Graduate Research Assistant/Masters of Science/Department of Natural Resources Management

Assessing Prevalence of Eyeworm and Cecal Worm Infestations in Quail Throughout the Trans-Pecos Region of Texas

My name is Rachel Bittner and I am from the small town of Lockhart, Texas. I grew up hiking and camping with my family in state parks throughout Texas where I developed a love for wildlife and the great outdoors. I received my B.S. in Natural Resources Management with a concentration in Wildlife Biology from Texas Tech University May of 2018. Quail throughout the Trans-Pecos are experiencing population declines due to reasons such as habitat loss/fragmentation, changing vegetation structures, and anthropogenic disturbances. There is currently very little information regarding the parasitic eyeworm (Oxyspirura petrowi) and cecal worm (Aulonocephalus pennula) prevalence within scaled quail (Callipepla squamata), Gambel’s quail (Callipepla gambelii), and Montezuma quail (Cyrtonyx montezumae) especially throughout the Trans-Pecos. Providing information concerning parasite prevalence on these quail in the Trans-Pecos may aid in determining the effect that parasites are having on scaled quail, health, reproduction, survival, and population declines throughout their current range. My Master’s research focuses on assessing overall prevalence, abundance, and intensity of eyeworms in quail, as well as associations with precipitation gradients across the Trans Pecos. Additionally, sites that provide supplemental feed will also be assessed to determine if parasite loads increase as quail densities increase around feeding sites.

UPDATE

I am incredibly thankful to have received the Dan L. Duncan scholarship. With the scholarship, I have been able to pay for tuition for this past school year and began paying off a student loan! Since the notice of my award I have completed the first year of data collection for my master’s work and am almost complete with my second year. In addition to fieldwork, I have taken classes such as Ecological Modeling, Population Dynamics, and GIS, GPS, and Remote Sensing. With these classes, I have further developed my GIS skills along with learning a new modeling program.

In August 2019 I attended the Texas Statewide Quail Symposium in Abilene where I presented a poster on Assessing Eyeworm and Cecal Worm Infestations in Quail Throughout the Trans-Pecos Region of Texas. I also attended the 2020 Texas Chapter of The Wildlife Society meeting where I presented a poster on a different chapter of my research: “Evaluating Precipitation Effects on Eyeworm and Cecal Worm Prevalence in Quails Throughout the Trans-Pecos Region of Texas”. At both of these conferences, I
was able to not only share my research with others but networked and discuss quail and parasites with others.

I have continued to work hard and also volunteer within my department and community.
Highlights include helping on several wildlife captures, participating in Public Lands Day by picking up trash on FM 170 and the Rio Grande, walking dogs at my local animal shelter, and becoming a Teaching Assistant for the Natural Resources Department here at Sul Ross.

Attending the Houston Safari Club Foundation Banquet and Convention in January was such a wonderful experience. I was able to meet several individuals who have supported not only the Houston Safari Club and Foundation but the Dan L. Duncan scholarship. I cannot thank everyone enough for their support of myself and all the other scholarship recipients as we begin our professional careers and help to preserve the sport of hunting for generations to come.