Publications

Coastal wetlands are being transformed by global change, impacting the ecological and societal benefits provided by these ecosystems. Synthesizing knowledge of historical and expected future transformations in coastal wetlands can help inform forward-looking planning and stewardship efforts. Here, we review anticipated future ecological transformations in coastal wetlands of the...

Cnidarian–algal (Symbiodiniaceae) symbioses rely on complex interactions among the cnidarian host, algal symbionts, and associated bacterial communities. In the upside-down jellyfish Cassiopea xamachana, the polyp-to-medusa transition (strobilation) requires the establishment of symbiosis with Symbiodiniaceae algal partners, yet bacterial community dynamics during this developmental...

Fish inhabiting marine coastal and Great Lakes waters of the United States forage, migrate, and reproduce without regard to human-made boundaries. In the mid-20th century, the 32 states along the U.S. coasts and Great Lakes recognized the growing need for coordinated, interjurisdictional fisheries management and formed four interstate or international fisheries commissions through...

The microbes found in the rhizosphere, roots, leaves and stem surfaces and within the internal tissues of mangrove vegetation and their environment constitute the microbiome of the ecosystem. The organisms in the microbiome include bacteria, protozoa, fungi, algae, amoebas, and slime molds, which assist in maintaining and restoring mangrove ecosystems. This review explores the role of...

The ongoing invasion of Python bivittatus (Burmese Python; henceforth, Python) across the Greater Everglades Ecosystem (GEE) has led to near total collapse of the affected mammal community over the past few decades. Management efforts to eliminate Pythons and control their spread have been hampered by the Python's low detectability, which may be improved by using a lure. In controlled...

The life history of hard-shelled sea turtles includes several ontogenetic shifts in habitat use and these complex permanent emigration patterns can impact estimates of stage-specific population rates, including survival. We developed several multistate mark recapture models to estimate survival of adult and juvenile loggerhead turtles from a coastal bay in the northern Gulf of America...

We investigate changes in cool-season and winter daily minimum (Tmin) and maximum (Tmax) temperatures, and the occurrence of freeze days, from 1952 to 2024 across the conterminous United States (CONUS). Emphasis is placed on the tropical-temperate transition zone (TTTz) in the southeastern CONUS. During winter, ~70% of the land area exhibited Tmin warming rates exceeding those of Tmax...

Rapid global acceleration in the construction of physical barriers along international borders has greatly influenced biodiversity and animal movement. Physical barriers can fragment landscapes, hinder access to essential resources, impact long-distance migrations, and inhibit dispersal and gene flow. The effects of physical barriers on animal movement and landscape connectivity can be...

Identifying habitats that non-native fluvial fishes are likely to invade provides information for proactive management, conservation planning, and understanding the ecology of biological invasions. We identified streams in the conterminous United States with high invasion risk from 20 non-native fluvial fish species. Specifically, we (1) developed habitat suitability models for each...

Background Radiotelemetry as a research tool has advanced our understanding of snake behavior and ecology. However, surgical transmitter implantation can lead to health complications for study animals, including expulsion, which may also interfere with research objectives. Two implantation methods include intramuscular and coelomic placements, and we evaluate expulsion rates of...

Characterizing the genetic structure and connectivity between populations of endangered species can be used to inform management actions. In vagile species with high gene flow or recently established populations, such characterizations can be difficult to undertake using traditional genetic markers, and genetic stock identification (GSI) may be confounded by allele-sharing between...

Gopher Tortoises inhabit coastal systems, including barrier islands, across the southeastern U.S. St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge is an uninhabited barrier island located off the coast of northwestern Florida. Although tortoises have been observed on the island, no information is available on the status of the population. We conducted a line transect distance sampling survey to...