Direct or indirect contact between domestic populations of animals and wildlife carries an inherent risk for transmission of pathogens that cause infectious disease. In Humboldt and Del Norte counties of northern California, ongoing conflict between ranchers and Roosevelt elk groups results from elk use of ranching pastures and pastures on private land. Fecal samples from elk in association with cattle, cattle, and from elk not in known association with cattle were assessed for the presence of bacteria Salmonella enterica and pathogenic Escherichia coli to assess whether association with cattle increases risk of infection for elk. Group identity (one of the elk groups or cattle group) was the leading parameter in infection likelihood models, and elk in association with cattle were over nine times more likely to have pathogenic non-O157:H7 E. coli isolated from their feces than elk that were not in association with cattle.

I am a Humboldt native who enjoys running, finding and identifying feces, and grassroots activism, among other things. I share my home with a cat (Lucifer), a leopard gecko (Sticky) and a fish (Smishy). I earned a B.S. in biology with a minor in French from the University of Oregon, Robert C. Clark Honors College, and have recently defended my master’s thesis at Cal Poly Humboldt studying the risk of fecal pathogen transmission between Roosevelt elk and domestic cattle in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. I am interested in disease ecology including transmission networks and disease risks for imperiled wildlife populations, and seeking a PhD position in those fields.