Publications

Translocations have been widely used to restore and conserve bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) populations in North America. Some translocations have been successful, but many populations remain small and genetically isolated. Population structure can influence the viability and long-term success of reintroductions. Social ungulates often function as interconnected subpopulations...

No abstract available.

Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are declining in abundance across their broad distribution in western North America. Identifying drivers of mule deer demography could inform habitat restoration. However, linking habitat quality to vital rates is challenging and often done indirectly using proxy metrics. We combine habitat selection with climate-related effects to identify synergistic...

Understanding social aggregation patterns in ungulate herds is essential for gaining behavioral insights, optimizing resource use, reducing human-wildlife conflict, and managing disease risk. As chronic wasting disease is the preeminent disease-related threat to cervid populations in North America, knowledge of contact between individuals and spatiotemporal patterns of aggregation...

Ecologists and other statistical practitioners with access to high-resolution spatial data often lack guidance on best approaches for discerning meaningful spatial scales for environmental covariates which is necessary when spatial factors influence environmental processes. Recently developed methods have attempted to automate investigating spatial scales for covariates by evaluating...

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal prion disease of cervids that has spread across much of North America and has recently become a global concern. Although CWD typically emerges gradually in new geographic regions, some areas experience rapid increases in prevalence for reasons that remain unclear. Herein, we describe the establishment of CWD in a mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus)...

The Arizona Toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus) has been petitioned for protection under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) and is under evaluation for inclusion as a Covered Species under the Clark County Multi Species Habitat Conservation Plan Amendment (Clark County Department of Comprehensive Planning and USFWS, 2001; USFWS, 2015b). Although the species is locally abundant in some parts...

Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM) in Tennessee and North Carolina, USA, has a high-density American black bear (Ursus americanus) population and high human visitation, resulting in frequent human–bear conflicts. Translocation is a common tool for conflict mitigation, but previous research at GRSM based on very high frequency (VHF) telemetry and eartag returns found that the...

Freshwater species are increasingly threatened by climate change, yet our ability to assess their vulnerability remains incomplete. Typically, climate change vulnerability assessments (CCVAs) evaluate three components: exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. Adaptive capacity, defined as the ability of a species to adjust to changing conditions, provides critical insight into how...

Large magnitude snow avalanches (destructive size ≥ D3) impact settlements, transportation corridors, and public safety worldwide. In Colorado, United States, avalanches have killed more people than any other natural hazard since 1950. In March 2019, a large magnitude avalanche cycle occurred throughout the entire mountainous portion of Colorado resulting in more than 1000 reported...

This chapter summarizes the location, status, and projections of glaciers in Alaska and western North America. Recent events, including the 2021 surge of Muldrow Glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska, are summarized. The implications of glacier loss for ecosystems, water resources, and mountain hazards are discussed.

Warming freshwaters can have profound effects on species composition and community structure and can increase the consumptive demand of predators. Here we explore synergistic impacts of warming and invasion within a freshwater community in Southcentral Alaska (USA). We quantified changes in population structure and predator diet composition using observed data for an introduced...