Brigid A. McCrea is a native of California and grew up in both Los Angeles and Silicon Valley. She was introduced to farming through her local 4-H club and began her lifelong love of chickens by participating in poultry shows.
Now at Delaware State University in Dover, Brigid is an Assistant Professor and Extension Poultry Specialist. She has a primarily Extension appointment where her efforts are aimed at meeting the needs of small flock and niche market poultry producers. Her areas of research and interest include niche market poultry management, which includes organic, pastured, and heritage breed poultry production. She is currently constructing Delaware’s first biosecure, indoor, pastured poultry production unit where she will examine poultry production characteristics while eliminating the confounding effects of wild bird and insect vectors.
Thinking of her roots in 4-H poultry, she also dedicates time teaching a 4-H afterschool program about poultry production and participates in the annual National 4-H Poultry and Egg Conference. She also coordinates the Delaware 4-H Poultry Judging Contest, as well as the Delaware and New Jersey FFA Poultry Judging Contest. She assists with the Maryland 4-H Avian Bowl state qualifying event. She is also very dedicated to the transfer and application of biosecurity information to small and backyard flock owners through the coordination of events such as the Small Flock Education Series and COOPTASTIC!
Brigid has a B.S. in Avian Sciences from the University of California at Davis. Her interest in poultry science and Cooperative Extension was furthered by her work done with Dr. Joan Schrader where Brigid’s M.S. research examined Salmonella and Campylobacter recovery in chickens marketed as Free-Range, or sold at Asian Live Fowl markets, and correlated the prevalence to the management practices of the producers. After spending a year doing additional research on the microbiology of niche market poultry, she pursued her Ph.D. in the Poultry Science program at Auburn University. Her research program, under the advisement of Dr. Sacit Bilgili, was focused on Salmonella, Campylobacter, and E. coli recovery in broilers from the day of hatch through processing. She served as a post-doctoral researcher at the University of California, Davis with Dr. Francine Bradley. She gained valuable Extension experience by participating in the execution of the Game Fowl Health Assurance Program as well as the Poultry Health Inspection program.
Contact Information
Brigid A. McCrea, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor and Extension Poultry Specialist
Delaware State University
