Colleen Handel, Ph.D.
Population ecology of passerines and shorebirds, behavioral ecology, population monitoring, and sampling design.
Professional Experience
1996 - Present Research Wildlife Biologist, USGS, Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, Alaska
1993 - 1996 Research Wildlife Biologist, NBS, Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, Alaska
1978 - 1993 Research Wildlife Biologist, USFWS, Alaska Fish and Wildlife Research Center, Anchorage, Alaska
1977 - 1978 Research/ Teaching Assistant, University of California Davis, Davis, California
1975 - 1978 Biological Science Technician, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Anchorage, Alaska
1975 - 1975 Biological Science Aide, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Kenai, Alaska
1974 - 1974 Botany and Ornithology Instructor, Murray Rhode School, Newton Public High Schools, Newton, Massachusetts
1972 - 1972 Assistant Curator, Farlow Herbarium, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
1972 - 1972 Research Assistant, Concord Field Station, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. 2002 University of California Davis, Davis, CA Ecology
M.S. 1982 University of California Davis, Davis, CA Ecology
B.A. 1974 Harvard University, Cambridge, MA Biological Sciences
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Ornithological Society (Fellow, Deputy Editor)
Association of Field Ornithologists
Colonial Waterbird Group
Ecological Society of America
Pacific Seabird Group
Society for Conservation Biology
Wader Study Group
Wildlife Society
Wilson Ornithological Society
Science and Products
Inventory of montane-nesting birds in Katmai and Lake Clark national parks and preserves
The blind men and the elephant: Concerns about the use of juvenile proportion data
Nesting ecology of boreal forest birds following a massive outbreak of spruce beetles
Inventory of montane-nesting birds in the Arctic Network of National Parks, Alaska
Shorebird avoidance of nearshore feeding and roosting areas at night correlates with presence of a nocturnal avian predator
Use of buccal swabs for sampling DNA from nestling and adult birds
Response of predators to Western Sandpiper nest exclosures
Recommendations for the use of mist nets for inventory and monitoring of bird populations
Additions to the avifauna of St Matthew Island, Bering Sea
Spatial variation in shorebird nest success: Implications for inference
Black Turnstone (Arenaria melanocephala)
Densities of breeding birds and changes in vegetation in an alaskan boreal forest following a massive disturbance by spruce beetles
Science and Products
Inventory of montane-nesting birds in Katmai and Lake Clark national parks and preserves
The blind men and the elephant: Concerns about the use of juvenile proportion data
Nesting ecology of boreal forest birds following a massive outbreak of spruce beetles
Inventory of montane-nesting birds in the Arctic Network of National Parks, Alaska
Shorebird avoidance of nearshore feeding and roosting areas at night correlates with presence of a nocturnal avian predator
Use of buccal swabs for sampling DNA from nestling and adult birds
Response of predators to Western Sandpiper nest exclosures
Recommendations for the use of mist nets for inventory and monitoring of bird populations
Additions to the avifauna of St Matthew Island, Bering Sea
Spatial variation in shorebird nest success: Implications for inference
Black Turnstone (Arenaria melanocephala)
Densities of breeding birds and changes in vegetation in an alaskan boreal forest following a massive disturbance by spruce beetles
*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