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RJ Hawkins, a graduate of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University's Project Dragonfly program, received national attention recently when he photographed the first otter seen in nearly 100 years in the Bronx section of the Bronx River. Hawkins is seen here with the trail camera that captured the image of the otter earlier this year.

Seven years separated sightings of beavers along the Bronx section of the Bronx River when RJ Hawkins, then a graduate student with ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University’s Project Dragonfly, photographed the rarely seen rodent with his trail camera in 2025.

Hawkins was thrilled with the discovery. Typically, he said, his camera roll is full of shots of the same kinds of animals routinely seen coming and going in that area.

While this breakthrough made a few waves among the media, it was nothing like what was to come for the Trumbull, Connecticut, native.

His next finding was also anything but typical — and hadn’t been seen in the Bronx section of the Bronx River for a century. Earlier this summer, Hawkins photographed an otter, making its first Bronx appearance since the early 1900s.

The 2025 ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú graduate was shocked when he realized what was in the image he’d captured. The Wildlife Conservation Society and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation soon confirmed his suspicions; it was indeed a North American river otter.

Let the flood begin. The New York Times, NPR, and several other news organizations sought out Hawkins for the scoop.

“This has all been so crazy,” said Hawkins, a former auditor who now works as an independent conservation biologist. “It’s been picked up on radio and TV, with posted clips to YouTube, and podcasts. It’s been great to get the word out. I think people have gravitated toward the story because it’s definitely a very positive development.”

RJ Hawkins conducts research in the New York Harbor as part of his Environmental Stewardship class at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University.

This return of uncommon wildlife is proof that restoration efforts for the Bronx River are working. “It’s in a much healthier state,” Hawkins said. “The key takeaway is, in the past, the Bronx River has been heavily polluted. Local politicians, community members, volunteers, and local nonprofits like the Bronx River Alliance and the Wildlife Conservation Society stepped up and worked on restoring and protecting the Bronx River.”

Originally, the trail cameras were set up as part of Hawkins’ work as a Project Dragonfly student to understand the wildlife species in the area. Once he earned his Master of Arts in Biology degree from ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú in December through Project Dragonfly’s Advanced Inquiry Program, the Astoria, Queens, resident asked the Wildlife Conservation Society if he could extend the duration of the cameras into 2026.

The three years Hawkins has observed the Bronx River have been extremely rewarding. “It’s been great that the Wildlife Conservation Society has supported me, even after I graduated,” he said. “They’ve been a great partner.”

Katie Feilen, director of Project Dragonfly in ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú’s Biology department, has enjoyed watching Hawkins’ story go viral. She noted a member of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú’s Department of Biology was listening to an NPR story on the river otter discovery and realized, “Wait, this is one of ours.”

“We are really excited and proud of RJ,” Feilen said. “Our students do incredible work that connects to both the environment and society. Because of the nature of their work, it often impacts their local communities. This is a great story that celebrates a major accomplishment. It really is a ‘New York’ story.”

As part of his Urban Ecology class at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University, RJ Hawkins participated in research in Jamaica Bay.

As a Project Dragonfly student, Hawkins took most of his in-person learning experiences at the Bronx Zoo, one of the program’s many collaborators. The Wildlife Conservation Society owns and operates the Bronx Zoo, as well as the Queens Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, Central Park Zoo, and the New York Aquarium in New York City. Hawkins also took classes at the Central Park Zoo and New York Aquarium.

Project Dragonfly started at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú in 1994 with the publication of Dragonfly magazine, which focused on children’s science investigations and discoveries. Since then, Project Dragonfly has grown into ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú’s largest graduate degree program with offerings that include its Global Field Program, Earth Expeditions, and the Advanced Inquiry Program.

By partnering with zoos and botanical gardens around the globe, Project Dragonfly delivers innovative community-engaged graduate education. The Wildlife Conservation Society/Bronx Zoo has been a long-time collaborator with the program. “They do wonderful work connecting a student’s in-person learning experiences to their community,” Feilen said.

Feilen noted that Project Dragonfly students produce a capstone centered around a central theme, called a master plan, which really is the touchpoint for a lifelong learning experience.

“We often tell students their master plan starts when they graduate from the program and continues through their professional and personal work around their overarching goal,” Feilen said. “RJ is a great example of what Project Dragonfly is and what a graduate of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University can do.”

For Hawkins, Project Dragonfly offered a way he could engage with his passion for the environment and sustainability. He was fully immersed in the business world — Hawkins earned his undergraduate marketing degree from Iona University — but over time he wanted to align his personal and professional goals.

Having an online program with in-person experiential learning geared toward working professionals was key.

“It’s obviously a lot of work and juggling schedules, but Project Dragonfly helps make sure working professionals can still do their day jobs while getting a degree,” Hawkins said. “It was a great way to earn the degree without having to take a break from work. Otherwise, I probably wouldn’t have been able to afford it.”

Sharing his research is one of the next steps for Hawkins, who plans to present it at BeaverCON in Minneapolis and during the Student Conference on Conservation Science at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

Speaking at a conference will be new for Hawkins. But the past few months have definitely prepared him to talk in-depth about his Bronx River project.

“I’ve been really grateful that my experiences through ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú have led me to do this project,” Hawkins said. “I’m just hoping to have more experiences like this in the future and see where it leads.”