The Wildlife Professional September/October Issue
September 1, 2024
Photo and bio coming soon.
Membership is available to all current TWS members. You may join our Working Group by logging in to your TWS account.
Hi Everyone! My name is Jay VonBank, and I am a research ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey at Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in Jamestown, ND. I am very excited to have been selected as the incoming vice-chair position with the Wetlands Working Group. My wetland experience comes in the form of researching invasive aquatic plants in river systems and wetland seed distribution vectors in the Midwest, aerial surveys and mapping of wetlands, seagrass distribution and use by waterbirds in the Laguna Madre, and understanding waterfowl-wetland interactions across North America. I received my BS in Aquatic Biology from Bemidji State University, my MS from Western Illinois University in cooperation with the Illinois Natural History Survey, and my Ph.D. in Wildlife Science from Texas A&M University – Kingsville and the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute. I am very much looking forward to helping grow this working group and aid in disseminating all the wonderful wetland work and information you all provide as members, and to help further connect our membership with one another.
Hi WWG Members! I am excited to be back on the WWG board in a different capacity as Secretary/Treasurer. I am a wetland ecologist and founder of Scaup & Willet LLC, a woman-owned small business that focuses on natural resource management and conservation. I commute from Alaska to the lower 48 and Hawaii where I continue to work on wetland management projects and teach educational workshops. Prior to being self-employed, I worked for the Utah Department of Land and Natural Resources, University of Montana, Ducks Unlimited, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on a broad range of research, monitoring, and management projects for
wetland-dependent wildlife and their habitats. I have a BA from Middlebury College in Geography and a MS from the University of Missouri Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Science. My favorite wetland wildlife species is the greater sandhill crane and my favorite wetlands are high elevation herbaceous wetlands in the Intermountain West!! I am also continuing as your volunteer newsletter editor for another year. With the growing membership of the WWG, we have members with diverse experiences and interests….AND WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Contact me if you’re interested in contributing a feature article or shorter article highlighting your wetland & wildlife related activities. It’s a great way to share your work!!
Phillip is a wildlife biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Oklahoma at Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge. Phillip has worked in Kentucky, Florida, Mississippi, and Arkansas banding various waterfowl species and manipulating vegetation for wetland dependent species. His master’s project documented native bee communities using emergent wetlands in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley of Arkansas. He has previously worked with multiple student chapters and the student development working group, and is excited to be transitioning into a leadership role with the WWG. He is an Associate Wildlife Biologist® and hopes to become a Certified Wildlife Biologist® one day.
Casey Setash is a third year PhD student at CSU studying waterfowl ecology in relation to floodirrigated agriculture in North Park. She also did her master’s at CSU on cinnamon teal in the San Luis Valley. Hailing from Pennsylvania originally, Casey is enjoying her time out west and spend what free time she has hiking, duck hunting, crafting, and brewing beer.
