Faculty Director
Zac Cheviron, PhD
Zac is an Associate Professor in Biological Sciences and the Wildlife Biology program. His research focuses on integrative questions at the interface of ecophysiology, evolutionary genomics, and systems biology, with emphasis on birds and mammals.
Curator
Katrina M. Derieg
Katrina joined UM in 2025 as curator of the UMZM. She is a mammalogist with 10 years of experience in natural history collections. She oversees the day-to-day operations of the UMZM and is working on growing the collection to broaden its use by researchers, students, and the general public.
Volunteers
Larry DePute, MD
Larry has been a dedicated volunteer in the UMZM since 2015. As a retired medical professional, his specialty of articulating bird skeletons for display developed from a lifelong love of birding and wildlife biology. His handiwork can be seen throughout Missoula, including on the UM campus and at the Montana Natural History Center. If the prep lab is open and you see someone scrutinizing a pile of bird bones, pop in and say hello to Larry!
Logan Roberts
Logan Roberts is a mammalogist and parasitologist at the UMZM. Her research characterizes small mammal and parasite communities, notably in Utah’s Goblin Valley State Park. Logan has cataloged thousands of helminths and arthropod parasites and pioneered the "extended specimen" concept by linking host and parasite records in biodiversity databases. An alumna of the Natural History Museum of Utah and its first parasitology intern, she possesses an expert skillset ranging from field trapping to taxonomic identification.
Students
Linnea Schaefer
Linnea is a PhD student in Zac Cheviron's lab and the UMZM's local bird nerd. Her research examines the genetic and physiological consequences of megafire on songbirds in Northern California. She previously worked in bird curatorial at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at UC Berkeley (2019-2023), and her dissertation research utilized and contributes specimens to the Grinnell Resurvey Project. Linnea is passionate about mentoring undergrads in field biology and museum skills and teaches a weekly workshop on bird specimen preparation at the UMZM. She hopes to continue working in natural history museums for the rest of her career.
Laura Blumensaadt
Laura is a PhD candidate in Zac Cheviron's lab studying the evolutionary and physiological effects of chronic heavy metal exposure on wild rodents. A UMZM collaborator by day and volunteer by night, Laura is a lifelong lover of natural history museums, and became officially involved in museum research starting in 2022. Her research both utilizes and contributes to natural history collections, extending the impact of her work. Come find her to chat about bird and mammal specimen prep, how mice are misunderstood, and anything and everything science fiction!