Vicky Dreitz

A self-proclaimed farm girl from northeastern Colorado, Vicky Dreitz is the director of the Avian Science Center and an associate professor in the Wildlife Biology Program at the University of Montana. She holds a B.S. from Colorado State University and a doctorate from the University of Miami (Florida). Before arriving at UM, she spent seven years as a research scientist for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Her research interests bridge multiple disciplines, including conservation biology, wildlife management, population and community ecology, and systems ecology. She primarily focuses on understanding the influence of anthropogenic effects on ecologic functions and processes of species, communities, and ecosystems. Her conservation projects are collaborative, bringing together diverse stakeholders – from agricultural landowners and agency land managers to research biologists and NGO staff. She is also engaged in promoting women in Wildlife Biology and other science fields and promoting professional development. Her other interests are just as eclectic: spending time with her family; trail running; fly fishing; hiking; nordic skiing;  baking; and shooting her bow.

Email: victoria.dreitz@umontana.edu
Phone: 406.243.5476

Patrick Donnelly

Coming to the Avian Science Center from the Land of Enchantment (New Mexico), Patrick Donnelly is the lead research scientist for the Intermountain West Joint Venture and an employee of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Migratory Bird Program. As a faculty affiliate of the Wildlife Biology Program at the University of Montana, he works as a collaborator with ASC conducting applied research and advising students from his campus office. His 28-year-career as a government scientist spans a diversity of agencies and programs including the National Wildlife Refuge System, Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Forest Service. Research interests focus on landscape and systems ecology addressing land management and wildlife conservation solutions to increasing water scarcity in western ecosystems. He holds a B.S. and M.S. from the University of New Mexico. Personal interests include spending time with his wife Mary and hairy four-legged children, cooking, trail running, cross-country skiing, training birddogs, and hunting and fishing around the West.

Jenny Helm

Jenny Helm is a doctoral candidate in the Wildlife Biology Program where she partners with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to study greater sage-grouse population ecology in central Montana. Prior to coming to UM, she received a bachelor’s degree in environmental science with a concentration in conservation biology from Colby College in Maine. She later earned her master’s degree in wildlife biology from UM, where she worked in the Quantitative Wildlife Ecology Lab and collaborated with the National Park Service to study humpback whale behavior around large ships in Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park. She is especially interested in population modeling, community ecology, research design, human-wildlife interactions and the application of research to management decisions. She also enjoys trail running, mountain biking, skiing, and gardening.

Kaity Reintsma

Kaity Reintsma was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, and graduated high school in Libby, Montana. She earned a B.S. in wildlife biology and a minor in statistics at the University of Montana in 2016. After working at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center for a year, she returned to UM as a doctoral student. Her research involves developing novel models and using remote sensing data sources to understand sagebrush-steppe songbird diversity. She is especially interested in using new technology to comprehend landscape ecology and inform management for effective conservation. In her spare time, she runs, hunts and adventures with her tiny family.

Steve Lewis

Steve grew up near Philadelphia, PA and spent many hours wandering the woods and fields. He received his Bachelors of Science from the Pennsylvania State University in 1992. An internship with the U.S. Forest Service (via the Student Conservation Association) confirmed he wanted to find wilder places. After graduating, he moved to the northern Rockies and worked various wildlife technician jobs. He received a Master’s degree from Boise State University in 2001 after studying northern goshawks in Southeast Alaska. Loving Alaska from the moment he set foot there, he worked for 10 years with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, studying a variety of wildlife from brown bears to wolverines to forest owls. Desire to work more broadly in the State and get back to his raptor roots led to his current job as a Raptor Biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Service work has provided many great experiences studying bald and golden eagles, peregrine falcons, and forest owls, among other things. In 2020, a desire to update his skillset led to his return to school to work on a Ph.D. on eagle habitat use and movement in Alaska. In his spare time, Steve likes to get outside into the Alaska’s spectacular landscapes, travel to remote spots abroad, find and harvest wild foods, root for his Philadelphia sports teams, and spend time with family and friends.

Amelia Evavold

Amelia Evavold is an undergraduate student at the University of Montana pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Biology, a Native American Studies minor, and a GIS certificate. She began as a volunteer in the Avian Science Center in the fall of 2019, helping with ongoing projects within the lab. She now works on her own undergraduate research project exploring methods of determining misidentification rates in avian field surveys. During the recent summers, she has cared for sled dogs in the UP of Michigan and worked as a field technician on Isle Royale and Denali National Park projects. She enjoys canoeing, backpacking, skiing, photography, trail running, and anything related to sled dogs in her free time.

Taylor Coon

Taylor Coon is a dual major studying Wildlife Biology and Communication Studies at the University of Montana. She is conducting a methods study to determine the efficacy of visual identification in raptor prey remains to a high degree of certainty. She is especially interested in predator-prey dynamics of avian species, genetics/genomics, and overall science communication. Outside of school and lab work, she is planning activities for the UM Birding Club, baking, or hanging out with friends. She loves connecting with others and embraces the great outdoors. Her favorite bird is an American Avocet or a Roseate Spoonbill.

Christain Dupree

Christian Dupree grew up in South American, living mainly in Chile and Peru. Spending years discovering the unique wildlife of the Amazon, Andes, and Patagonia while his father worked on development projects. In 2006 his family moved back to the US, and he joined the Air Force soon after. While serving he spent much of his free time volunteering on habitat restoration and cleanup projects in Guam, Qatar, and several US states. Honorably discharged in 2018 he moved to Montana to be closer to his family and use the GI bill to get a B.S. in wildlife biology at the UM. Currently he is working on the implementation of A.I. in projects for the ASC. He is primarily interested in exploring how to use emerging technologies and improve techniques of wildlife monitoring and data analysis that can be easily and effectively used by agencies in developing countries. When he’s not trapped in an office typing away, he enjoys working on his small hobby farm in Arlee, fishing, hiking, fixing old things and painting.

Sarah Fry

Sarah Fry grew up in the south in northern Alabama and graduated high school from Madison, Alabama. She moved across the country to Bozeman, Montana, to achieve her undergraduate degree in Fish and Wildlife Ecology and Management from Montana State University. After taking a summer working under the state entomologist, she proceeded to the University of Montana where she is currently working as a master's student. Her master's project is focused on the grassland songbirds of Montana and their breeding demographics between native and altered prairie. She loves hiking, biking, and camping in the outdoors, preferably during summer! During frigid blizzards, you can find her inside either reading, embroidering, or crocheting. 

July Schutze

(Julie) Jay Schutze is a non-traditional undergraduate student and a recipient of the Bill Gabriel Avian Science Center Scholarship, Donald J. Seibert Endowed Scholarship in Wildlife Biology, Experiential Learning Scholarship, and NSF-funded Supporting Talent with Aligned Resources for STEM Students (STARS) Scholarship. For their senior thesis and Davidson Honors College capstone, Jay is conducting field research on wildlife species richness in relation to outdoor domestic cats in Missoula, with help from the ASC and UM’s Boone & Crockett Wildlife Conservation Program. This research is the synthesis of her vast experience with domestics, wildlife, and human-wildlife conflict. Jay’s love for domestic ethology led them to become a horse ranch hand at age 14, and in adulthood a veterinary technician then dog trainer. Regarding wildlife, Jay could be found working her volunteer naturalist shift on Mt. Evans, giving an ecology presentation to an audience of 300+ attendees, syringe-feeding orphaned fox squirrels, doing behavioral enrichment with captive wolves, or on dispatch to respond to wildlife in distress. Today, they volunteer with the Owl Research Institute in Charlo working on their Northern Pygmy, Great Gray, Short-eared, Long-eared, and Saw-whet owl projects. She recently discovered a love for snowboarding and wildlife tracking, and also enjoys Montana’s lakes, rivers and hot springs with friends; rockhounding with her fiancé; and hiking with their husky, Tala or domestic longhair cat, Calypso.

Megan Euclide

Meg Euclide is a Professional Master's student in the Wildlife Biology Program partnering with Bitter Root Land Trust, developing expertise in wildlife habitat conservation on private lands. After completing a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science from University of Vermont in 2015, she has worked on wildlife research and conservation projects with a variety of federal agencies, academic institutions, and non-profits.  She is especially interested in habitat conservation planning, habitat connectivity, and effective decision-making processes in conservation. When she's not at work or school you can find her outside skiing, trail running, and going on long bike rides.

Shea Coons

Uncountable hours spent roaming Montana hills, forests, and mountains sparked Shea’s interest in wildlife. After completing a B.S. in Wildlife Biology from Colorado State University and spending several years working on various wildlife field projects across the West, she returned to Montana to earn a M.S. in Wildlife Biology from the University of Montana. Her thesis centered on landscape conservation for white-faced ibis in the western US. Research interests include remote sensing applications for conservation, landscape ecology, and applied research for wildlife management. Shea is currently a research assistant for the ASC working on various projects that will inform sagebrush-steppe avian species management. Outside of the ASC, Shea is an artist/designer and an avid explorer of local trails with her exceptional husky, Scout.