Publications

 Rapidly changing landscapes have spurred the need for quantitative methods for conservation assessment and planning that encompass large spatial extents. We devised and tested a multispecies framework for conservation planning to complement single-species assessments and ecosystem-level approaches. Our framework consisted of 4 elements: sampling to effectively estimate population...

Adaptive management requires that predictive models be explicit and transparent to improve decisions by comparing management actions, directing further research and monitoring, and facilitating learning. The rufa subspecies of red knots (Calidris canutus rufa), which has recently exhibited steep population declines, relies on horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) eggs as their primary food...

Increased scrutiny of furbearer trapping has resulted in more regulation and even prohibition of common trapping methods in some States. Concerns regarding the potential negative impacts of regulated furbearer trapping on reintroduced Mexican gray wolves (Canis lupus baileyi) led now former Governor Bill Richardson to issue an executive order prohibiting trapping in the New Mexico...

Canids can be difficult to detect and their populations difficult to monitor. We tested whether hair samples could be collected from coyotes (Canis latrans) in Texas, USA and gray wolves (C. lupus) in Montana, USA using lure to elicit rubbing behavior at both man-made and natural collection devices. We used mitochondrial and nuclear DNA to determine whether collected hair samples were...

Otoliths were used to estimate daily age, growth, and hatching date of the exotic Asian swamp eel (Monopterus albus) captured from a backwater marsh of the Chattahoochee River, Georgia, USA. The eels were sampled using leaf litter traps (N = 140) from 17 July to 28 August 2008. The captured (N = 15) Asian swamp eels ranged in total length from 4.9 cm to 12.2 cm, and were estimated to be...

Large wetlands around the world face the possibility of degradation, not only from complete conversion, but also from subtle changes in their structure and function. While fragmentation and isolation of wetlands within heterogeneous landscapes has received much attention, the disruption of spatial patterns/processes within large wetland systems and the resulting fragmentation of...

No abstract available.

Disconnection between adjacent habitat patches is one of the most notable factors contributing to the decreased biotic integrity of global ecosystems. Connectivity is especially threatened in river–floodplain ecosystems in which channel modifications have disrupted the lateral links between the main river channel and floodplain lakes. In this study, we examined the interaction between...

In this laboratory study, we quantified substrate selection by small (

Causes of interspecific variation in growth rates within and among geographic regions remain poorly understood. Passerine birds represent an intriguing case because differing theories yield the possibility of an antagonistic interaction between nest predation risk and food delivery rates on evolution of growth rates. We test this possibility among 64 Passerine species studied on three...

Anthropogenic alterations to Iowa’s landscape have greatly altered lotic systems with consequent effects on the biodiversity of freshwater fauna. Ictalurids are a diverse group of fishes and play an important ecological role in aquatic ecosystems. However, little is known about their distribution and status in lotic systems throughout Iowa. The purpose of this study was to describe the

A review of the Pennsylvania Game Commission's (PGC) deer management program and public concern about predator impacts on deer (Odocoileus virginianus) populations compelled the PGC to investigate the role of age ratios in developing management recommendations. Age ratios, such as proportion of juveniles in the antlerless harvest, may provide an index to population productivity and...