Catherine S. Jarnevich, PhD
Catherine began working for the USGS while obtaining her doctorate in ecology in 2000. She gained skills in integrating disparate datasets of species’ location data and using these to generate spatially explicit models of species occurrence and abundance.
Catherine has developed a research program to assist multiple agencies and groups with species distributions, focusing on invasive species. Her current research involves the application of habitat suitability models to answer different applied research and management questions for various species across a range of taxa and spatial scales. She has also been working with spatially explicit state and transition modeling to inform efficient landscape scale invasive plant management.
Professional Experience
Research ecologist, Fort Collins Science Center, U. S. Geological Survey, Ft. Collins, CO: 2011 - present
Ecologist, Fort Collins Science Center, U. S. Geological Survey, Ft. Collins, CO: 2000 - 2011
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Colorado State University (Ecology), 2004
B.S., University of New Mexico, NM (Double major: Biology and Anthropology), 1998
Science and Products
Balancing energy development and conservation: A method utilizing species distribution models
Improving and integrating data on invasive species collected by citizen scientists
Modeling the human invader in the United States
Forecasting weed distributions using climate data: a GIS early warning tool
Distribution and abundance of Saltcedar and Russian Olive in the western United States: Chapter 2
Ensemble habitat mapping of invasive plant species
Bringing modeling to the masses: A web based system to predict potential species distributions
From points to forecasts: Predicting invasive species habitat suitability in the near term
NASA and USGS invest in invasive species modeling to evaluate habitat for Africanized Honey Bees
Temporal management of invasive species
Risk assessment of invasive species
Invasive species information networks: Collaboration at multiple scales for prevention, early detection, and rapid response to invasive alien species
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Balancing energy development and conservation: A method utilizing species distribution models
Alternative energy development is increasing, potentially leading to negative impacts on wildlife populations already stressed by other factors. Resource managers require a scientifically based methodology to balance energy development and species conservation, so we investigated modeling habitat suitability using Maximum Entropy to develop maps that could be used with other information to help siAuthorsCatherine S. Jarnevich, M.K. LaubhanImproving and integrating data on invasive species collected by citizen scientists
Limited resources make it difficult to effectively document, monitor, and control invasive species across large areas, resulting in large gaps in our knowledge of current and future invasion patterns. We surveyed 128 citizen science program coordinators and interviewed 15 of them to evaluate their potential role in filling these gaps. Many programs collect data on invasive species and are willingModeling the human invader in the United States
Modern biogeographers recognize that humans are seen as constituents of ecosystems, drivers of significant change, and perhaps, the most invasive species on earth. We found it instructive to model humans as invasive organisms with the same environmental factors. We present a preliminary model of the spread of modern humans in the conterminous United States between 1992 and 2001 based on a subset oAuthorsThomas J. Stohlgren, Catherine S. Jarnevich, Chandra P. GiriForecasting weed distributions using climate data: a GIS early warning tool
The number of invasive exotic plant species establishing in the United States is continuing to rise. When prevention of exotic species from entering into a country fails at the national level and the species establishes, reproduces, spreads, and becomes invasive, the most successful action at a local level is early detection followed eradication. We have developed a simple geographic informatioAuthorsCatherine S. Jarnevich, Tracy R. Holcombe, David T. Barnett, Thomas J. Stohlgren, John T. KarteszDistribution and abundance of Saltcedar and Russian Olive in the western United States: Chapter 2
Public Law 109-320 calls for “…an assessment of the extent of saltcedar and Russian olive infestation on public and private land in the western United States.” Saltcedar (Tamarix spp.; also known as tamarisk) and Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia) are now frequent and abundant components of the woody riparian vegetation along many Western U.S. rivers (Friedman and others, 2005; Ringold and othAuthorsPamela L. Nagler, Edward P. Glenn, Catherine S. Jarnevich, Patrick B. ShafrothEnsemble habitat mapping of invasive plant species
Ensemble species distribution models combine the strengths of several species environmental matching models, while minimizing the weakness of any one model. Ensemble models may be particularly useful in risk analysis of recently arrived, harmful invasive species because species may not yet have spread to all suitable habitats, leaving species-environment relationships difficult to determine. We teAuthorsT.J. Stohlgren, P. Ma, S. Kumar, M. Rocca, J.T. Morisette, C. S. Jarnevich, N. BensonBringing modeling to the masses: A web based system to predict potential species distributions
Predicting current and potential species distributions and abundance is critical for managing invasive species, preserving threatened and endangered species, and conserving native species and habitats. Accurate predictive models are needed at local, regional, and national scales to guide field surveys, improve monitoring, and set priorities for conservation and restoration. Modeling capabilities,AuthorsJim Graham, Greg Newman, Sunil Kumar, Catherine S. Jarnevich, Nick Young, Alycia W. Crall, Thomas J. Stohlgren, Paul EvangelistaFrom points to forecasts: Predicting invasive species habitat suitability in the near term
We used near-term climate scenarios for the continental United States, to model 12 invasive plants species. We created three potential habitat suitability models for each species using maximum entropy modeling: (1) current; (2) 2020; and (3) 2035. Area under the curve values for the models ranged from 0.92 to 0.70, with 10 of the 12 being above 0.83 suggesting strong and predictable species-enviroAuthorsTracy R. Holcombe, Thomas J. Stohlgren, Catherine S. JarnevichNASA and USGS invest in invasive species modeling to evaluate habitat for Africanized Honey Bees
Invasive non-native species, such as plants, animals, and pathogens, have long been an interest to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and NASA. Invasive species cause harm to our economy (around $120 B/year), the environment (e.g., replacing native biodiversity, forest pathogens negatively affecting carbon storage), and human health (e.g., plague, West Nile virus). Five years ago, the USGS and NASATemporal management of invasive species
No abstract available.Risk assessment of invasive species
No abstract available.Invasive species information networks: Collaboration at multiple scales for prevention, early detection, and rapid response to invasive alien species
Accurate analysis of present distributions and effective modeling of future distributions of invasive alien species (IAS) are both highly dependent on the availability and accessibility of occurrence data and natural history information about the species. Invasive alien species monitoring and detection networks (such as the Invasive Plant Atlas of New England and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the MiAuthorsAnnie Simpson, Catherine S. Jarnevich, John Madsen, Randy G. Westbrooks, Christine Fournier, Les Mehrhoff, Michael Browne, Jim Graham, Elizabeth A. Sellers - Software
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