About Me
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 seabird islands in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Ultimately, I found a driving passion for seabirds, these incredible long-lived species who inhabit both terrestrial and marine environments. I decided to pursue graduate school because I wanted to dive deeper into a focused project and data for a longer period. This led me to study seabirds in Galápagos as a PhD student at Wake Forest University.
My first exposure to the Galápagos Islands occurred when I studied abroad in Ecuador in 2008 and I was immediately enchanted with the islands. In 2011, I jumped at the opportunity to volunteer as a field assistant working with Dr. David Anderson’s long-term project studying Nazca boobies on Isla Española in Galápagos. For my PhD research, I worked in this same system to study 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.

Research Experience
A sample of my positions post-undergrad
USFWS, Johnston Atoll National Wildlife Refuge
Crew Leader, Nov. 2013 - May 2014
National Audubon Society, Project Puffin
Supervisor, May - Sept. 2012, 2013
Intern, May - Sept. 2011
Ned Smith Center for Nature & Art
Saw-whet Owl Field Technician, Oct. - Nov. 2011
Cape May Bird Observatory, Cape May, NJ
Monarch Butterfly Technician, Sept. - Oct. 2010
Ecology of Bird Loss, Mariana Islands
Intern, Sept. 2009 - May 2010
Education
Wake Forest University
Ph.D. Candidate, Anderson Lab, 2014 - 2021
Kenyon College
B.A. Biology, 2005 - 2009
SIT Study Abroad: Ecuador
Comparative Ecology & Conservation, Spring 2008

In the News
Articles featuring projects where I have worked
PhD, 2020: Citizen science project tracks blue-footed boobies on social media. Wake Forest News.
Study Abroad, 2019: A different feather. SIT Ecuador alum Jenny Howard studies seabirds.
PhD, 2017: Two brothers want to save boobies by turning your feet bright blue. Audubon.
USFWS, 2015: One remote island's battle against acid-spewing ants. Audubon.
Project Puffin, 2013: Living simply to save Seal Island's Puffins. NBC News.
