BALK BIOLOGICAL - Key Persons
Amy Trexler has over seven years of project experience throughout the southwest performing biological compliance monitoring and consulting for large-scale construction projects. She also has extensive experience conducting endangered and special-status species protocol-level surveys and nesting bird surveys. Amy has a background in studying human-wildlife conflict resolution and draws on this knowledge to help clients to come up with creative solutions to minimize environmental impacts. Amy holds a B.S. in Biology. The thing Amy loves most about her job is getting the chance to explore new places and being outside every day. Her favorite animal is the desert tortoise. They can survive for a year without water!
Brynne Mulrooney's qualifications as a biologist include 19 years of experience as a wildlife biologist specializing in avian studies. Brynne has worked as a biological consultant for the last 10 years and has expanded her experience to include botany, environmental compliance, and wetland delineations. Brynne has worked in a variety of locations including Florida, Texas, Arizona, Mississippi, Alabama, New Jersey and California.
Brynne currently works as a biologist conducting wildlife habitat assessments, avian presence/absence surveys, vegetation mapping, rare plant surveys, wetland delineations, and biological monitoring on various construction projects. Brynne's project management duties include preparation of scopes of work, keeping projects within their allotted budgets, management of staff on projects, and maintaining strong relationships with clients.
Brynne enjoys traveling, camping, and spending time outside with her family, and sharing her appreciation of nature with her two children (a budding marine biologist and botanist/pop star in the making!). Brynne loves conducting biological surveys off the beaten path, in remote places not regularly visited by others; learning new things by spending time in the field with other biologists; and keeping her clients happy. Brynne's favorite animal is the vermilion flycatcher (Pyrocephalus rubinus), a remarkable little songbird commonly found in riparian areas and desert scrub in the arid southwest. These birds shine like ornaments when perched against the bright green of a willow or cottonwood tree (the males are strikingly red and black, while the females are a more subtle salmon and grayish brown), which is how the breeding males spend almost 90% of their day. Brynne's favorite observation of these birds is when the males perform their spectacular courtship display during the breeding season: males puff up their bodies while fluttering up to 30 feet above the canopy, singing their delightful song in hopes of impressing a prospective mate.
Brynne holds a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation from the University of Florida.
Jennifer graduated with a degree in Liberal Studies with a focus in literature and writing and soon discovered that teaching was not the path for her. Administration is her super power, so she has spent the last several years developing that skill enabling her to help amazing companies stay organized and productive. Her favorite thing about her job is learning fascinating things about the different plants and species her coworkers encounter. Her favorite "critter" is her daughter who exposes Jennifer to a variety of different animals as she pretends to be a different one daily.
Contact us today to discuss your next project and how we can help! 760-672-4559
Job Titles:
- Founder
- President
- CEO, Senior Biologist
Michelle is the founder and president of Balk Biological. She has over seventeen years of experience in the environmental consulting field in Southern California. Her specialties include vegetation community mapping, special-status plant surveys, project management, and training and leading other botanists in large-scale floristic surveys. She also performs wetlands delineations and general wildlife surveys and is an experienced environmental monitor of linear construction projects. She has participated in the preparation of a wide variety of environmental documents, including biotechnical reports in support of CEQA documents and habitat conservation plans pursuant to Section 10 of the federal Endangered Species Act. Ms. Balk regularly teaches botany classes for the California Native Plant Society.
Michelle enjoys reading, camping, and trying to teach her two-year-old about plants and wildlife while he ignores her to focus on trains and trucks. Michelle's favorite plants are the spineflowers (Chorizanthe species), or really anything teeny tiny that requires one to slow down and look closely to appreciate its intricate beauty.
Michelle holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from Iowa State University and a Master of Science from the University of Akron (Ohio) (emphasis in Ecology and Evolution).
Ms. Balk is the founder and president of Balk Biological. She has over nine years of experience in the environmental consulting field in Southern California, and leads a team of strong experts to meet your project goals.
Shelley's passion for conservation can be seen through her commitment to actively work in ecologically geared positions for over a decade. At the early age of 18, Shelley managed a coastal dune habitat restoration project, which gave her the inspiration to earn a bachelor's degree in biological sciences and a minor in chemistry. After finishing her B.S in 2011, she immediately pursued an opportunity to conduct ecological research in Brazil, resulting in multiple publications in peer-reviewed journals. Shelley then completed a two-year USDA watershed management internship, while pursuing a master's degree in biological sciences. Shelley continued work as a USDA compliance auditor and completed her master's thesis: Effects of Nitrogen on Carbon Allocation in Coastal Sage Scrub and Chaparral Shrubs. She has been enjoying a career as a consulting biologist with Balk Biological since August of 2014. The highlights of Shelley's day-to-day projects include rare plant and nesting bird surveys, habitat restoration and monitoring, as well as providing biological recommendations to clients. Shelley thinks her job is pretty great because she gets to work independently, and every day is different. The ability to work independently requires trust from everyone in the company but when our team continuously succeeds it reflects our honesty, hard work, and integrity. She also loves that this job can take her to the most random reaches of the county and she gets to have access to so many beautiful places. Each day on the job is an adventure! Nelumbo nucifera, or lotus, is Shelley's favorite plant. Lotus is sacred in many ancient cultures and for good reason. Not only does it have a gorgeous flower, but it is also a great water purifier, extremely nourishing, contains medicinal properties, and is spiritually symbolic! The anatomy of the lotus flower, seed pod, and root each have a unique and intricate cross-section. The first time Shelley ate lotus root was in Osaka, Japan, and she was surprised by how delicious it was.