Dax Mangus

Research Assistant
Department of Wildland Resources
Utah State University
Logan, UT 84322-5230
dax@cc.usu.edu

BNR 358B

(307) 679-1412

I grew up in Southern Utah and spent my childhood playing in red dirt. I lived in the Canary Islands of Spain for two years after high school and returned to Utah to attend college. I received an associate’s degree from Dixie State College in St. George, Utah and a BS degree in Fisheries and Wildlife from the College of Natural Resources, Utah State Univeristy in 2004. I worked seasonally as a wildlife technician for the Forest Service, for the Bureau of Land Management, and for state fish and game agencies in both Utah and Idaho. I currently work part time as a wildlife biologist for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and am concurrently completing a MS degree in Wildlife Biology at Utah State University.

I am interested in real world, messy, complicated applications of the behavioral principles that BEHAVE investigates. I am especially interested in applying these principles in “on the ground” wildlife management. In most state and federal wildlife management agencies behavioral principles receive little emphasis in developing management plans. I am interested in helping the wildlife management community change their traditional management paradigms, and become more aware of behavioral principles and their applications.

I am an avid big game hunter and am extremely interested in management of western big game species, especially mule deer.