I grew up in northern California, which is a great place to live, close to San Francisco, the ocean, and the Sierra mountain range. There are so many amazing places to visit and explore, living there had a huge influence on my love of the outdoors. I tried to get out and go hiking, backpacking, or camping as often as I could. Most of the time I'm happy enough to just be outside, spending time with my girlfriend Rebecca.
I received a B.S. in Environmental Biology and Management from University of California, Davis in 2010. While I was there I worked on sudden oak death with the Rizzo lab group. The time I spent in the lab was a great experience and I had a lot of fun but, I learned that I wanted to work outside in the forest, and not get stuck in a room all day.
After graduation, I moved to southern California to start a collaborative research position with UC Davis and the US Forest Service-Forest Health Protection, Region 5, Southern California. My main research objective was to study different methods for monitoring and managing the spread of an invasive insect, the goldspotted oak borer, which is infesting oaks in southern California. In addition to working on the goldspotted oak borer, I also worked on native forest pest issues, including bark/wood borers, sap feeders, and foliage feeders. The position ended up being a great learning experience. I developed an appreciation for forest entomology and was fortunate enough to publish a few papers along the way.
I recently passed my candidacy exams and have achieved the title of PhD Candidate, a huge milestone for my program career. I hope to have a couple excellent field years left before I graduate.
I have a great lab group, and I look forward to working with and helping the other graduate students. Melissa has been a great advisor, I couldn't have asked for a better person. Even though she is steering away from forest entomology, she still runs a great lab and finds great students.
Moving to the east coast has been a great experience so far and I look forward to my future endeavors.
Cheers,
-Michael
I received a B.S. in Environmental Biology and Management from University of California, Davis in 2010. While I was there I worked on sudden oak death with the Rizzo lab group. The time I spent in the lab was a great experience and I had a lot of fun but, I learned that I wanted to work outside in the forest, and not get stuck in a room all day.
After graduation, I moved to southern California to start a collaborative research position with UC Davis and the US Forest Service-Forest Health Protection, Region 5, Southern California. My main research objective was to study different methods for monitoring and managing the spread of an invasive insect, the goldspotted oak borer, which is infesting oaks in southern California. In addition to working on the goldspotted oak borer, I also worked on native forest pest issues, including bark/wood borers, sap feeders, and foliage feeders. The position ended up being a great learning experience. I developed an appreciation for forest entomology and was fortunate enough to publish a few papers along the way.
I recently passed my candidacy exams and have achieved the title of PhD Candidate, a huge milestone for my program career. I hope to have a couple excellent field years left before I graduate.
I have a great lab group, and I look forward to working with and helping the other graduate students. Melissa has been a great advisor, I couldn't have asked for a better person. Even though she is steering away from forest entomology, she still runs a great lab and finds great students.
Moving to the east coast has been a great experience so far and I look forward to my future endeavors.
Cheers,
-Michael
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