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About Sidney (They/Them)
Sidney (they/them) graduated from the University of Georgia, earning a BS in Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences and another in Forestry. They were first exposed to wildlife research as an undergraduate student when they joined a loggerhead sea turtle genetic-fingerprinting lab, running DNA extractions on eggshells from nesting sea turtles. Sidney went on to complete their own research as a senior thesis, looking at habitat suitability for Eastern spotted skunks in Northeast Georgia. As a senior, they went on to complete a Mosaics in Science internship at Yosemite National Park as a herpetological conservation intern, working with the Aquatics Restoration team.
Following graduation, Sidney returned to Yosemite to join the National Park Service as a wildlife ranger for a couple of years, helping manage restoration projects for the Western pond turtle, California red-legged frogs, and Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog. Through their dissertation research at UC Davis, they continue to collaborate with the park service on Western pond turtle research and conservation, assessing how invasive American bullfrogs are affecting the native, declining turtle. Sidney’s dissertation expanded to include the invasive red-eared slider turtle and its effects on Western pond turtle populations given their local populations in the UC Davis Arboretum and nearby Putah Creek. Sidney is broadly interested in the risks posed by invasive reptiles and amphibians to native species and how native species respond to invasive species management. This work can inform future conservation decisions that aim to protect and restore native herpetofauna, while providing evidence for policymakers on the need for invasive species management.