Clint Otto
Biography
I am a Research Ecologist for the US Geological Survey at Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in Jamestown, North Dakota. The principle goal of my research program is to investigate the impacts of land-use change on wildlife habitat and ecosystem services in the Prairie Pothole Region. Much of my research focuses on the development of decision-support tools for informing natural resource policy and management. Some of my current research projects include modeling the effects of agricultural land-use change on pollinator habitat, health and national pollination services. I am also working with the US Department of Agriculture to quantify the benefits of land conservation programs on pollinator habitat and other ecosystem services.
Education
- University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (B.S.), 2002
- Towson University (M.S.), 2006
- Michigan State University (Ph.D.), 2012
Partners
- US Department of Agriculture-Farm Service Agency
- US Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Services
- US Fish and Wildlife Service
- Project Apis m
- Bee Informed Partnership
Science and Products
Determining the dietary preferences and population genetics of an endangered bumble bee, Bombus affinis, by maximizing the use of museum specimens
Bombus affinis, the rusty patched bumble bee, was federally listed as an endangered species in 2017 and has been identified as one of the top priority species for recovery nationally. Shortly after listing the species, partnering researchers and FWS prioritized the research needed to prevent the extinction of B. affinis. Some of the top research needs that were identified...
Quantifying the effects of land-use change and bioenergy crop production on ecosystem services in the Northern Great Plains
Rising commodity crop prices, increased federal subsidies for biofuels, such as corn-based ethanol and soy-based biodiesel, and reduction in U.S. Farm Bill conservation programs have facilitated rapid land-use changes in the Northern Great Plains (NGP). Although renewable biofuels are touted as a mechanism for increasing energy security and potentially reducing greenhouse gas emissions,...
The pollinator library: a decision-support tool for improving national pollinator conservation efforts
Pollinator declines have emphasized the need for a greater understanding of plant-pollinator networks and land management activities that improve pollinator habitat. At the request of USDA and FWS partners, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center created the Pollinator Library (https://...
Improving forage for honey bees and native pollinators on Federal conservation lands
Since its inception in 1933, the U.S. Farm Bill has been one of the most influential federal policies for agriculture and food production. Provisions within the Farm Bill have profound influence on global trade, nutrition programs, commodity crop programs, rural communities, and land conservation. Northern Prairie’s research quantifies the impact on pollinator forage and health of USDA...
Understanding how land-use change in the Northern Great Plains affects pollinator health and pollination services
Societal dependence on insects for pollination of agricultural crops has risen amidst concerns over global pollinator declines. Habitat loss and lack of forage have been implicated in the decline of managed and native pollinators in the U.S. Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center is conducting a regional research project to understand how land use affects honey bee colony health, and the...
Nutritional physiology of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) workers across an agricultural land-use gradient
Land use and habitat quality have emerged as critical factors influencing the health, productivity, and survival of honey bee colonies. However, characterization of the mechanistic relationship between differential land-use conditions and ultimate outcomes for honey bee colonies has been elusive. We assessed the physiological health of individual...
Smart, Matthew; Otto, Clint R. V.; Lundgren, Jonathan G Impacts on wildlife of annual crops for biofuel production
No abstract available.
Otto, Clint R. V. Typha (cattail) invasion in North American wetlands: Biology, regional problems, impacts, ecosystem services, and management
Typha is an iconic wetland plant found worldwide. Hybridization and anthropogenic disturbances have resulted in large increases in Typha abundance in wetland ecosystems throughout North America at a cost to native floral and faunal biodiversity. As demonstrated by three regional case studies, Typha is capable of rapidly colonizing habitats and...
Bansal, Sheel; Lishawa, Shane; Newman, Sue; Tangen, Brian A.; Wilcox, Douglas A.; Albert, Dennis; Anteau, Michael J.; Chimney, Michael J; Cressey, Ryann L.; DeKeyser, Edward S.; Elgersam, Kenneth J; Finkelstein, Sarah A; Freeland, Joanna; Grosshans, Richard; Klug, Page E.; Larkin, Daniel J; Lawrence, Beth A; Linz, George; Marburger, Joy; Noe, Gregory B.; Otto, Clint R. V.; Reo, Nicholas; Richards, Jennifer; Richardson, Curtis J.; Rodgers, LeRoy; Shrank, Amy J; Svedarsky, Dan; Travis, Steven E.; Tuchman, Nancy; van der Valk, Arnold; Windham-Myers, Lisamarie Feeling the sting? Addressing land-use changes can mitigate bee declines
Pollinators are an essential component of functioning and sustainable agroecosystems. Despite their critical economic and ecological role, wild and managed bees are declining throughout the United States and across the globe. Commercial beekeepers lost nearly 40.5% of their colonies in 2015–2016 and estimated wild bee abundance declined 23%...
Durant, Jennie; Otto, Clint R. V.
Assessing the impact of the Conservation Reserve Program on honey bee health
Insect pollinators are critically important for maintaining U.S. food production and ecosystem health. The upper Midwest is home to more than 40 percent of all U.S. honey bee colonies and is considered by many beekeepers to be America’s last beekeeping refuge. Beekeepers come to this region because their honey bees require high-quality grassland...
Otto, Clint R. V. Distance models as a tool for modelling detection probability and density of native bumblebees
Effective monitoring of native bee populations requires accurate estimates of population size and relative abundance among habitats. Current bee survey methods, such as netting or pan trapping, may be adequate for a variety of study objectives but are limited by a failure to account for imperfect detection. Biases due to imperfect detection could...
McNeil, Darin J.; Otto, Clint R. V.; Moser, Erin L.; Urban-Mead, Katherine R.; King, David E.; Rodewald, Amanda D.; Larkin, Jeffrey L. Emerging themes from the ESA symposium entitled “Pollinator nutrition: Lessons from bees at individual to landscape levels”
No abstract available.
Corby-Harris, Vanessa; Bowsher, Julia H.; Carr-Markell, Morgan; Carroll, Mark J.; Centrella, Mary; Cook, Steven C.; Couvillon, Margaret; DeGrandi-Hoffman, Gloria; Dolezal, Adam; Jones, Julia C.; Mogren, Christina; Otto, Clint R. V.; Lau, Pierre; Rangel, Juliana; Schurch, Roger; St. Clair, Ashley The influence of spatiotemporally decoupled land use on honey bee colony health and pollination service delivery
Societal dependence on insects for pollination of agricultural crops has risen amidst concerns over pollinator declines. Habitat loss and lack of forage have been implicated in the decline of both managed and native pollinators. Land use changes in the Northern Great Plains of the US, a region supporting over 1 million honey bee colonies...
Smart, Matthew; Otto, Clint R. V.; Carlson, Benjamin; Roth, Cali L. Past role and future outlook of the Conservation Reserve Program for supporting honey bees in the Great Plains
Human dependence on insect pollinators continues to grow even as pollinators face global declines. The Northern Great Plains (NGP), a region often referred to as America’s last honey bee (Apis mellifera) refuge, has undergone rapid land-cover change due to cropland expansion and weakened land conservation programs. We conducted a trend analysis...
Otto, Clint R. V.; Zheng, Haochi; Gallant, Alisa L.; Iovanna, Rich; Carlson, Benjamin L.; Smart, Matthew; Hyberg, Skip Using colony monitoring devices to evaluate the impacts of land use and nutritional value of forage on honey bee health
Colony monitoring devices used to track and assess the health status of honey bees are becoming more widely available and used by both beekeepers and researchers. These devices monitor parameters relevant to colony health at frequent intervals, often approximating real time. The fine-scale record of hive condition can be further related to static...
Smart, Matthew; Otto, Clint R. V.; Cornman, Robert S.; Iwanowicz, Deborah D. Why does bee health matter? The science surrounding honey bee health concerns and what we can do about it
A colony of honey bees is an amazing organism when it is healthy; it is a superorganism in many senses of the word. As with any organism, maintaining a state of health requires cohesiveness and interplay among cells and tissues and, in the case of a honey bee colony, the bees themselves. The individual bees that make up a honey bee colony deliver...
Spivak, Marla S; Browning, Zac; Goblirsch, Mike; Lee, Katie; Otto, Clint R. V.; Smart, Matthew; Wu-Smart, Judy Using publicly available data to quantify plant–pollinator interactions and evaluate conservation seeding mixes in the Northern Great Plains
Concern over declining pollinators has led to multiple conservation initiatives for improving forage for bees in agroecosystems. Using data available through the Pollinator Library (npwrc.usgs.gov/pollinator/), we summarize plant–pollinator interaction data collected from 2012–2015 on lands managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and private...
Otto, Clint R. V.; O'Dell, Samuel; Bryant, R. B.; Euliss, Ned H. Jr.; Bush, Rachel; Smart, Matthew