Publications

Using multi-species time series data has long been of interest for estimating inter-specific interactions with vector autoregressive models (VAR) and state space VAR models (VARSS); these methods are also described in the ecological literature as multivariate autoregressive models (MAR, MARSS). To date, most studies have used these approaches on relatively small food webs where the total...

Habitat selection involves a series of decisions that are arguably the most important decisions that animals make and these decisions occur at multiple hierarchical spatial scales. Colonial-nesting birds face a unique challenge when selecting a nest site because each bird’s choices are severely constrained by other birds within their breeding colony. Individuals must seek out optimum...

Stock assessment modeling provides a means to estimate the population dynamics of invasive fishes and may do so despite data limitations. Blue catfish (Ictalurus furcatus) were introduced to the Chesapeake Bay watershed to support recreational fisheries but also consume species of conservation need and economic importance. To assess management tradeoffs, managers need to understand the...

Arthropods are important prey for many avian taxa, particularly during the breeding season. Many studies have used sticky traps to estimate relative abundance of arthropods as avian prey, but we know little about the potential biases associated with sticky traps. We evaluated the effect of small-scale variation in trap placement on the biomass of arthropods caught on sticky traps in six...

Regional populations of lesser prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) have been declining irregularly since the early 1900s (Jensen et al. 2000). Populations in the Sand Sagebrush Prairie Ecoregion of Kansas and Colorado, USA, have been experiencing declines during the last 2 decades. Ecoregion-wide declines included the Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands in southwestern...

The Brook Floater (Alasmidonta varicosa) mussel is globally vulnerable and has disappeared from much of its historical range. Information on Brook Floater host fish use is needed for ecological and conservation purposes, but previous laboratory studies provide conflicting results. We evaluated host fish use by Brook Floater from populations in Massachusetts and Maine, USA. We conducted...

Evidence of social learning is growing across the animal kingdom. Researchers have long hypothesized that social interactions play a key role in many animal migrations, but strong empirical support is scarce except in a few unique systems and species. Here, we aim to catalyze advances in the study of social migrations by synthesizing research across disciplines and providing a framework...

1. Management of animal populations requires spatially explicit knowledge of movement corridors, such as those used during seasonal migrations. GPS tracking data allows for mapping of corridors from directly observed movements, providing important insights, but tracking data is absent for many populations. 2. We developed a novel statistical corridor modeling approach that predicts...

The lake sturgeon Acipenser fulvescens is a large, long-lived, potamodromous species that is widely distributed throughout freshwater systems in the central part of North America. In this study, we used acoustic telemetry to examine seasonal distribution and movement patterns of endangered Lake Sturgeon in Lake Champlain, Vermont. Acoustic tags were implanted in 29 juvenile Lake Sturgeon...

Seasonal movements cued by environmental variables are a critical component of riverine fish life history. Life-history events for species such as blue sucker Cycleptus elongatus are likely cued by discharge and temperature and may be disrupted if those life-history events and environmental regimes are mismatched. However, this effect may be dependent upon the habitat occupied when...

Seasonal movements cued by environmental variables are a critical component of riverine fish life history. Life-history events for species such as blue sucker Cycleptus elongatus are likely cued by discharge and temperature and may be disrupted if those life-history events and environmental regimes are mismatched. However, this effect may be dependent upon the habitat occupied when...

The Red Shiner Cyprinella lutrensis is of increasing management interest as an invasive species that negatively impacts many native fishes throughout North America. Trojan sex chromosome (TSC)-carrying individuals could theoretically control invasive fish populations by skewing the sex ratio to 100% male. The efficacy of TSC-based control programs requires an understanding of a...