Clint Muhlfeld, Ph.D.
I am a Research Aquatic Ecologist for the USGS Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center stationed in Glacier National Park and Associate Research Professor at the University of Montana’s Flathead Lake Biological Station.
Research interests
My general research interests encompass the fields of aquatic ecology, fisheries biology, and conservation biology. My research goal is to understand how aquatic species interact with physical and biological templates over space and time to inform conservation and management. Specifically, my applied research focuses on assessing how human stressors – invasive species, habitat modification, and climate change – influence native salmonids and rare alpine macroinvertebrates in the Rocky Mountains of United States and Canada.
My research spans a range of scientific and conservation issues from examining evolutionary and ecological impacts of invasive species on native fishes, assessing life history and genetic diversity of native salmonids, assessing the status of threatened freshwater species, investigating the impacts of dams and barriers on aquatic species and ecosystems, developing quantitative models (e.g., stream temperature, instream flow/habitat, bioenergetics, riverscape connectivity, population viability) to predict species’ responses to environmental change, to understanding and predicting the impacts of climate change on freshwater species and ecosystems.
I particularly enjoy collaboration and multidisciplinary research, and advising and educating graduate students working on freshwater ecology and conservation biology projects. Currently, I actively participate on several regional, national, and international science teams that address natural resource issues facing aquatic ecosystems. My hope is that the ecological integrity of aquatic ecosystems will be conserved for future generations through research-informed management and education.
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. 2008. Fish and Wildlife Biology, Montana State University, Bozeman
M.S. 1999. Fishery Resources, University of Idaho, Moscow
B.S. 1994. Aquatic Biology, University of Montana, Missoula; University of Maine, Orono
Affiliations and Memberships*
Flathead Lake Biological Station, University of Montana
Science and Products
Climate, invasive species and land use drive population dynamics of a cold-water specialist
A framework for assessing the feasibility of native fish conservation translocations: Applications to threatened bull trout
Loss of genetic diversity and increased subdivision in an endemic Alpine Stonefly threatened by climate change
Gravel-bed river floodplains are the ecological nexus of glaciated mountain landscapes
Conservation of native Pacific trout diversity in western North America
Accounting for adaptive capacity and uncertainty in assessments of species’ climate-change vulnerability
Risk and efficacy of human-enabled interspecific hybridization for climate-change adaptation: Response to Hamilton and Miller (2016)
Climate variables explain neutral and adaptive variation within salmonid metapopulations: The importance of replication in landscape genetics
Genetic status and conservation of Westslope Cutthroat Trout in Glacier National Park
Impacts of climatic variation on trout: A global synthesis and path forward
Effects of hybridization between nonnative Rainbow Trout and native Westslope Cutthroat Trout on fitness-related traits
Spatial sorting promotes the spread of maladaptive hybridization
Non-USGS Publications**
**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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Climate, invasive species and land use drive population dynamics of a cold-water specialist
Climate change is an additional stressor in a complex suite of threats facing freshwater biodiversity, particularly for cold-water fishes. Research addressing the consequences of climate change on cold-water fish has generally focused on temperature limits defining spatial distributions, largely ignoring how climatic variation influences population dynamics in the context of other existing stressoAuthorsRyan P. Kovach, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Diane C. Whited, David A. Schmetterling, Andrew M. Dux, Clint C. MuhlfeldA framework for assessing the feasibility of native fish conservation translocations: Applications to threatened bull trout
There is an urgent need to consider more aggressive and direct interventions for the conservation of freshwater fishes that are threatened by invasive species, habitat loss, and climate change. Conservation introduction (moving a species outside its indigenous range to other areas where conditions are predicted to be more suitable) is one type of translocation strategy that fisheries managers canAuthorsBenjamin T. Galloway, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Christopher S. Guy, Christopher C. Downs, Wade A. FredenbergLoss of genetic diversity and increased subdivision in an endemic Alpine Stonefly threatened by climate change
Much remains unknown about the genetic status and population connectivity of high-elevation and high-latitude freshwater invertebrates, which often persist near snow and ice masses that are disappearing due to climate change. Here we report on the conservation genetics of the meltwater stonefly Lednia tumana (Ricker) of Montana, USA, a cold-water obligate species. We sequenced 1530 bp of mtDNA froAuthorsSteve Jordan, J. Joseph Giersch, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Scott Hotalling, Liz Fanning, Tyler H. Tappenbeck, Gordon LuikartGravel-bed river floodplains are the ecological nexus of glaciated mountain landscapes
Gravel-bed river floodplains in mountain landscapes disproportionately concentrate diverse habitats, nutrient cycling, productivity of biota, and species interactions. Although stream ecologists know that river channel and floodplain habitats used by aquatic organisms are maintained by hydrologic regimes that mobilize gravel-bed sediments, terrestrial ecologists have largely been unaware of the imAuthorsF. Richard Hauer, Harvey Locke, Victoria Dreitz, Mark Hebblewhite, Winsor Lowe, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Cara Nelson, Michael F. Proctor, Stewart B. RoodConservation of native Pacific trout diversity in western North America
Pacific trout Oncorhynchus spp. in western North America are strongly valued in ecological, socioeconomic, and cultural views, and have been the subject of substantial research and conservation efforts. Despite this, the understanding of their evolutionary histories, overall diversity, and challenges to their conservation is incomplete. We review the state of knowledge on these important issues, fAuthorsBrooke E. Penaluna, Alicia Abadía-Cardoso, Jason B. Dunham, Francisco J García de León, Robert E. Gresswell, Arturo Ruiz Luna, Eric B. Taylor, Bradley B. Shepard, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Kevin R. Bestgen, Kevin H. Rogers, Marco A Escalante, Ernest R. Keeley, Gabriel Temple, Jack E. Williams, Kathleen Matthews, Ron Pierce, Richard L. Mayden, Ryan Kovach, John Carlos Garza, Kurt D. FauschAccounting for adaptive capacity and uncertainty in assessments of species’ climate-change vulnerability
Climate change vulnerability assessments (CCVAs) are valuable tools for assessing species’ vulnerability to climatic changes, yet failure to include measures of adaptive capacity and to account for sources of uncertainty may limit their effectiveness. Here, we provide a more comprehensive CCVA approach that incorporates all three elements used for assessing species’ climate change vulnerability: eAuthorsAlisa A. Wade, Brian K. Hand, Ryan Kovach, Gordon Luikart, Diane Whited, Clint C. MuhlfeldRisk and efficacy of human-enabled interspecific hybridization for climate-change adaptation: Response to Hamilton and Miller (2016)
Hamilton and Miller (2016) provide an interesting and provocative discussion of how hybridization and introgression can promote evolutionary potential in the face of climate change. They argue that hybridization—mating between individuals from genetically distinct populations—can alleviate inbreeding depression and promote adaptive introgression and evolutionary rescue. We agree that deliberate inAuthorsRyan P. Kovach, Gordon Luikart, Winsor H. Lowe, Matthew C. Boyer, Clint C. MuhlfeldClimate variables explain neutral and adaptive variation within salmonid metapopulations: The importance of replication in landscape genetics
Understanding how environmental variation influences population genetic structure is important for conservation management because it can reveal how human stressors influence population connectivity, genetic diversity and persistence. We used riverscape genetics modelling to assess whether climatic and habitat variables were related to neutral and adaptive patterns of genetic differentiation (popuAuthorsBrian K. Hand, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Alisa A. Wade, Ryan Kovach, Diane C. Whited, Shawn R. Narum, Andrew P. Matala, Michael W. Ackerman, B. A. Garner, John S Kimball, Jack A. Stanford, Gordon LuikartGenetic status and conservation of Westslope Cutthroat Trout in Glacier National Park
Invasive hybridization is one of the greatest threats to the persistence of Westslope Cutthroat Trout Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi. Large protected areas, where nonhybridized populations are interconnected and express historical life history and genetic diversity, provide some of the last ecological and evolutionary strongholds for conserving this species. Here, we describe the genetic status and dAuthorsClint C. Muhlfeld, Vincent S. D'Angelo, Christopher C. Downs, John D. Powell, Stephen J. Amish, Gordon Luikart, Ryan Kovach, Matthew Boyer, Steven T. KalinowskiImpacts of climatic variation on trout: A global synthesis and path forward
Despite increasing concern that climate change may negatively impact trout—a globally distributed group of fish with major economic, ecological, and cultural value—a synthetic assessment of empirical data quantifying relationships between climatic variation and trout ecology does not exist. We conducted a systematic review to describe how temporal variation in temperature and streamflow influencesAuthorsRyan Kovach, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Jason B. Dunham, Benjamin Letcher, Jeffrey L. KershnerEffects of hybridization between nonnative Rainbow Trout and native Westslope Cutthroat Trout on fitness-related traits
Hybridization between introduced and native fauna is a risk to native species and may threaten the long-term persistence of numerous taxa. Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss has been one of the most widely introduced species around the globe and often hybridizes with native Cutthroat Trout O. clarkii in the Rocky Mountains. Previous work has shown that hybridization negatively affects reproductiveAuthorsDaniel P. Drinan, Molly A. H. Webb, Kerry A. Naish, Steven T. Kalinowski, Matthew C. Boyer, Amber C. Steed, Bradley B. Shepard, Clint C. MuhlfeldSpatial sorting promotes the spread of maladaptive hybridization
Invasive hybridization is causing loss of biodiversity worldwide. The spread of such introgression can occur even when hybrids have reduced Darwinian fitness, which decreases the frequency of hybrids due to low survival or reproduction through time. This paradox can be partially explained by spatial sorting, where genotypes associated with dispersal increase in frequency at the edge of expansion,AuthorsWinsor H. Lowe, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Fred W. AllendorfNon-USGS Publications**
Muhlfeld, Clint C., Thomas E. McMahon, and Durae Belcer. 2009. Spatial and temporal dynamics of spawning between native westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi), introduced rainbow trout (O. mykiss), and their hybrids. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 66:1153-1168.Muhlfeld, Clint C., Thomas E. McMahon, Matthew C. Boyer, and Robert E. Gresswell. 2009. Local-habitat, watershed, and biotic factors in the spread of hybridization between native westslope cutthroat trout and introduced rainbow trout. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 138:1036-1051.Boyer, Matthew C., Clint C. Muhlfeld, and Fred Allendorf. 2008. Rainbow trout invasion and the spread of hybridization with westslope cutthroat trout. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 65:658-669.Muhlfeld, Clint C., David H. Bennett, Kirk Steinhorst, Brian Marotz, and Matthew C. Boyer. 2008. Using bioenergetics modeling to estimate consumption of native juvenile salmonids by nonnative northern pike in the upper Flathead River system, Montana. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 28:636-648.**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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*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government