Josh Layfield defended his master’s thesis in September 2024 at the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit in the University of Wyoming Department of Zoology and Physiology. He was co-advised by Dr. Anna Chalfoun and Dr. Jerod Merkle, in collaboration with the Teton Raptor Center. His research focused on the winter movement and behavior of golden eagles around anthropogenic stimuli in Wyoming.
Josh grew up in the Great Appalachian Valley of Tennessee and attended the University of Tennessee where he found his passion for birds working as a field technician on a project investigating the effects of cattle grazing strategies in native warm season grass pastures on nesting songbirds.
After receiving his undergraduate degree in Wildlife and Fisheries science in 2016, Josh has worked for the United States Forest Service as a ranger technician and type II Wildland Fighter on the Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont, and as a Reservoir Operations Manager for a water supplier in western Massachusetts.
In his spare time time, Josh can be found wading the waters of the North Platte River, rock-climbing, birding, or hiking with his partner and their two pups Pippin & Myotis.
Professional Preparation and Appointments
B.S., Wildlife and Fisheries Science, University of Tennessee, 2016.