Charles van Riper III grew up observing the wildlife and resulting in a lifelong love of nature. He earned obtaining a B.S. in Zoology and a M.Ed. in Science from Colorado State University where he became intensely interested in Hawaiian birds. He later moved to the island of Hawaii to teach biology at the Hawaii Preparatory Academy (HPA) and to study Hawaiian birds.
Charles’ doctoral research, under the guidance of Dr. Andrew J. Berger at the University of Hawaii (UH), was on two endangered species of Hawaiian native birds (honeycreepers). While working as a post-doctoral researcher with Dr. Clifford Smith in the UH Botany Department, Charles met his wife, Sandra Jean Guest, a fellow ornithology graduate student. Together, they elucidated the complex system of introduced diseases on native Hawaiian birds.
At the University of California, Davis, Charles started the first California Cooperative Parks Studies Unit and began his 20-year career with the National Park Service. In 1989, the National Park Service asked Charles to initiate another Cooperative Parks Studies Unit at Northern Arizona University, in Flagstaff, Arizona. Dr. van Riper built this unit from one individual to a team of 42 researchers, who solved natural resources problems throughout the Colorado Plateau and the southwestern United States. In 2003, Charles was again invited to assist with a university-based research station, this time with the Sonoran Desert Research Station at the University of Arizona (UA) in Tucson, Arizona. Today, he serves as a ST Research Ecologist, SDRS Station Leader, and Professor in the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Resources in the UA School of Natural Resources.
Professional societies/affiliations/committees/editorial boards
- American Ornithologists' Union
- California Field Ornithologists
- Cooper Ornithological Society
- Ecological Society of America
- George Wright Society
- Hawaii Audubon Society
- Natural Areas Association
- Raptor Research Foundation
- Sigma Xi
- Society for Conservation Biology
- Western Bird-banding Association
- Wilson Ornithological Society
- Wildlife Disease Association
- Wildlife Society
Books:
- Colorado River Plateau: Cultural, Biological, and Physical Research - the book, published by UA Press
Articles on these subjects are available on Dr. Riper's personal website:
- Yellow-Billed Cuckoo
- Wildlife of Africa at Venetia Limpopo & Silkaatskop
- Status of Breeding and Wintering Birds
- Bald Eagle Abundance and Relationships to prey base and human activity along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
- West Nile Virus Presentation
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. 1978, Zoology, University of Hawaii. Honolulu, HI
M. Ed. 1967, Science, Colorado State University. Fort Collins, CO
B.S. 1965, Zoology, Colorado State University. Fort Collins, CO
Science and Products
Forecasting Climate Impacts on Wildlife of the Arid Southwest at Regional and Local Scales Using Downscaled Climate Models
Cordilleran Flycatcher banding, nestling, and fledgling data from southwestern Colorado, 2009-2018
Bridging the research-implementation gap in avian conservation with translational ecology
The transformation of dryland rivers: The future of introduced tamarisk in the U.S.
Brood provisioning rates and fledgling behavior of Cordilleran Flycatchers in southwestern Colorado
Observations on the range and nesting biology of the Mexican endemic rufous-capped brush-finch (Atlapetes Pileatus Pileatus)
Phenology and abundance of Northern Tamarisk Beetle, Diorhabda carinulata affecting defoliation of Tamarix
Influences of the invasive tamarisk leaf beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) on avian diets along the Dolores River in Southwestern Colorado USA
Population dynamics of the northern tamarisk beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) in the Colorado River Basin
Riparian bird density decline in response to biocontrol of Tamarix from riparian ecosystems along the Dolores River in SW Colorado, USA
Northern tamarisk beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) and tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) interactions in the Colorado River basin
Importance of the 2014 Colorado River Delta pulse flow for migratory songbirds: Insights from foraging behavior
Book review: Foundations of wildlife diseases
Identifying bird and reptile vulnerabilities to climate change in the southwestern United States
Science and Products
- Science
Forecasting Climate Impacts on Wildlife of the Arid Southwest at Regional and Local Scales Using Downscaled Climate Models
Climate change has emerged as a key environmental concern of the 21st century and a major challenge for land and wildlife managers. Although scientists have made tremendous progress in predicting the impact of climate change on a regional and global scale, drilling down such projections to a locally applicable form has been difficult. A major project of the US Geological Survey's (USGS) Southwest - Data
Cordilleran Flycatcher banding, nestling, and fledgling data from southwestern Colorado, 2009-2018
These tabular data were compiled to assess full annual cycle breeding of the Empidonax occidentalis (Cordilleran Flycatcher). Objectives of our study was to assess facets of the full annual cycle of the Cordilleran Flycatcher. These data represent over nine field seasons of work on the Dolores River in southwestern Colorado with field work conducted from 2009-2018. These data were collected from 2 - Publications
Filter Total Items: 128
Bridging the research-implementation gap in avian conservation with translational ecology
The recognized gap between research and implementation in avian conservation can be overcome with translational ecology, an intentional approach in which science producers and users from multiple disciplines work collaboratively to co-develop and deliver ecological research that addresses management and conservation issues. Avian conservation naturally lends itself to translational ecology becauseAuthorsSarah P. Saunders, Joanna X. Wu, Elizabeth A. Gow, Evan A. Adams, Brooke L. Bateman, Trina Bayard, Stephanie Beilke, Ashley A. Dayer, Auriel M.V. Fournier, Kara Fox, Christoper Hamilton, Patricia J. Heglund, Susannah B. Lerman, Nicole L. Michel, Eben H. Paxton, Çağan H. Şekercioğlu, Melanie A. Smith, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Mark S Woodrey, Charles van RiperThe transformation of dryland rivers: The future of introduced tamarisk in the U.S.
Tamarix spp. (tamarisk or saltcedar), a shrub-like tree, was intentionally introduced to the U.S. from Asia in the mid-1800s. Tamarisk thrives in today’s human-altered streamside (riparian) habitats and can be found along wetlands, rivers, lakes, and streams across the western U.S. In 2001, a biological control agent, Diorhabda spp. (tamarisk leaf beetle), was released in six states, and has sinceAuthorsPamela L. Nagler, Julia B. Hull, Charles van Riper, Patrick B. Shafroth, Charles B. YackulicBrood provisioning rates and fledgling behavior of Cordilleran Flycatchers in southwestern Colorado
The behavior of young songbirds after fledging is one of the least understood phases of the breeding cycle, although parental provisioning rates and movement of fledglings are key to understanding life history evolution. We studied Cordilleran Flycatchers (Empidonax occidentalis) at two sites in southwestern Colorado, USA, from 2012 to 2017. We banded and sexed breeding adults to determine the relAuthorsAbigail J. Darrah, Charles van RiperObservations on the range and nesting biology of the Mexican endemic rufous-capped brush-finch (Atlapetes Pileatus Pileatus)
The Rufous-capped Brush-finch (Atlapetes pileatus) is a species endemic to Mexico, whose breeding biology has received little attention. We studied two nests of the nominate subspecies from the mountains of southern Sonora. Nests were untidy, broad, open cups, placed in low, thick vegetation. Clutch size at one nest consisted of three immaculate white eggs. The second nest contained two Brush-fincAuthorsHarold F. Greeney, Jeff Port, Charles van RiperPhenology and abundance of Northern Tamarisk Beetle, Diorhabda carinulata affecting defoliation of Tamarix
Timing and spatial dynamics of tamarisk (Tamarix spp. L.) defoliation by the biological control agent Diorhabda carinulata (Desbrochers) were evaluated. Relative abundance of D. carinulata and the phenology of tamarisk along the San Juan and Colorado rivers were recorded in 2011–2012. D. carinulata began reproducing in the spring when temperatures were >15°C. Variation in spring temperature-rise aAuthorsLevi R. Jamison, Matthew J. Johnson, Dan W. Bean, Charles van RiperInfluences of the invasive tamarisk leaf beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) on avian diets along the Dolores River in Southwestern Colorado USA
The tamarisk leaf beetle (Diorhabda carinulata), introduced from Eurasia in 2001 as a biological control agent for the invasive plant Tamarix ramosissima, has spread widely throughout the western USA. With D. carinulata now very abundant, scientists and restoration managers have questioned what influence this introduced arthropod might have upon the avian component of riparian ecosystems. From 200AuthorsCharles van Riper, Sarah L. Puckett, Abigail J. DarrahPopulation dynamics of the northern tamarisk beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) in the Colorado River Basin
Throughout the Southwestern United States, riparian systems contain narrow belts of vegetation along streams and rivers. Although only a small percentage of the total land cover, this ecosystem is important for maintaining high species diversity and population densities of birds. Anthropogenic changes to Western riverine systems have enhanced their susceptibility to invasion by introduced plant spAuthorsLevi R. Jamison, Charles van RiperRiparian bird density decline in response to biocontrol of Tamarix from riparian ecosystems along the Dolores River in SW Colorado, USA
Biocontrol of invasive tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) in the arid Southwest using the introduced tamarisk beetle (Diorhabda elongata) has been hypothesized to negatively affect some breeding bird species, but no studies to date have documented the effects of beetle-induced defoliation on riparian bird abundance. We assessed the effects of tamarisk defoliation by monitoring defoliation rates, changes in vAuthorsAbigail J. Darrah, Charles van RiperNorthern tamarisk beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) and tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) interactions in the Colorado River basin
Northern tamarisk beetles (Diorhabda carinulata) were released in the Upper Colorado River Basin in the United States in 2004–2007 to defoliate introduced tamarisk shrubs (Tamarix spp.) in the region’s riparian zones. The primary purpose was to control the invasive shrub and reduce evapotranspiration (ET) by tamarisk in an attempt to increase stream flows. We evaluated beetle–tamarisk interactiAuthorsPamela L. Nagler, Uyen Nguyen, Heather L. Bateman, Christopher Jarchow, Edward P. Glenn, William J. Waugh, Charles van RiperImportance of the 2014 Colorado River Delta pulse flow for migratory songbirds: Insights from foraging behavior
The Lower Colorado River provides critical riparian areas in an otherwise arid region and is an important stopover site for migrating landbirds. In order to reverse ongoing habitat degradation due to drought and human-altered hydrology, a pulse flow was released from Morelos Dam in spring of 2014, which brought surface flow to dry stretches of the Colorado River in Mexico. To assess the potentialAuthorsAbigail J. Darrah, Harold F. Greeney, Charles van RiperBook review: Foundations of wildlife diseases
A new textbook for practitioners and students of wildlife disease is available. Rick Botzler and Richard Brown have provided an excellent addition to the wildlife disease literature with Foundations of Wildlife Diseases. It has been 8 years since the last major wildlife disease book (Wobeser 2006), and over 40 years since the first major wildlife disease compilation (Page 1975), an edited summaryAuthorsCharles van RiperIdentifying bird and reptile vulnerabilities to climate change in the southwestern United States
Current and future breeding ranges of 15 bird and 16 reptile species were modeled in the Southwestern United States. Rather than taking a broad-scale, vulnerability-assessment approach, we created a species distribution model (SDM) for each focal species incorporating climatic, landscape, and plant variables. Baseline climate (1940–2009) was characterized with Parameter-elevation Regressions on InAuthorsJames R. Hatten, J. Tomasz Giermakowski, Jennifer A. Holmes, Erika M. Nowak, Matthew J. Johnson, Kirsten E. Ironside, Charles van Riper, Michael Peters, Charles Truettner, Kenneth L. Cole