Cathy Jachowski recently completed her Ph.D. program in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation at Virginia Tech. In the Hopkins Lab, her research focused on a long lived and fully aquatic salamander, the hellbender, that has declined across much of its range for unclear reasons.

Cathy is broadly interested in understanding how environmental alterations influence populations, particularly through sub-lethal effects occurring at the individual level. Her hellbender research focused on how land use might influence host density, physiology and exposure to parasites, and how these factors might interact to influence survival and reproduction.

Cathy earned a B.S. in environmental science from Georgetown College in her home state of Kentucky, and a M.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Science from the University of Missouri. In addition to involvement in research on animal movements, resource selection, disease, monitoring and contaminant exposure, Cathy spent several years teaching informal outdoor science classes for the public and worked as a resource staff scientist with the Missouri Department of Conservation. She is particularly passionate about science communication and bridging boundaries between science, society and policy to achieve sustainable solutions.

Cathy graduated in December 2016, and is now an Assistant Professor at Clemson University in the Forestry and Environmental Conservation Department.

CBJachowski_CV        Lab Website
(May 2016)

cathy400

Representative Publications:

View Cathy Bodinof Jachowski on Google Scholar

Bodinof, C.M., J. T. Briggler, R. E. Junge, J. Beringer, M. D. Wanner, C. D. Schuette, J. Ettling, R. A. Gitzen, and J. J. Millspaugh. 2012. Postrelease movements of captive-reared Ozark hellbenders. Herpetologica 68(2): 160-173.

Bodinof, C.M., J. T. Briggler, R. E. Junge, T. Mong, J. Beringer, M. D. Wanner, C. D. Schuette, J. Ettling, and J. J. Millspaugh. 2012. Survival and body condition of captive-reared juvenile Ozark hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis bishopi) following translocation to the wild. Copeia 2012(1): 150-159.

Bodinof, C. M., J. T. Briggler, R. E. Junge, J. Beringer, M. D. Wanner, C. D. Schuette, J. Ettling, and J. J. Millspaugh. 2012. Habitat attributes associated with short-term settlement of Ozark hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis bishopi) salamanders following translocation to the wild. Freshwater Biology 57(1): 178-192.

Millspaugh, J. J., D. C. Kesler, R. W. Kays, R. A. Gitzen, J. H. Schulz, C. T. Rota, C. M. Bodinof, J. L. Belant, and B. J. Keller. 2012. Wildlife radiotelemetry and remote monitoring, pp.258-283 in The Wildlife Techniques Manual Vol.1: Research, N. J. Silvy, ed. 7th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

Millspaugh, J. J., R. A. Gitzen, J. L. Belant, R. W. Kays, B. J. Keller, D. C. Kesler, C. T. Rota, J. H. Schulz, and C. M. Bodinof. 2012. Analysis of radiotelemetry data, pp. 480-501 in The Wildlife Techniques Manual Vol.1: Research, N. J. Silvy, ed.7th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

Browne, R.K., L. Hong, D. McGinnity, S. Okada, W. Zhenghuan, C. M. Bodinof, K. J. Irwin, A. McMillan, and J. T. Briggler. 2011. Survey techniques for giant salamanders and other aquatic Caudata. Amphibian and Reptile Conservation 5(4): 1-16.

Bodinof, C. M., J. T. Briggler, M. Duncan, J. Beringer, and J. J. Millspaugh. 2011. Historic occurrence of the amphibian chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in hellbender Cryptobranchus alleganiensis populations from Missouri. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 96: 1-11.

Bergeron, C. M., W. A. Hopkins, C. M. Bodinof, S. A. Budischak, H. Wada, and J. M. Unrine. 2011. Counterbalancing effects of maternal mercury exposure during different stages of early ontogeny in American toads. Science of the Total Environment 409: 4746-4752.

Bergeron, C. M., C. M. Bodinof, J. M. Unrine, and W. A. Hopkins. 2010. Mercury accumulation along a contamination gradient and nondestructive indices of bioaccumulation in amphibians. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 29: 980-988.

Bergeron, C. M., C. M. Bodinof, J. M. Unrine, and W. A. Hopkins. 2010. Bioaccumulation and maternal transfer of mercury and selenium in amphibians. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 29: 989-997.

Cathy talks about her hellbender research

*Hellbender research in the Hopkins Lab is the result of a partnership with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, funded through the State Wildlife Grants Program.