In May 2019, Alex Kumar joined the USFWS Natural Resource Program Center (NRPC) in Fort Collins to complete a short-term project as part of the Directorate Resource Assistants Fellows Program (DFP). Alex came to NRPC from the University of Montana where he is finishing his PhD dissertation on population cycling of snowshoe hares. However, this past summer, he delved into the world of waterbirds by analyzing IWMM data from various refuges across the country. Completed in August 2019, his analyses found that certain sampling strategies can reduce sampling effort by as much as 50% while still maintaining accurate count estimates. Alex greatly enjoyed his DFP opportunity and hopes to use his experience to link research with management decisions, possibly by applying his knowledge of statistical analyses and research design to inform efficient conservation work on refuges.
