Charles Van Riper, III, Ph.D.
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
The U.S. Geological Survey Ecosystem Science Strategy, 2012-2022 - Advancing discovery and application through collaboration
Integrated science and interdisciplinary research for parks and protected areas
Reaching toward the integration of research into resource management activities: A 20 year evaluation of Colorado Biennial Conferences
Regional scale impacts of Tamarix leaf beetles (Diorhabda carinulata) on the water availability of western U.S. rivers as determined by multi-scale remote sensing methods
Avian community responses to vegetation structure within chained and hand-cut pinyon-juniper woodlands on the Colorado Plateau
An inventory and monitoring plan for a Sonoran Desert ecosystem; Barry M. Goldwater Range-West
Avian community responses to juniper woodland structure and thinning treatments on the Colorado Plateau
Biological dimensions of tern management-a case study of the least tern in Sonora, Mexico, and a comparative analysis of reproductive investment in terns
A synthesis: Informing collaborative conservation and management of Colorado Plateau resources
The Border Environmental Health Initiative: Investigating the transboundary Santa Cruz watershed
Developing an ecosystem services online decision support tool to assess the impacts of climate change and urban growth in the Santa Cruz watershed: Where we live, work, and play
Book review: Conservation biology of Hawaiian forest birds: Implications for island avifauna
Science and Products
- Science
- Data
- Publications
Filter Total Items: 129
The U.S. Geological Survey Ecosystem Science Strategy, 2012-2022 - Advancing discovery and application through collaboration
Ecosystem science is critical to making informed decisions about natural resources that can sustain our Nation’s economic and environmental well-being. Resource managers and policy-makers are faced with countless decisions each year at local, state, tribal, territorial, and national levels on issues as diverse as renewable and non-renewable energy development, agriculture, forestry, water supply,AuthorsByron K. Williams, G. Lynn Wingard, Gary Brewer, James E. Cloern, Guy R. Gelfenbaum, Robert B. Jacobson, Jeffrey L. Kershner, Anthony D. McGuire, James D. Nichols, Carl D. Shapiro, Charles van Riper, Robin P. WhiteIntegrated science and interdisciplinary research for parks and protected areas
This paper summarizes presentations and discussion that focused on integrated science and the use of interdisciplinary research during a panel session held at the George Wright Society Meeting in New Orleans, March 14, 2011. The panel brought together nationally recognized members from the social and biological scientific communities, along with decision-makers and managers of parks and protectedAuthorsCharles van Riper, Robert Powell, Jan W. van Wagtendonk, Gary Machlis, Russell Galipeau, Carena J. van Riper, Eick von RuschkowskiReaching toward the integration of research into resource management activities: A 20 year evaluation of Colorado Biennial Conferences
No abstract available.AuthorsMartha E. Lee, Carena J. van Riper, Charles van Riper, Gerard T. KyleRegional scale impacts of Tamarix leaf beetles (Diorhabda carinulata) on the water availability of western U.S. rivers as determined by multi-scale remote sensing methods
Tamarix leaf beetles (Diorhabda carinulata) have been widely released on western U.S. rivers to control introduced shrubs in the genus Tamarix. Part of the motivation to control Tamarix is to salvage water for human use. Information is needed on the impact of beetles on Tamarix seasonal leaf production and subsequent water use overwide areas andmultiple cycles of annual defoliation.Herewe combineAuthorsPamela L. Nagler, Tim Brown, Kevin R. Hultine, Charles van Riper, Daniel W. Bean, Philip E. Dennison, R. Scott Murray, Edward P. GlennAvian community responses to vegetation structure within chained and hand-cut pinyon-juniper woodlands on the Colorado Plateau
We investigated relationships between breeding birds and vegetation characteristics in fuels-reduction treatment areas within pinyon-juniper woodlands at locations over the Colorado Plateau. The goal of this study was to document differences in avian community responses to two types of pinyon-juniper fuels-reduction treatments (chained vs. hand-cut), relative to control sites. We selected 73 vegetAuthorsCharles van Riper, Claire CrowAn inventory and monitoring plan for a Sonoran Desert ecosystem; Barry M. Goldwater Range-West
Marine Corps Air Station Yuma manages the Barry M. Goldwater Range-West, which encompasses approximately 2,800 square kilometers of Sonoran Desert habitat in southwestern Arizona. The Barry M. Goldwater Range is a major U.S. military installation designed as an air combat training location for the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Air Force, but it also includes some of the most pristine desert habitat iAuthorsMiguel L. Villarreal, Charles van Riper, Robert E. Lovich, Robert L. Palmer, Travis Nauman, Sarah E. Studd, Sam Drake, Abigail S. Rosenberg, Jim Malusa, Ronald L. PearceAvian community responses to juniper woodland structure and thinning treatments on the Colorado Plateau
Federal land managers are increasingly implementing fuels-reduction treatments throughout the western United States with objectives of ecological restoration and fire hazard reduction in pinyon-juniper (Pinus spp.-Juniperus spp.) woodlands. The pinyon-juniper woodland ecosystem complex is highly variable across the western landscape, as is bird community composition. We investigated relations betAuthorsClaire Crow, Charles van RiperBiological dimensions of tern management-a case study of the least tern in Sonora, Mexico, and a comparative analysis of reproductive investment in terns
Least terns (Sternula antillarum) are threatened by rapid human development on the northern coast of Sonora, Mexico. Terns are bellwethers for changes along the world's coastlines, as their coastal breeding habitat is vulnerable to flooding and development. We conducted targeted ground and aerial surveys for least tern colonies along 160 kilometers of coast, and document our findings on colony sizAuthorsAlyssa Rosemartin, Charles van RiperA synthesis: Informing collaborative conservation and management of Colorado Plateau resources
No abstract available.AuthorsMiguel L. Villarreal, Charles van Riper, Carena J. van Riper, Matthew J. Johnson, S. Shane SelleckThe Border Environmental Health Initiative: Investigating the transboundary Santa Cruz watershed
In 2004 the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) launched the Border Environmental Health Initiative (BEHI), a major project encompassing the entire U.S.-Mexico border region. In 2009, a study of the Santa Cruz River Watershed (SCW), located in the border region of Arizona and Sonora, Mexico, was initiated as part of the BEHI. In this borderland region of the desert Southwest, human health and the ecosysAuthorsLaura M. Norman, James Callegary, Charles van Riper, Floyd GrayDeveloping an ecosystem services online decision support tool to assess the impacts of climate change and urban growth in the Santa Cruz watershed: Where we live, work, and play
Using respective strengths of the biological, physical, and social sciences, we are developing an online decision support tool, the Santa Cruz Watershed Ecosystem Portfolio Model (SCWEPM), to help promote the use of information relevant to water allocation and land management in a binational watershed along the U.S.-Mexico border. The SCWEPM will include an ES valuation system within a suite of liAuthorsLaura M. Norman, Nita Tallent-Halsell, William Labiosa, Matt Weber, Amy McCoy, Katie Hirschboeck, James B. Callegary, Charles van Riper, Floyd GrayBook review: Conservation biology of Hawaiian forest birds: Implications for island avifauna
For many years, following the publication of Studies in Avian Biology No. 22 by Scott et al. (2001), ornithologists interested in Hawaiian birds have waited for the next synthesis volume on Hawaiian bird research. Finally there is one, and it is excellent. Thane Pratt and his colleagues from Hawaii have added another milestone in the punctuated equilibrium of information surrounding Hawaiian ornitAuthorsR. Todd Engstrom, Charles van Riper