Contact Us

Dr. J. Derek Scasta

Ecosystem Science and Management

Ag C 1009

Department #3354

1000 E. University Ave.

Laramie, WY 82071

Phone: (307) 766-2337

Fax: (307) 766-6403

Email: jscasta@uwyo.edu

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Dr. J. Derek Scasta

Ecosystem Science and Management

Research Group Members

Graduate Students

Tami PlechatyTami Plechaty - Tami has an undergraduate degree in Animal Science from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo and is currently a master's student.  Her research is supported by the USDA Agricultural Research Service and is assessing cattle nutrition, diet composition, and energetics under different grazing strategies at Cheyenne, WY and Nunn, CO.
Lauren ConnellLauren ConnellLauren holds an undergraduate degree in Geography and a master's degree in Geographic Information Science (GIS), both from Florida State University. She is currently a master's student under Drs. Derek Scasta (UW) and Lauren Porensky (USDA-ARS). Lauren's research project evaluates how fire and prairie dogs interact with various types of herbivory (livestock, large native ungulates, small mammals) to structure plant communities in the Thunder Basin National Grassland. This work is supported by UW College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the UW Agricultural Experiment Station.
Leanne CorrellLeanne Correll - Leanne has an undergraduate degree from Colorado State University and is currently a master's student piloting Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances (CCAA) with private ranches for sage-grouse conservation.  Leanne's project is jointly funded by UW Extension and UW Agricultural Experiment Station and has her interacting with ranchers from across the state.
Jacob HennigJacob Hennig - Jacob holds a BS in Fisheries and Wildlife with a Conservation Biology emphasis from the University of Minnesota and a MS in Natural Resource and Environmental Sciences from the University of Illinois.  Jacob's doctoral research will be assessing spatial ecology and rangeland management implications of wild horses in southern Wyoming.  This work is supported by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Land Management.
Colleen FridayColleen Friday - Colleen holds a BS in Rangeland Ecology and Watershed Management from the University of Wyoming.  Colleen's master's thesis will re-conduct a vegetation inventory of two high-elevation basins on the Wind River Indian Reservation and will connect contemporary plant names with Shoshone and Arapaho names.  This work is supported by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and University of Wyoming Academic Affairs.
Bryn Marah - Bryn holds a BS in Environmental Science and Technology from Colorado Mesa University. Bryn's research will be assessing the effectiveness of mechanical and fire treatments on the Uncompahgre and Medicine Bow National Forests. This work is supported by the United States Forest Service Pathway Program and the Southern Rockies Fire Science Network.

Undergraduate Students

Justin WhiteJustin White - Justin is an undergraduate in Rangeland Ecology and Watershed Management major at UW and has worked as a research technician in the Thunder Basin grasslands doing vegetation sampling and exclosure installation. Justin is from Casper, WY.
Jessica Windh - Jessica is a senior Rangeland Ecology and Watershed Management major at UW and is working on survey of how livestock predation trends can be mitigated.  Jessica's project is funded by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture Predator Management Board with support from the Wyoming Stock Growers Association and Wyoming Wool Growers Association. Jessica is also working on an EPSCoR funded project measuring visual obstruction and biomass of vegetation on 8 different ecological sites on AES research properties.

Former Members

Kelsey Welter - Kelsey graduated with a BS in Rangeland Ecology and Watershed Management major at UW.  While at UW, Kelsey assisted with a survey of agricultural and environmental special-interest groups to determine if these groups assign disparate values to Wyoming’s open spaces. Kelsey's project was funded by the Haub School for the Environment and Natural Resources, Open Spaces Initiative. After graduating, Kelsey took a job as a Rangeland Management Specialist with USDA NRCS in Medicine Lodge, KS.
Contact Us

Dr. J. Derek Scasta

Ecosystem Science and Management

Ag C 1009

Department #3354

1000 E. University Ave.

Laramie, WY 82071

Phone: (307) 766-2337

Fax: (307) 766-6403

Email: jscasta@uwyo.edu

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