Dr. Brian Healy is a research biologist and post doctoral research fellow at the US Geological Survey – Eastern Ecological Science Center
Dr. Healy is currently working to provide decision support to federal and state partners in the context of water management that affects fish populations in the California Central Valley and San Francisco Bay Delta. His primary research interests include ecology, conservation, and management of river and stream fishes, and specifically, studying fish population responses to changes in stream flow, disturbances, and management actions.
Professional Experience
2022 - Present: Research Biologst, Post-doctoral scholar, U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center
2009 - 2022: Fisheries Biologst/program manager, Native Fish Ecology and Conservation Program, Grand Canyon National Park
2018 - 2022: Graduate Research Assistant/Colorado River Doctoral Scholar, Watershed Sciences, Utah State University
2003 - 2009: Fisheries Biologist, White River National Forest
2000 - 2003: Fisheries Biologist, Chippewa National Forest
1999 - 2000: Graduate Research Assistant, Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University
Education and Certifications
PhD, 2022, Utah State University, Ecology
M.S. 2002, Texas A&M University, Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences
B.S. 1998, University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire, Biology
Science and Products
Brown trout movement data in Glen and Grand Canyons, Arizona, USA
These data were compiled to test hypotheses regarding drivers of movement of brown trout. Objectives of our study were to test whether the degree of movement varied in response to placement of a weir in Bright Angel Creek, fall timed flooding events, or simply seasonal changes. These data represent summarized capture histories of brown trout in terms of states based on physical locations, data on
Life and death in a dynamic environment: Invasive trout, floods, and intraspecific drivers of translocated populations
Understanding the relative strengths of intrinsic and extrinsic factors regulating populations is a long-standing focus of ecology and critical to advancing conservation programs for imperiled species. Conservation could benefit from an increased understanding of factors influencing vital rates (somatic growth, recruitment, survival) in small, translocated populations, which is lacking owing to di
Authors
Brian D Healy, Phaedra E. Budy, Mary M. Conner, Emily C. Omana Smith
Diverse portfolios: Investing in tributaries for restoration of large river fishes in the Anthropocene
Rehabilitation of large Anthropocene rivers requires engagement of diverse stakeholders across a broad range of sociopolitical boundaries. Competing objectives often constrain options for ecological restoration of large rivers whereas fewer competing objectives may exist in a subset of tributaries. Further, tributaries contribute toward building a “portfolio” of river ecosystem assets through phys
Authors
Kristen L. Bouska, Brian Daniel Healy, Michael James Moore, Corey Garland Dunn, Jonathan J Spurgeon, Craig Paukert
Impeding access to tributary spawning habitat and releasing experimental fall-timed floods increases brown trout immigration into a dam's tailwater
River ecosystems have been altered by flow regulation and species introductions. Regulated flow regimes often include releases designed to benefit certain species or restore ecosystem processes, and invasive species suppression programs may include efforts to restrict access to spawning habitat. The impacts of these management interventions are often uncertain. Here, we assess hypotheses regarding
Authors
Brian D. Healy, Charles Yackulic, Robert C. Schelly
Exploring metapopulation-scale suppression alternatives for a global invader in a river network experiencing climate change
Invasive species can dramatically alter ecosystems, but eradication is difficult, and suppression is expensive once they are established. Uncertainties in the potential for expansion and impacts by an invader can lead to delayed and inadequate suppression, allowing for establishment. Metapopulation viability models can aid in planning strategies to improve responses to invaders and lessen invasive
Authors
Brian D. Healy, Phaedra E. Budy, Charles Yackulic, Brendan P. Murphy, Robert C. Schelly, Mark C. McKinstry
Life and death in a dynamic environment: Invasive trout, floods, and intraspecific drivers of translocated populations
Understanding the relative strengths of intrinsic and extrinsic factors regulating populations is a long-standing focus of ecology and critical to advancing conservation programs for imperiled species. Conservation could benefit from an increased understanding of factors influencing vital rates (somatic growth, recruitment, survival) in small, translocated populations, which is lacking owing to di
Authors
Brian D Healy, Phaedra E. Budy, Mary M. Conner, Emily C. Omana Smith
Remarkable response of native fishes to invasive trout suppression varies with trout density, temperature, and annual hydrology
Recovery of imperiled fishes can be achieved through suppression of invasives, but outcomes may vary with environmental conditions. We studied the response of imperiled desert fishes to an invasive brown (Salmo trutta) and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) suppression program in a Colorado River tributary, with natural flow and longitudinal variation in thermal characteristics. We investigated t
Authors
Brian D Healy, Robert Schelly, Charles Yackulic, Emily Omana Smith, Phaedra E. Budy
Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributary streams of the Colorado River: Implications for conservation of large-river fishes
The Humpback Chub Gila cypha, a large-bodied, endangered cyprinid endemic to the Colorado River basin, is in decline throughout most of its range due largely to anthropogenic factors. Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributaries of the Colorado River is one conservation activity that may contribute to the expansion of the species’ current range and eventually provide population redundancy. We e
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Craig P. Paukert, Brian D. Healy, Melissa Trammell, Dave Speas, Emily Omana Smith
An individual-based model for population viability analysis of humpback chub in Grand Canyon
We developed an individual-based population viability analysis model (females only) for evaluating risk to populations from catastrophic events or conservation and research actions. This model tracks attributes (size, weight, viability, etc.) for individual fish through time and then compiles this information to assess the extinction risk of the population across large numbers of simulation trials
Authors
William Pine Pine, Brian Healy, Emily Omana Smith, Melissa Trammell, Dave Speas, Rich Valdez, Mike Yard, Carl Walters, Rob Ahrens, Randy Vanhaverbeke, Dennis Stone, Wade Wilson
Non-USGS Publications**
Healy, B. D., J. F. Moore, and W. E. Pine. 2022. Monitoring and managing fishes that are invisible and keep moving around: Influences of an invasive species and environmental factors on capture probability. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 42:396-409. DOI: 10.1002/nafm.10755
Gilbert, E. I., W. H. Brandenburg, A. L. Barkalow, R. B. Kegerries, B. C. Albrecht, B. D. Healy, E. C. Omana Smith, J. R. Stolberg, M. C. McKinstry, and S. P. Platania. 2022. Systematic larval fish surveys and abiotic correlates characterize extant native fish reproductive success in the Colorado River, Grand Canyon, Arizona. The Southwestern Naturalist 66(1): 67-76. https://doi.org/10.1894/0038-4909-66.1.67
Healy, B. D., E. C. Omana Smith, M. Trammell, R. C. Schelly, C. B. Nelson. 2020. Establishment of a reproducing population of endangered Humpback Chub through translocations to a Colorado River tributary, Grand Canyon, Arizona. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 40: 278-292. DOI: 10.1002/nafm.10408
Kegerries, R. B., B. Albrecht, M. C. McKinstry, R. A. Valdez, R. J. Rogers, A. L. Barkalow, E. I. Gilbert, H. Mohn, B. Healy, and E. Omana Smith. 2020. Small-bodied fish surveys demonstrate native fish dominate over three hundred kilometers of the Colorado River through Grand Canyon, Arizona. Western North American Naturalist 80(2). https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/wnan/vol80/iss2/2
Bair, R., B. W. Tobin, B. D. Healy, H. Childres, C. Spangenburger, E. Schenk. 2019. Modeling temperature regime and physical habitat impacts from restored streamflow. Environmental Management 63(6): 718-731. DOI: 10.1007/s00267-019-01157-8
Albrecht, B., H. E. Mohn, R. Kegerries, M. C. McKinstry, R. Rogers, T. Frances., B. Hines, J. Stolberg, D. Ryden, D. Elverud, B. Schleicher, K. Creighton, B. Healy, and B. Senger. 2017. Use of inflow areas in two Colorado River Basin reservoirs by endangered razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus). Western North American Naturalist 77(4): 500-514. DOI: 10.3398/064.077.0410
Kegerries, R. B., B. C. Albrecht, E. I. Gilbert, W. H. Brandenburg, A. L. Barkalow, M. C. McKinstry, H. E. Mohn, B. D. Healy, J. R. Stolberg, E. C. Omana Smith, C. B. Nelson, and R. J. Rogers. 2017. Occurrence and reproduction by Razorback Sucker (Xyrauchen texanus) in the Grand Canyon, Arizona. The Southwestern Naturalist 62(3):227- 232. DOI: 10.1894/0038-4909-62.3.227
Healy, B. D., and D. G. Lonzarich. 2000. Microhabitat use and behavior of overwintering juvenile coho salmon in a Lake Superior tributary. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 129: 866-872. https://doi.org/10.1577/1548-8659(2000)129<0866:MUABOO>2.3.CO;2
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
- Data
Brown trout movement data in Glen and Grand Canyons, Arizona, USA
These data were compiled to test hypotheses regarding drivers of movement of brown trout. Objectives of our study were to test whether the degree of movement varied in response to placement of a weir in Bright Angel Creek, fall timed flooding events, or simply seasonal changes. These data represent summarized capture histories of brown trout in terms of states based on physical locations, data on - Publications
Life and death in a dynamic environment: Invasive trout, floods, and intraspecific drivers of translocated populations
Understanding the relative strengths of intrinsic and extrinsic factors regulating populations is a long-standing focus of ecology and critical to advancing conservation programs for imperiled species. Conservation could benefit from an increased understanding of factors influencing vital rates (somatic growth, recruitment, survival) in small, translocated populations, which is lacking owing to diAuthorsBrian D Healy, Phaedra E. Budy, Mary M. Conner, Emily C. Omana SmithDiverse portfolios: Investing in tributaries for restoration of large river fishes in the Anthropocene
Rehabilitation of large Anthropocene rivers requires engagement of diverse stakeholders across a broad range of sociopolitical boundaries. Competing objectives often constrain options for ecological restoration of large rivers whereas fewer competing objectives may exist in a subset of tributaries. Further, tributaries contribute toward building a “portfolio” of river ecosystem assets through physAuthorsKristen L. Bouska, Brian Daniel Healy, Michael James Moore, Corey Garland Dunn, Jonathan J Spurgeon, Craig PaukertImpeding access to tributary spawning habitat and releasing experimental fall-timed floods increases brown trout immigration into a dam's tailwater
River ecosystems have been altered by flow regulation and species introductions. Regulated flow regimes often include releases designed to benefit certain species or restore ecosystem processes, and invasive species suppression programs may include efforts to restrict access to spawning habitat. The impacts of these management interventions are often uncertain. Here, we assess hypotheses regardingAuthorsBrian D. Healy, Charles Yackulic, Robert C. SchellyExploring metapopulation-scale suppression alternatives for a global invader in a river network experiencing climate change
Invasive species can dramatically alter ecosystems, but eradication is difficult, and suppression is expensive once they are established. Uncertainties in the potential for expansion and impacts by an invader can lead to delayed and inadequate suppression, allowing for establishment. Metapopulation viability models can aid in planning strategies to improve responses to invaders and lessen invasiveAuthorsBrian D. Healy, Phaedra E. Budy, Charles Yackulic, Brendan P. Murphy, Robert C. Schelly, Mark C. McKinstryLife and death in a dynamic environment: Invasive trout, floods, and intraspecific drivers of translocated populations
Understanding the relative strengths of intrinsic and extrinsic factors regulating populations is a long-standing focus of ecology and critical to advancing conservation programs for imperiled species. Conservation could benefit from an increased understanding of factors influencing vital rates (somatic growth, recruitment, survival) in small, translocated populations, which is lacking owing to diAuthorsBrian D Healy, Phaedra E. Budy, Mary M. Conner, Emily C. Omana SmithRemarkable response of native fishes to invasive trout suppression varies with trout density, temperature, and annual hydrology
Recovery of imperiled fishes can be achieved through suppression of invasives, but outcomes may vary with environmental conditions. We studied the response of imperiled desert fishes to an invasive brown (Salmo trutta) and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) suppression program in a Colorado River tributary, with natural flow and longitudinal variation in thermal characteristics. We investigated tAuthorsBrian D Healy, Robert Schelly, Charles Yackulic, Emily Omana Smith, Phaedra E. BudyTranslocation of Humpback Chub into tributary streams of the Colorado River: Implications for conservation of large-river fishes
The Humpback Chub Gila cypha, a large-bodied, endangered cyprinid endemic to the Colorado River basin, is in decline throughout most of its range due largely to anthropogenic factors. Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributaries of the Colorado River is one conservation activity that may contribute to the expansion of the species’ current range and eventually provide population redundancy. We eAuthorsJonathan J. Spurgeon, Craig P. Paukert, Brian D. Healy, Melissa Trammell, Dave Speas, Emily Omana SmithAn individual-based model for population viability analysis of humpback chub in Grand Canyon
We developed an individual-based population viability analysis model (females only) for evaluating risk to populations from catastrophic events or conservation and research actions. This model tracks attributes (size, weight, viability, etc.) for individual fish through time and then compiles this information to assess the extinction risk of the population across large numbers of simulation trialsAuthorsWilliam Pine Pine, Brian Healy, Emily Omana Smith, Melissa Trammell, Dave Speas, Rich Valdez, Mike Yard, Carl Walters, Rob Ahrens, Randy Vanhaverbeke, Dennis Stone, Wade WilsonNon-USGS Publications**
Healy, B. D., J. F. Moore, and W. E. Pine. 2022. Monitoring and managing fishes that are invisible and keep moving around: Influences of an invasive species and environmental factors on capture probability. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 42:396-409. DOI: 10.1002/nafm.10755
Gilbert, E. I., W. H. Brandenburg, A. L. Barkalow, R. B. Kegerries, B. C. Albrecht, B. D. Healy, E. C. Omana Smith, J. R. Stolberg, M. C. McKinstry, and S. P. Platania. 2022. Systematic larval fish surveys and abiotic correlates characterize extant native fish reproductive success in the Colorado River, Grand Canyon, Arizona. The Southwestern Naturalist 66(1): 67-76. https://doi.org/10.1894/0038-4909-66.1.67Healy, B. D., E. C. Omana Smith, M. Trammell, R. C. Schelly, C. B. Nelson. 2020. Establishment of a reproducing population of endangered Humpback Chub through translocations to a Colorado River tributary, Grand Canyon, Arizona. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 40: 278-292. DOI: 10.1002/nafm.10408
Kegerries, R. B., B. Albrecht, M. C. McKinstry, R. A. Valdez, R. J. Rogers, A. L. Barkalow, E. I. Gilbert, H. Mohn, B. Healy, and E. Omana Smith. 2020. Small-bodied fish surveys demonstrate native fish dominate over three hundred kilometers of the Colorado River through Grand Canyon, Arizona. Western North American Naturalist 80(2). https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/wnan/vol80/iss2/2Bair, R., B. W. Tobin, B. D. Healy, H. Childres, C. Spangenburger, E. Schenk. 2019. Modeling temperature regime and physical habitat impacts from restored streamflow. Environmental Management 63(6): 718-731. DOI: 10.1007/s00267-019-01157-8Albrecht, B., H. E. Mohn, R. Kegerries, M. C. McKinstry, R. Rogers, T. Frances., B. Hines, J. Stolberg, D. Ryden, D. Elverud, B. Schleicher, K. Creighton, B. Healy, and B. Senger. 2017. Use of inflow areas in two Colorado River Basin reservoirs by endangered razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus). Western North American Naturalist 77(4): 500-514. DOI: 10.3398/064.077.0410Kegerries, R. B., B. C. Albrecht, E. I. Gilbert, W. H. Brandenburg, A. L. Barkalow, M. C. McKinstry, H. E. Mohn, B. D. Healy, J. R. Stolberg, E. C. Omana Smith, C. B. Nelson, and R. J. Rogers. 2017. Occurrence and reproduction by Razorback Sucker (Xyrauchen texanus) in the Grand Canyon, Arizona. The Southwestern Naturalist 62(3):227- 232. DOI: 10.1894/0038-4909-62.3.227Healy, B. D., and D. G. Lonzarich. 2000. Microhabitat use and behavior of overwintering juvenile coho salmon in a Lake Superior tributary. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 129: 866-872. https://doi.org/10.1577/1548-8659(2000)129<0866:MUABOO>2.3.CO;2**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
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