Grand Canyon National Park features employees weekly in our community newsletter. This week's Employee Spotlight is Sean Ryall.

Brady Dunn is a wildlife biologist at Grand Canyon National Park.

He holds degrees from Northern Arizona University and the University of Montana.

He began his career in natural resources in 2000 as a park ranger and naturalist at Glacier National Park, and was introduced to the field of wildlife conservation research while volunteering as a National Park Service wildlife biologist. discovered.

After returning to school (UofM) to earn a second degree in wildlife, he spent the next 16 years working year-round as a field biologist, studying numerous Western wildlife species (primarily songbirds, birds of prey, We collected wildlife research data on large carnivores). During that time, Dan worked for several state wildlife agencies, universities, BLM, USFS, USGS, and NPS.

“The last time I worked as a bear management specialist was in Yellowstone National Park from 2018 to 2021. However, I spent the last grueling field season leading field operations for wolverine research in the Sawtooth Mountains. After spending time there, I decided to 'hang up' and switch career paths,” he said.

In 2022, Dan accepted a full-time position with the federal government as a Natural Resources Specialist with the Department of Defense.

How long have you been working at GRCA? Where are you based?

I just started working at the SRM building in GRCA's South Rim in October 2023. Even though I grew up in Prescott, I haven't seen the Grand Canyon in over 30 years.

What does a typical day look like in your role?

On an average day, you'll be in the office working on the continued development of a strong IPM program for the park. But I often respond to calls for human-wildlife conflict such as: Animals in buildings, injured animals, moose at school, etc.

Are there any particular projects or tasks that you find particularly interesting or challenging?

The most challenging aspect of my career in wildlife is trying to bridge the gap between human perception and understanding of wild animal behavior. Educating people about the behavior of different wildlife species and trying to explain them without anthropomorphizing them is always a challenge.

Can you share a talent or skill that people would be surprised to learn about?

I have spent more than 60,000 hours of my life specifically collecting field data and capturing and managing cougars, grizzly bears, and gray wolves. The skills I became most specialized in were climbing trees to catch cougars and harassing grizzly bears at close range. We also established our own expeditions to capture cougars and bears for wildlife photographers.

Is there a destination on your bucket list?

Torres del Paine National Park in the Patagonia region of Chile.