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I’m interested in pinniped conservation ecology and the implications of range-expanding species. My research focuses on the small seasonal population of harbor seals in North Carolina and investigates the ecological and social impacts of this group of animals. Prior to beginning my PhD, I earned a B.S. in Biology and Environmental Sciences from ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ and a MSc in Marine Mammal Science from the University of St Andrews. My undergraduate thesis work examined Southern sea otter and seabird habitat use in the Elkhorn Slough National Estuary Research Reserve and the possible impacts of human disturbance. For my master’s thesis, I mapped potential harbor seal conservation sites in the Wash, England using telemetry tag data across different years and seasons to understand the temporal stability of these sites and to provide management recommendations. I also spent a field season conducting boat-based surveys in Shark Bay, Australia with the Shark Bay Dolphin Project and worked for the Duke Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab as a research technician and social communications manager.