CV

Current wildlife researcher with broad interests in conservation, statistics, philosophy, and more.

xprockox@gmail.com
(719)207-2186

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

Wildlife Chemical Immobilization – Global Wildlife Resources
Completed April 2023
Validation

Data Analyst Professional Certification – IBM Corporation
Completed February 2023
Validation

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., Gaynor, K., Sun, C., Granados, A., Allen, M. L., Alston, J. M., Alvarenga, G. C., Álvarez Claderón, F. S., Amir, Z., Anhalt-Depies, C., Appel, C., Arroyo-Arce, S., Babic, N. L., Balme, G., Bar-Massada, A., Barcelos, D., […] Procko, M., […] Kays., R. (in review) Mammal responses to global changes in human activity vary by trophic group and landscape. Submitted to Nature Ecology & Evolution, March 8, 2023. Minor revisions requested April 27, 2023.

Procko, M., Naidoo, R., LeMay, V. & A. C. Burton. (2023). Human presence and infrastructure impact wildlife nocturnality differently across an assemblage of mammalian species. PLoS ONE 18(5): e0286131. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0286131

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).

Awards and Honors

  • UBC Graduate COVID Program Delay Tuition Award (2021)
  • UBC Faculty of Forestry International Student COVID Relief Scholarship (2021)
  • 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)

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”)

Presentations

  • Procko, M. (2023, Apr. 26). Spatiotemporal responses of elk to recreation in the West Cascades. [Conference presentation]. The Washington Chapter of the Wildlife Society Joint Annual Meeting, Grand Mound, WA, United States.
  • Procko, M. (2023, Feb. 17). Leveraging Conservation Technology to Monitor Human Impacts on Wildlife. [Guest lecture]. Wildlife in the Modern World (ESRM 150), The University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States.
  • Procko, M. (2022, Dec. 14). Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Wildlife and Recreation in Golden Ears Provincial Park, BC. [Conference presentation]. The British Columbia Protected Areas Recreation Forum, Victoria, BC, Canada.
  • Procko, M., Naidoo, R., LeMay, V. & A. C. Burton. (2022, Nov. 9). Human impacts on mammals in and around protected areas before, during, and after COVID-19 lockdowns [Conference presentation]. The Wildlife Society Annual Conference, Spokane, WA, United States.
  • Procko, M. (2022, Oct. 14). Sharing Space and Time: Striking a Balance Between Wildlife and Recreation. [Guest lecture]. Wildlife in the Modern World (ESRM 150), The University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States.
  • Procko, M. (2022, Oct. 13). Sharing Space and Time: Striking a Balance Between Wildlife and Recreation. [Invited talk]. Washington Fish and Wildlife Ecology Seminar Series, Washington Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Online.
  • Procko, M. (2022, June 8). Human impacts on mammals in and around protected areas before, during, and after COVID-19 lockdowns. [Invited talk]. The Alberta Chapter of The Wildlife Society Recreation Impacts Webinar, Online.
  • Procko, M. (2022, Jan. 24). Wildlife and Recreation in Golden Ears Provincial Park, BC. [Guest lecture]. Parks and Recreation Management (RENR 4215), British Columbia Institute of Technology, BC, Canada.
  • Procko, M. (2021, Oct. 7). Science to Policy: Informing Wildlife and Recreation Management in Golden Ears Provincial Park, BC. [Invited talk]. The University of British Columbia Biodiversity Legendary Internal Seminar Series (BLISS), Online.
  • Procko, M. (2021, Mar. 25). Let’s Talk About Camera Trapping. [Invited talk]. The University of British Columbia Section of The Wildlife Society, Online.
  • Procko, M. (2019, Aug. 29). Wildlife Cameras. [Guest lecture]. Foundational Field School (FRST 350), University of British Columbia, BC, Canada.