CV
Current wildlife researcher with broad interests in conservation, statistics, philosophy, and more.
Specializations
Wildlife Ecology & Management
Advanced Statistics
ESRI Products (ArcGIS Pro, ArcMap, ArcGIS Online)
R /Python Programming Languages
Outdoor Skills & Recreation
Education
Education
University of British Columbia
Master of Science – Forestry
May 2019 – May 2022
Honors designation (top 10% of UBC theses)
Thesis: “Right place, right time: large mammal spatiotemporal trends in and around a heavily-recreated protected area“
University of Colorado
Bachelor of Arts – Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
August 2014 – May 2018
Honors: magna cum laude
Thesis: “Quantitative Conservation of the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus): Implications of Monitoring and Modeling the Yellowstone Wolves“
Minor: Philosophy
Certificates
Indigenous Awareness – Indigenous Corporate Training, Inc.
Completed May 2021
Validation
Indigenous Canada – University of Alberta
Completed November 2020
Validation
Wilderness First Aid & CPR – Canadian Red Cross
Expires July 2023
Validation #101819708
Publications
Burton, A. C., Beirne, C., Sun, C., Granados, A., Procko, M., Chen, C., Fennell, M., Constantinou, A., Colton, C., Tjaden-McClement, K., Fisher, J. T., & J. Burgar. (2022). Behavioural “bycatch” from camera trap surveys yields insights on prey responses to human-mediated predation risk. Ecology and Evolution, e9108 https://doi.org/10.22541/au.164691928.81214153/v1
Procko, M., Naidoo, R., LeMay, V. & A. C. Burton. (2022). Human impacts on mammals in and around a protected area before, during, and after COVID-19 lockdowns. Conservation Science and Practice, e12743.
https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12743
Procko, M. (2022). Right place, right time: large mammal spatiotemporal trends in and around a heavily recreated protected area. University of British Columbia, Theses and Dissertations. Defended March 14, 2022, passed with honours. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/80993
Custode, L., Guzzo, M., Bush, N., Ewing, C., Procko, M., Knight, S., Rousseau-Clair, M., Norris, R. (2021). Canadian private protected areas are located in regions of higher vertebrate species richness than government protected areas. FACETS, Vol. 6, January 2021. https://doi.org/10.1139/facets-2020-0108
Procko, M. (2019). Quantitative Conservation of the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus): Implications of Monitoring and Modeling the Yellowstone Wolves. University of Colorado, Undergraduate Honors Theses. https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/undergraduate_honors_theses/4b29b6474
Media & Outreach
Procko, M. (June 8, 2022). Human impacts on mammals in and around protected areas before, during, and after COVID-19 lockdowns. Hot Topic Webinar Series: Recreation Impacts, Planning, and Management. Alberta Chapter of the Wildlife Society. Webinar.
Kennedy, G. (Apr. 25, 2022). The secret lives of the Fraser Valley’s wild cats. Fraser Valley Current. Interview. Written by Grace Kennedy.
Procko, M. (Oct. 27, 2021). Balancing Recreation and Wildlife in Protected Areas. WildCAM Network, Blog.
Shephert, E. (Sept. 30, 2021). 24/7 cameras capture ‘fat bears’ in Lower Mainland parks (PHOTOS) Vancouver Is Awesome, September 30, 2021. Interview. Written by Elana Shephert.
Procko, M. (2021). Coexistence & Camera Traps: Interactions between wildlife and anthropogenic pressures using camera traps. British Columbia Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Fall 2021 Newsletter (pp. 6-7).
Research Experience
Research Scientist
University of Washington – Prugh Lab
May 2022 – Present
In partnership with WA Dept. of Natural Resources and the Tulalip Tribes, researched elk responses to recreation throughout the North Rainier elk herd range, including study design, deployment and maintenance of a camera trap grid, supervising and hiring assistants, processing camera trap photos with artificial intelligence, data management and analysis, and technical write-ups.
Scientific Advisor
Echo Conservation
November 2021 – February 2022
Assisting with project design and grant acquisition for an upcoming project on human-cougar conflict mitigation and public education of neighborhoods along an urban-wildland boundary with respect to coexisting with cougars.
Graduate Research Assistant
University of British Columbia – Wildlife Coexistence Lab
May 2019 – May 2022
Researched mammal community responses to recreation and forest harvest in protected areas and adjacent landscapes, including study design, maintenance of a camera trap grid, supervising and hiring assistants, processing camera trap photos with artificial intelligence, data management and analysis, and technical write-ups.
Conservation Intern
British Columbia Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (BC Parks)
May 2021 – September 2021
Communicated scientific findings to a lay audience, including species distribution mapping, recreation management recommendations, exploration of thresholds of recreation at which species habitat use may become negatively impacted.
Field Research Technician
Colorado Parks & Wildlife
November 2018 – January 2019
Assisted as a field research technician on a long-term cougar collaring program, checking camera traps and baited carcasses for evidence of cougar activity.
Field Research Technician
University of Colorado, Boulder
September 2020 – March 2021
Surveyed post-fire forest regeneration in the Blue Mountains of Oregon to acquire data for a PhD candidate’s dissertation. This included camping and backpacking in remote locations for long periods of time, species identification, transects, percent cover plots, and various other forest measurement protocols.
Teaching Experience
Graduate Teaching Assistant (four positions)
University of British Columbia
September 2019 – October 2021
I helped TA three different courses over four semesters at UBC: Forest Wildlife Ecology and Management (FRST395; 2 semesters), Human-Wildlife Conflict (APBI-CONS495), and Integrated Field Methods (CONS451). Each required different areas of expertise, but all contributed equally to shaping my abilities as an instructor. For more information on courses, please see “teaching“.
Graduate Academic Assistant
University of British Columbia
May 2020 – March 2021
To assist professors and lecturers with transitioning to online learning, UBC created Graduate Academic Assistantship positions for graduate students to help develop online curricula, and translate in-person materials to a virtual format. More information on specific roles can be found in “teaching“.
Learning Assistant
University of Colorado
January 2018 – May 2018
Akin to teaching assistants, learning assistants are undergraduate students who have taken the course previously, and help facilitate an interactive classroom space by initiating and guiding discussions, working one-on-one with students, and being available for additional assistance in an office-hours setting.
Side Projects
The Wildlife Coexistence Lab
Vancouver, BC
February 2020 – February 2022
Assisted with analyses regarding predator-prey interactions (wolves, caribou, white-tailed deer, moose) in heavily modified (seismic line) landscapes (see “Publications“)
The WildCAM (Wildlife Cameras for Adaptive Management) Network
Remote Work
March 2020 – January 2022
Assisted with analyses regarding wildlife responses to recreation throughout multiple provincial and national parks across western Canada; resulted in manuscript submission, currently pending review.
The Nature Conservancy Canada
Remote Work
January 2020 – May 2020
Assisted in nationwide analysis of Canadian protected areas (public and private) with respect to biodiversity conservation (see “Publications”)
Awards and Honors
- UBC Forestry Indigenous Community Research SEED Fund Grant (2020)
- UBC Forestry Internal Award – Mary and David Macaree Fellowship (2020)
- UBC Forestry Internal Award – Braham G. Griffith Memorial Scholarship in Forest Resources Management (2020)
- UBC International Tuition Award (2019-2021)
- UBC Forestry Graduate Award (2019, 2020)
- University of Colorado College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s List (2017, 2018)
- University of Colorado Esteemed Scholar’s Award – Hale Scholarship (2014-2017)
- University of Colorado Moehrke Educational Advancement Scholarship (2015-2017)
- University of Colorado Craig Rubenstein Memorial Scholarship (2015)
- University of Colorado Laverne Noyes Scholarship (2015)
Michael Procko 