Jennifer McKee

After graduating from my undergraduate institution, Kenyon College, I explored a variety of science fields by doing seasonal field work for the government, academia, and non-profit organizations. I bounded through wetlands in Ohio and Colorado, forests in Guam and South Carolina, and remote islands in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Ultimately, I found a driving passion for seabirds, these incredible long-lived species that inhabit both terrestrial and marine environments. I started my PhD with Dr. David Anderson at Wake Forest University, taking advantage of a long-term project studying Nazca boobies on Isla Española in Galápagos. Under a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, I examined how individual and environmental variables affect the foraging performance of these long-lived seabirds. I completed my PhD in 2021. Read more about my research investigating different aspects of their foraging behavior.

Currently, I am a Senior Research Scientist with the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Wyoming. I apply similar spatial analyses from my research with Nazca boobies to a new system: ungulates. My work there focuses on mapping and researching ungulate migrations across the western United States. When I’m not analyzing ungulate GPS data, I enjoy writing about cool new science studies. I also love to hike outside as much as possible, birdwatch, take photos, and bake!