Core Staff

Mark (he/him) is a wildlife researcher and conservation biologist with a background in herpetology, landscape ecology, molecular genetics, and education/outreach. He enjoys going to new places, meeting new people, and trying new things.

Mark grew up in Southeast Nebraska and started to explore nature among the cattle and corn of the Missouri River Valley. He worked through college as a teacher-naturalist and continues to view the world through a naturalist’s eyes. His 10 years of field research experience have taken him from the Midwest to numerous exotic and beautiful landscapes. One of his greatest passions is blending his past careers in education and research by participating in and advocating for science communication and citizen-science efforts.

Mark spent 4 years in the Mojave Desert learning to love tortoises while conducting surveys and managing a population monitoring project in partnership with the USFWS Desert Tortoise Recovery Office. He continues to work in desert tortoise recovery and management with CSP from his home in western North Carolina, where he looks forward to a modest homesteading lifestyle in the Blue Ridge Mountains.