2024

Nadira Mitchell

Nadira was an undergraduate Honors student in Wildlife Conservation and Management at the University of Arizona, where she researched pathways for better integrating wildlife conservation practice across tribal and non-tribal lands. Nadira grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and was SNRE and CALES Outstanding Graduating Senior for Spring 2024, a Doris Duke Conservation Scholar, a Fellow in the Ilíiaitchik: Indigenous Correspondents Program, and Miss Native American University of Arizona, among other honors. Nadira is a fashion maven and talented craftswoman, and is now interning with the US Forest Service to help the Mescalero Apache Tribe develop a Tribal Wildlife Plan. Favorite mammal: Ailuropoda melanoleuca.

Nikki Reck

Nikki was an undergraduate student in Wildlife Conservation and Management at the University of Arizona, where she worked with the US Forest Service to document the distribution of Arizona gray squirrels on Coronado National Forest and with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to track down scientific literature cited the jaguar and Mt. Graham red squirrel recovery plans. Nikki is from Tucson, Arizona, is a skilled dog trainer (obedience, agility, and rally), and came into the lab with a background as a performance and competitive dancer. Nikki is now an MSc student in Bret Pasch’s lab studying vocalization behavior in southwestern red squirrels. Favorite mammal: Ovis canadensis.