Zach Turnbull
Buffalo
Summary
I believe I would excel in the Pinedale Wildlife Biologist position. I have strong ties and relations in the area with hunters, outfitters, producers, government partners and community. I am familiar, and comfortable, with much of the country and wildlife management challenges in the Region.
Overview
25
25
years of professional experience
Work History
Buffalo Senior Wildlife Biologist
Wyoming Game and Fish Department
01.2021 - Current
- The daily duties and responsibilities of the job are quite varied. A great deal of time is spent setting seasons, collecting population data, fielding hunter calls, and performing harvest checks. I have checked the highest, or near the highest number of harvested animals of any Department employee annually since my arrival in Buffalo. With high CWD prevalence and frequent hemorrhagic disease events in the Region, I spend considerable time responding to injured and sick wildlife calls. I have been involved in four separate mule deer research projects in the district. I have assisted on sage grouse research projects, habitat projects, fence conversion and removals. In my time in Buffalo, I served on the CWD working group, and assisted in updating sage grouse lek protocols and currently sit on the mule deer working group. Considerable time and effort have built relationships with most landowners, outfitters, operators and the community. With my previous experience, I am often sought out to address large carnivore conflicts and trophy game damage in the Region. I took on additional duties when Buffalo and Kaycee Warden districts were vacant handling near all non-enforcement calls.
Large Carnivore Biologist
Wyoming Game and Fish Department
01.2005 - 01.2021
- Primary focus was on conflict prevention between large carnivores (grizzly bear, black bear, wolf and mountain lion) and humans, and addressing conflicts when the occurred. Direct management activities involved the investigation of reported livestock losses and the capture, relocation or removal of target animals. The job required constant communication between the Region, livestock producers, federal partners and the public. Investigated thousands of reported livestock depredations and hundreds of conflicts, earning the trust and respect of community stakeholders. Captured hundreds of large carnivores, often alone at all hours of the day, across wild and varied country. Assisted the Region with hunter checks, CWD sampling, injured wildlife calls, habitat projects, equipment repair, elk damage, feedground assistance and law enforcement investigations.
Fish and Wildlife Technician II
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
01.2003 - 01.2005
- Lead role on a mule deer research project based on the capture, handling, and monitoring of deer. The project involved collaborating with the United States Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Klamath Tribe and private landowners. Modified and adapted capture techniques to mark and monitor a sample population while supervising and coordinating two technicians. Monitored highway mortality to assist the Department of Transportation with crossing design, location and safety improvement projects to deter deer strikes.
Sage Grouse Technician
Oregon State University
01.2003 - 01.2003
- Technician on a sage grouse study conducted at three field sites in Oregon and Nevada. Duties involved telemetry monitoring, trapping, collaring, vegetation sampling, insect sampling and surgical implantation of telemetry markers in grouse chicks. Field works was remote, based out of minimal self-sufficient field camps.
Experimental Biology Aide
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
01.2002 - 01.2003
- Mountain lion project in the Cascade foothills focused on the ecology, reproduction and condition of lion populations. Work involved the capture and monitoring of mountain lions; collected biological samples, searched for kill sites, performed necropsies on deceased lions and prey species.
Forest Grouse Technician
Oregon State University
01.2001 - 01.2002
- Extensive ecological study of sooty and ruffed grouse in the Cascade Mountains. Duties included daily telemetry location work, capture with Coda-net guns, collaring, vegetation sampling, deployment of nest data-loggers, and collection and processing of hunter harvested wings and crops for food preference abundance work.
Education
Bachelors Degree - Fisheries and Wildlife Science
Oregon State University
Corvallis, OR01-2002
Course Work - Wildlife Management
University of Idaho
Moscow, ID01-2000
Skills
- My skills and experience in wildlife management are vast and varied, from grouse research to grizzly management, and nearly everything in between My current role as the Buffalo Wildlife Biologist has diversified my experience and skillset greatly
- Broad skillset managing, researching and preventing damage among a diverse suite of terrestrial wildlife including the capture, immobilization and handling of hundreds of individuals and dozens of species
- Vast experience and familiarity with wildlife disease, response, management and research Experience varies from herds in the eastern part of the State highly impacted by Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), to the west where CWD is a newly emerging and concerning issue
- Experience managing and addressing elk damage, brucellosis, comingling and elk feedgrounds
- Experience evaluating habitat and implementing habitat improvement projects
- Experience organizing and implementing annual sage grouse, raptor and sharp-tailed grouse counts and surveys
- Competent and capable travelling and working in the back county and front country operating all types of vehicles, atv, snowmobile, skiing, handling riding stock, packing horses and driving teams
- Experience working with a multitude of partners including non-governmental organizations, conservation partners, and local, State, and Federal agencies on a range of issues and projects including environmental impact statements, incidental take and biological assessments
- Experience commenting and consulting collaboratively with the Habitat Protection Program on gas, oil, coal, solar, gravel, bentonite and uranium development and reclamation
- Familiar and comfortable with all aspects of data collection, analysis, modeling and season setting processes
- Experience with all aspects of hunting seasons; answering hunter call, conducting field checks, operating check stations and assisting law enforcement in detection of wildlife violations
- Decades of experience addressing and preventing large carnivore conflicts including physical and chemical capture of hundreds of trophy game animals (wolves, lions, grizzly and black bear), assistance on human injury/bear death conflicts and hundreds of hours presenting bear safety/prevention information to various publics
- Competent operating most programs and Deprtment databases including WOS, OnBase, Statewide drug database, sage grouse database, Wysdom, Checkstation, trophy game conflict database and computer programs like Word, Access, Excel, PowerPoint and various other programs
- Skilled fabricator and welder, competent woodworker, trained and capable machinery operator
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
Wyoming Game Warden’s Association, Wildlife Manager of the Year – 2024, Green River Valley Cowbelle’s, Friend of Agriculture – 2019, Wyoming Game and Fish Department (Pinedale), Peer Recognition Award – 2015
LEADERSHIP
- Successfully completed Leadership Development I
- Supervised several seasonal Large Carnivore Section seasonal employees in the Pinedale Region.
Timeline
Buffalo Senior Wildlife Biologist
Wyoming Game and Fish Department
01.2021 - Current
Large Carnivore Biologist
Wyoming Game and Fish Department
01.2005 - 01.2021
Fish and Wildlife Technician II
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
01.2003 - 01.2005
Sage Grouse Technician
Oregon State University
01.2003 - 01.2003
Experimental Biology Aide
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
01.2002 - 01.2003
Forest Grouse Technician
Oregon State University
01.2001 - 01.2002
Course Work - Wildlife Management
University of Idaho
Bachelors Degree - Fisheries and Wildlife Science
Oregon State University