Grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis)!

9/18: Forage Friday (2)

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Llama (Lama glama)!

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9/19: Sea Mammal Saturday

Coastal wolf (Canis lupus columbianus)!

Kaylee Arnold: Born in Oceanside, CA, currently living in Athens to complete my PhD. I am a disease ecologist, and I study the gut microbiomes of animals to better understand how infectious diseases are spread across altered landscapes. Fun fact: I regularly teach hip hop and tap dance classes at a local studio.

Kendall Calhoun: Raised in the Central Valley of California (Tracy, CA woo!), but currently living in Oakland, CA. My research interests revolve around understanding how global change pressures impact community ecology and conservation. Currently, I’m using camera traps and GPS collars to understand the impacts of California wildfires on native mammal communities. Fun fact: I didn’t grow up learning an instrument, but using quarantine to teach myself ukulele.

Gabi Fleury: Originally from Boston MA, I am currently located outside of Washington DC where I work at a conservation NGO and am preparing to go on a Fulbright to Botswana in 2021. My research interests include human-wildlife conflict mitigation, interdisciplinary tech for wildlife development, and community-based conservation, particularly within Southern and Eastern Africa. Fun fact: I was almost an engineer before I went into conservation. I currently co-design environmental education video games and am involved in amateur robotics.

Dr. Nyeema Harris: Born and raised in Philadelphia. My research focuses on understanding the biogeography of ecological communities. To understand this, I've used biogeochemistry, genetics, telemetry, parasitology, and non-invasive monitoring like camera traps. Fun fact: I lived in Switzerland for a year.

Justine Hudson: Born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. My research focuses on using endocrine techniques to better understand the life histories of Arctic marine mammals and the potential impacts of climate change and human activity. Fun fact: I’m also a beekeeper!

Dr. Jen Hunter: I was born and raised in Seattle, WA and currently live in Carmel Valley, CA where I work as the resident director at the Hastings Natural History Reservation, a biological field station of the University of California, Berkeley. I got my PhD in ecology from UC Davis where I studied intraguild competition and predation in mammalian carnivores. Fun fact: In college I worked as a medical assistant and x-ray technician.

Tykee James: North Philadelphia born but not raised, a collection of states is where I spent most of my days: CA, WI, TX. Only to return to Philly for my senior year in high school where I started my career in conversation. My first job was an environmental educator in my own neighborhood. I'm currently based out of D.C. and while I don't study mammals academically, mammalogists' research informs my policy positions. Wildlife conservation is a critical aspect of the environmental movement. It can be a barometer for climate solutions, land management strategies, and even public health. Fun fact: I've been dancing salsa y bachata since I was 12!

Joelle Jenkins: Hello everyone, my name is Joelle Jenkins and I am from (and currently live in) Denver, Colorado. My research more so looks at the varying identities Black individuals hold and how that may impact their consideration of natural environments (CNE). My research question is “How do elements (i.e., gender, sexuality, socioeconomic status, level of education, etc.) of one’s Black identity inform their experiences with the natural environment, and why do they feel that way?” This is important because race is not the greatest/only indicator of who likes or can show concern for nature. Fun fact: My favorite animal is a spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta).

Rhiannon Kirton: I was raised in the UK and Australia. I currently live in Ontario, Canada. As an MSc student I am studying the spatial interactions and movement ecology of white tailed deer and hunters in the cross timbers ecoregion of Oklahoma. To do this I use GIS and R statistical software. Fun fact: I have tattoos of some of the species I worked with in British Columbia!

Dr. Danielle N. Lee: Hometown: Memphis, Tennessee, born and raised in South Memphis. I currently live in the St. Louis Metro area and I am an Assistant Professor of Biology at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. I am interested in the natural history, ecology, and behavior of nuisance rodents. I’m curious to better understand how various mice and rats species continue to vex people no matter where we live or how we live. My research involves live-trapping, marking and release, as well as behavioral responses to novelty such as open field arenas, novel food approach and coping tactics. Fun fact: I’m really good at finding four-leaf clovers.

Asia Murphy: Cali-born (west side is the best side), currently in Pennsylvania. My research focuses on answering a variety of population and community-based questions about wildlife using camera traps and I believe that conservation issues today are based firmly in colonial injustices of the past. Fun fact: bungee gum possesses the properties of both rubber and gum.

Jazmin (Sunny) Murphy: I was raised in Riverside and a rural, middle-of-nowhere town known as Beaumont, CA. After studying both in the University of California, Santa Barbara and remotely through American Public University, I began researching the cognitive and behavioral ecology of Canis latrans, the coyote, primarily using camera traps and tracking. Wildlife research and conservation has always been a central interest in my life, and now, as a writer, I hope to stir up the same enthusiasm I feel for these topics in the public, especially BIPOC. Fun fact: Occasionally, I worked as a drone operator in the Serengeti when studying the Great Migration!

Dr. Tommy Parker: I was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee...home of the blues and barbecue, however, I currently reside in Louisville, KY...home of The Greatest and the Derby! My research addresses the question, “What are the habitat and landscape features of cities that influence the ecological adaptations and biodiversity of mammals in urban systems?” I quantify and model vegetation, human created cover (buildings, paved areas, etc.) and population characteristics of mammals at the habitat and landscape scales. At each scale, I focus on the relationship among population-level dynamics, behavior, and resource use. Fun fact: I can sleep standing up.

Dr. Christopher J. Schell: My name is Chris Schell, and I’m from Pasadena, CA. My research program asks questions that center on how urban environments drive adaptive behavioral, physiological, and genomic traits in urban carnivores, with a particular eye on the contributions of structural inequalities to such processes. Fun fact: I play alto saxophone, and was part of a band called Saturn Jazz that dropped an (albeit, decades old) album.

Alex Troutman: Born in Atlanta, GA and raised in Austell, GA. I’m currently in Statesboro, GA pursuing a masters in conservation biology of wetland systems. I’m looking at the prey and predator relations of arthropods and Seaside Sparrows of Tidal marshes on the Georgia Coast. My most recent mammalian research focused on diversity and abundance of Bat species in Crocker Range National Park in Sabah Malaysia and using camera traps to assess the presence of predators in tidal marshes. As an undergrad I studied early successional habitat selection in Old Field mice. Currently my interactions with mammals is focused on trapping and relocating nuisance mammals like Groundhogs. Fun fact: My name is Troutman but I have never caught or ate a Trout before.

Liz Wahid: I am originally from and currently back in Salisbury, NC. I am a Science Illustrator with a wildlife conservation focus. I have a B.S. in Animal Science from Cornell University and am currently finishing up requirements to become a certified Science Illustrator as a graduate student of CSU, Monterey Bay. It is my hope to provide illustrations that help viewers to better understand, identify, and appreciate nature as well as the efforts to preserve it, and that my art aids in more effective communication to the general public. Fun fact: I used to work for the Elephant Listening Project.

Christine Wilkinson: Born in Queens NY, currently in Oakland CA. My research interests include human-wildlife conflict, understanding carnivore movement in human-modified landscapes, multidisciplinary mapping, and using participatory methods for more effective and inclusive conservation outcomes. Fun fact: I’m a performing member of San Francisco Taiko Dojo.

Tyus D. Williams: Born in Orange County, CA (West coast best coast), grew up in Alpharetta, GA. My research questions focus on carnivore ecology, utilizing spatial analytical techniques to study the intersection of movement patterns, predator-prey dynamics, human-wildlife conflict, and multispecies interactions across a landscape. My main focus is on wild cats looking at spatial ecology and their role in promoting ecological cascades. Fun fact: I’ve been playing guitar since I was 12 and I’ve played in multiple rock bands growing up.

Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant: Born in San Francisco, CA, currently living in Santa Barbara, CA. My research focuses on the movement and behavior of large carnivores in landscapes with increasing human activity. My main focus is on patterns of black and grizzly bear movement as they recolonize historic habitat in the Western US. Fun fact: For years I was a professional classical musician.

BREAKING: Due to overwhelming demand, we have printed a small number of the limited edition Inaugural Black Mammalogists Week stickers! Throw them on your travel mug. Decorate your laptop. Stick them on a binder.50% of proceeds go to the Black and Indigenous Scholars in Mammalogy Award.Get them here!For a limited time only!