Dr. Wes Boone has a long history with the Conservation Collaborative, dating back to the early days of what was then called the Doris Duke Conservation Scholars Program Collaborative. Wes joined the program as a graduate student mentor in 2016. While working on his Doctorate in Wildlife Conservation and Ecology at the University of Florida, Dr. Boone was an invaluable asset to the program, helping to plan, coordinate, and execute many key program elements. These included planning and coordinating our annual orientation retreat at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Conservation Training. Since completing his Ph.D, Dr. Boone has provided student support, mentorship, and guidance; taught basic field techniques to students from across the program; and mentored students as they prepared for and presented their independent research at major national conferences.

In addition to serving as Associate Director for the Conservation Collaborative, Wes is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Clemson University. There he conducts research on carnivore community dynamics and how carnivores structure prey populations and influence prey behavior. Broadly, his research investigates how anthropogenic disturbance influences wildlife and how wildlife responds to restoration efforts.