After having traveled in Africa with Dan in 2001 I developed a fondness for the continent and a love for traveling to exotic far-off places not visited by the average tourist.  My travels in Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, and South Africa have included many adventures.  I will never forget seeing wild dogs for the first time right outside my Land Rover's window or experiencing a massive swarm of lake flies descending upon my campsite on the shores of Lake Malawi, filling my nose and mouth, making it nearly impossible to breathe.

For the past 15 years I have been a conservation biologist conducting research in the grasslands of the western U. S. My travels in Africa have been fascinating because the African landscape, particularly the grasslands of the Serengeti, Maasai Mara, and Makgadikgadi, mirror the areas where I work in the U. S.  The grasslands of African and the western U. S. are eerily similar and upon stepping from my tent into the Makgadikgadi morning, wiping the sleep from my eyes I would pause and think, " Am I in the Colorado steppe readying for another days fieldwork, no, no I'm in Africa!"  Some grasses adapted to the high salt content of the Magkadigkadi's soils are even from the same genera as grasses occurring on alkaline soils of the Colorado steppe.  The similarity between the plants and animals of these grasslands is striking, yet they exist on separate continents attesting to the convergent forces (an arid climate, marginal soils, grazing, and fire) that have shaped their evolutionary history.  On the steppe of Colorado it was bison, pronghorn, and elk that historically grazed the grassland while wolf, coyote, and fox roamed the landscape feeding upon the abundant prey.  In the Serengeti, impala, wildebeest, and zebra among others are the grazers while wild dog, hyena, and jackal along with the lion, leopard, and cheetah not found in North America are the predators.  The abundant wildlife and inspiring beauty of the African plain is truly magnificent to behold and I invite you along with Dan and I for the experience of a lifetime.

In addition to Africa, I have enjoyed many other adventures in places such as the Mideast, and South and Central America. I love biology, animals, and the outdoors, and my Masters research was conducted in Canada's Yukon Territory. The Yukon is one of the wildest and most unpopulated areas in North America, if not the world and my experience living there was life changing.  The magnificence of the northern lights and the isolation of the region changed me forever.  I now reside in northern Colorado where I work part time at Colorado State University overseeing research on rare Colorado animals.  My work is rewarding and it keeps me closely connected to the natural world and its inherent beauty.