Team

Jamille McLeod is a Wildlife Health Research Technician at the Prairie and Northern Wildlife Research Centre (PNWRC), working for the Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division (EWHD; Science and Technology Branch, Environment & Climate Change Canada). Jamille provides technical support for studies in the lab and the field to help understand impacts of large-scale environmental stressors such as contaminants and disease on wildlife and ecosystem health.  Jamille absolutely loves her job! It gives her the opportunity to travel, learn new things, and have fun and adventure everyday while working outside with wildlife and nature. Jamille especially enjoys meeting new people and working with such an amazing team at PNWRC.

Now a full-time Lab Coordinator at the University of Saskatchewan (🎉), Jordyn worked as research technician on Kirsty’s team from 2019 to 2025 and is continuing to finish up a few key papers! She received her B.Sc. at the University of Saskatchewan in Environmental Biology and in 2018 completed her M.Sc. at the U of S (provisioning patterns, diet, and reproduction of Mountain Bluebirds in clearcut and grassland habitats) as well. In her spare time, Jordyn enjoys birding, camping, and spending time with her husband and twins (and cat, Achilles!).

Zhijian Chai is a molecular biologist with extensive experience in applied genomics and research. He holds a Master of Science in Developmental Biology from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Zhijian's work with Kirsty’s team focuses on applying genome sequencing techniques to study wildlife health, including links between microbial communities and bird health. Zhijian brings a multidisciplinary approach to research and data-driven decision-making, and will soon be sharing his skills with the Saskatchewan Health Authority, as part of his new job. Congratulations, Chai!

Andres Rosales is a M.Sc. student in Biology who joined Dr. Gurney's lab in May 2023. He is investigating potential impacts of agriculture on Upland Sandpiper - including how landscape level factors and pesticides may be linked to variable population trends on the breeding grounds. He completed his undergraduate degree in Range and Wildlife Management at Texas A&M University- Kingsville in Texas. During his time in Kingsville, he gained his passion for wildlife management while working with shorebirds, seabirds, and upland game species. In his spare time, Andres enjoys birding, hunting, and being outdoors. Congratulations to Andres for supporting his work through successful funding applications to the Alberta North American Waterfowl Management Plan Partnership and the Saskatchewan Environment Fish and Wildlife Development Fund Student Research Award program.

Sydney-Marie was born and raised outside of Atlanta, Georgia and earned her B.A. in Biology from Carleton College (Northfield, MN) in 2022. Before coming to Saskatoon, she conducted research on a variety of ecological systems, including wetland bird habitat use in Florida and Uganda, periodical cicada site selection in the southeastern United States, phytoplankton size distribution in the Sargasso Sea, and grassland restoration in Minnesota. Her interest in long-distance migratory birds and spatial ecology led her to the University of Saskatchewan, where she is studying migratory connectivity and genetic population structure in the Upland Sandpiper. In her free time, she enjoys baking all things with lemon and peaches, cycling, playing any kind of pickup sport, and attempting to watercolour.

Phoebe completed her Bachelor’s degree in Animal Bioscience at the University of Saskatchewan in 2023 and started her Master’s degree in the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM; Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences) shortly afterwards. With support (in part) from a successful funding application to the WCVM Research Trust Scholarship, she evaluated the physiological and metabolomic effects of a plastic additive in waterfowl. Congratulations to Phoebe, who recently defended her thesis and will soon be starting a new job at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization.

Levi is a Master of Science candidate. She finished her B.Sc. in Biology in 2023 and has worked as an entomology lab demonstrator and a forest entomologist. Her interests include entomology, ecological remediation projects, entomological-agriculture, invasive species, outdoor activities, teaching, and learning. During her M.Sc., using migratory bird models, she will identify whether chemicals added to plastics are (i) present in wildlife (and at what quantities) and (ii) are transferred maternally to eggs.

Tori completed her B.S.A. in Environmental Science at the University of Saskatchewan and has joined our team to pursue her M.Sc. in Biology.  During her undergrad, Tori worked as a summer student at Prince Albert National Park, where she was first introduced to boreal bird monitoring.  One opportunity led to another, and she is now collaborating with Cold Lake First Nations for her master’s research, evaluating potential effects of forestry-related landscape change on boreal songbirds. Outside of academia, Tori loves spending time in nature, admiring dogs, and enjoying local live music. Congratulations to Tori for supporting her work through successful funding applications to the Saskatchewan Environment Fish and Wildlife Development Fund Student Research Award program and the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation Dennis Pattinson Memorial Scholarship fund.

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