Wildland Resources Students Honored at Statewide Gathering

Phoebe Prather and Russell Norvell, both doctoral students in the College of Natural Resources’ Department of Wildland Resources, received top honors at the recent Utah Chapter of The Wildlife Society meeting in Moab, Utah.

Prather, whose research focuses on habitat requirements for the Gunnison Sage-grouse in Utah’s San Juan County, received a $500 graduate scholarship for her research proposal. Her proposal was among ten reviewed by a panel for scientific content, management application and relevance and was one of three selected for funding.

 

Prather’s current project involves evaluation of conservation strategies to protect the Gunnison Sage-grouse from identified threats, including raptor predation.

 

A native of Lone Pine, Calif., Prather earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She works with Wildland Resources professor and Extension wildlife specialist Terry Messmer.

 

Norvell received the Best Student Paper award for “Shrubsteppe Bird Monitoring: Preliminary Results and Some Lessons Learned.”

 

Norvell is an avian ecologist with the Non-game Avian Program of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources in Salt Lake City. A doctoral candidate in ecology, his research focuses on disturbance effects on shrubsteppe bird community structure. Norvell works with Wildland Resources professor Thomas Edwards, assistant unit leader, Utah Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit.

 

Norvell earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and environmental studies from Colby College in Waterville, Maine. He completed a master’s degree in zoology and statistics from the University of Wyoming at Laramie.

 

Prather, Norvell and colleagues are presenters at this week’s [March 13-14] inaugural Utah Sage-grouse Working Group Summit in Salt Lake City.

 

 

 

Contacts: Phoebe Prather [prather@cc.usu.edu]; Russell Norvell [russellnorvell@utah.gov]