Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program:
Education, Research and Technical Assistance for Managing Our Natural Resources

Staff Member

Samantha Fino

Sam Fino, PhD with Dr. Josh Stafford and Dr. Aaron Pearse.
PhD
Email: samantha.fino@sdstate.edu

Biography

Sam is from southwestern Connecticut and graduated from the University of Delaware with a BS in Wildlife Conservation and Ecology in 2015. She went on to receive her MS in Wildlife and Fisheries Resources from West Virginia University in 2017 where she studied the effect of the small mammal community on spatiotemporal distributions of blacklegged ticks and Lyme disease prevalence on Fort Drum Military Installation, NY. During her undergraduate and graduate degrees, she participated in various projects, such as those that involved bioenergetics for wintering black ducks, mesocarnivore occupancy, fawn mortality, and monitoring the movements of black rhinos in South Africa. Currently, Sam is working towards a PhD researching waterfowl nestling survival and predator community ecology with Dr. Josh Stafford and Dr. Aaron Pearse in the Department of Natural Resource Management at South Dakota State University.

Research Publications Publication Date
Fino, S.R., L.M. Gigliotti, A.T. Pearse, and J.D. Stafford 2023. Landowner and biologist perceptions of game bird predators and management. Wildlife Society Bulletin 47:e1443. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.1443 May 2023
Fino, S., J.D. Stafford, A.T. Pearse, and J.A. Jenks. 2019. Incidental captures of Plains Spotted Skunks (Spilogale putorius interrupta) in central South Dakota. The Prairie Naturalist 51:33-36. October 2019
Project Completion Date
Predator Cascade and Nest Success: Changes in Foraging Patterns as a Function of Grassland Patch Dynamics and Vegetation Composition June 2021
Presentations Presentation Date
Fino, S.R., J.D. Stafford, A.T. Pearse, and J.A. Jenks. 2017. Predator community and duck nest success in eastern South Dakota. CRU Annual Meeting. Brookings, SD, 24 October 2017. October 2017
Fino, S.R., J.D. Stafford, A.T. Pearse, J.A. Jenks, and R.C. Lonsinger. 2019. Relating predator community dynamics and duck nest survival in eastern South Dakota. North American Duck Symposium. Winnipeg, Manitoba, 26-30 August 2019. August 2019
Fino, S.R., A.T. Pearse, and J.D. Stafford. Relating predator communities and duck nest survival in Eastern SD. Annual Meeting of the Central Flyway Technical Section, Padre Island, TX. 11 September 2022. September 2022
Fino, S. R., J. D. Stafford, A. T. Pearse, J. A. Jenks, and R. C. Lonsinger. Relating predator community dynamics and duck nest survival in eastern South Dakota. South Dakota Chapter of the Wildlife Society Annual Meeting, Chamberlain, South Dakota. 26 February 2018. February 2018
Fino, S. R., J. D. Stafford, A. T. Pearse, J. A. Jenks, and R. C. Lonsinger. Relating predator community dynamics and duck nest survival in eastern South Dakota. 78th Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 30 January 2018. January 2018
Fino, S. R., J. D. Stafford, A. T. Pearse, J. A. Jenks, AND R. C. Lonsinger. 2021. Relating predator community dynamics and duck nest survival in eastern South Dakota. Ducks Unlimited, Canada IWWR Research Roundup Webinar Series. 8 April 2021. April 2021
Fino, S. R., J. D. Stafford, A. T. Pearse, J. A. Jenks, AND R. C. Lonsinger. 2021. Relating predator community dynamics and duck nest survival in eastern South Dakota. Brookings Wildlife Federation. 4 June 2021. June 2021