Diann Prosser, Ph.D.
Biography
Diann Prosser is a research wildlife ecologist at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. She began working at Patuxent in 1999. Her background is in wetland ecology and ornithology and her research interests include using spatial modeling techniques to help answer questions related to wildlife and stressors such as climate change and disease.
Education:
- B.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Science (1995) from the Pennsylvania State University
- M.S. in Ecology (1998) from the Pennsylvania State University
- Ph.D. (2012) from the University of Maryland’s Marine Estuarine Environmental Sciences interdisciplinary ecology program
AWARDS:
- 2017 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)
- University of Maryland Goldhaber Travel Grant
- 2011 NSF SGER Grant
- 2007 NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes
- 2005 University of Maryland Nagel Travel Grant
- 2005 USGS, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center Star Award 2000
Recently Hosted Visiting Scientists from Chinese Academy of Sciences (2012-2013)
Science and Products
Deriving Spatial Waterfowl Inputs for Disease Risk Modeling
This project is an effort to create spatially and temporally explicit models for waterfowl distribution across the United States for use in avian influenza transmission risk modeling.
Avian Influenza
Avian influenza outbreaks can result in significant economic loss, as in 2014-2015 when the Congressional Research Service estimated losses of $3.3 billion dollars from the death and culling of domestic poultry due to an outbreak of this disease. Patuxent’s avian influenza research seeks to answer such questions as “How far can a bird carrying this virus travel?” and “What influences the...
Breeding Birds
Patuxent science expands our understanding of the ecological relationships between breeding bird communities and their habitats. For example, Patuxent scientists follow structured decision-making principles to optimize the management of fresh-water and salt-marsh habitats to benefit wetland bird communities. Following pioneering studies documenting the effects of forest fragmentation on...
Migration
Bird migration remains a topic of active research through the use of new technology to provide insights relevant for the conservation of migratory birds. Satellite telemetry is used to study the movements of sea ducks and other waterbirds along the Atlantic Coast, useful data to better understand the potential impacts of offshore energy development. Radar technology is used to study the...
Waterbirds
Patuxent has a long history of research activities supporting the management and conservation of waterbird populations. Current research interests include studying the movements and migration ecology of sea ducks and other waterbirds along the Atlantic Coast, a long-term demographic study of Roseate Tern populations, and the use of restored island habitats by nesting terns. Patuxent scientists...
Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Seaduck Challenge Study
This project seeks to improve our understanding of the susceptibility and pathogenesis of pertinent strains of avian influenza viruses in diving duck species.
Shoreline Changes and Impacts to Natural Resources in Chesapeake Bay
This project aims to improve our understanding of the impacts of shoreline hardening on aquatic ecosystems.
Avian Influenza Surveillance in Waterfowl in the Atlantic Flyway
This project seeks to quantify the strains and prevalence of avian influenza viruses circulating in wild waterfowl across the Atlantic Flyway, and allow comparison with the nations other flyways.
Coastal Salt Marsh Management Along the Atlantic
This project seeks to improve our understanding of how Open Marsh Water Management techniques aimed at mosquito reduction have impacted their target ecosystems along the Atlantic coast.
Pathogens in the Aquatic Environment – Waterfowl, Avian Influenza
This project focuses on understanding the prevalence and strains of avian influenza viruses in the aquatic environment and how this compares to those circulating within wild birds in the same area.
USGS Wild Bird Avian Influenza Program – Studies from Endemic Regions of Eurasia
This project focuses on tracking wild birds throughout Eurasia via satellite telemetry to better understand their spatiotemporal movement patterns, relationship to domestic birds, and potential role in the spread, persistence, and amplification of avian influenza viruses.
Tracking Domestic Ducks through the Market Chain in China via Telemetry
This project seeks to improve our understanding of how domestic ducks move throughout the market chain in China and the role this may play in the amplification and spread of avian influenza viruses.
Spatio-temporal distribution models for dabbling duck species across the continental United States
These data describe the spatio-temporal distribution of dabbling duck species across the continental United States during four biologically relevant seasons. This dataset contains two types of distribution models: (1) probability of presence, and (2) abundance. The model type, species, and season depicted in a raster are defined in the file name. File names begin with either abun (...
Visualizing Models for Avian Influenza Viruses
Emergence of avian influenza viruses with the potential to be highly pathogenic to poultry, wild birds, & humans, such as the highly pathogenic H5N1 and H7N9 cause serious concern for the global economic & public health sectors. Visual representations of model data can be effective in helping to discover how the spread of the virus is influenced by environmental & human factors....
Preliminary evaluation of behavioral response of nesting waterbirds to small unmanned aircraft flight
This dataset is comprised of 3 .csv files related to the use of unmanned aerial systems over waterbird colonies. Specifically, data detail the disturbance observed in birds during flights, the time required for traditional ground surveys to be conducted, and the distance at which birds flush during traditional ground surveys.
Standardization and Application of an Index of Community Integrity for Waterbirds in the Chesapeake Bay
This data set is comprised of five files related to the modification and scoring of Index of Waterbird Community Integrity (IWCI) scores for all waterbirds of the Chesapeake Bay. One Excel file (A) contains a list of 100+ Chesapeake waterbird species and their species attribute and IWCI scores.
Low-pathogenic avian influenza viruses in wild migratory waterfowl in a region of high poultry production, Delmarva, Maryland
This data set is comprised of four files related to the biosurveillance of low pathogenic avian influenza viruses (LPAIV) in migratory waterfowl at 22 locations in the Maryland portion of the Delmarva Peninsula in fall/winter of 2013-2014.
Effects of local shoreline and subestuary watershed condition on waterbird use influences of geography scale and season in the Chesapeake Bay
This dataset is comprised of six files related to waterbird surveys and resulting Index of Waterbird Community Integrity (IWCI) scores in 21 subestuaries of the Chesapeake Bay from 2010-2014. Two .csv files (1 data file: Prosser et al 2017_IWCI Results MS_Bird Survey Raw Data.csv, 1 definitions file: Prosser et al 2017_IWCI Results MS_Bird Survey Raw Data_Definitions.csv) contain data related...
Confronting models with data: The challenges of estimating disease spillover
For pathogens known to transmit across host species, strategic investment in disease control requires knowledge about where and when spillover transmission is likely. One approach to estimating spillover is to directly correlate observed spillover events with covariates. An alternative is to mechanistically combine information on host density,...
Cross, Paul C.; Prosser, Diann; Ramey, Andrew M.; Hanks, Ephraim M.; Pepin, Kim M. Promoting change in common tern (Sterna hirundo) nest site selection to minimize construction related disturbance
With dramatic declines in waterbird populations around the globe, wildlife managers have taken great care to minimize disturbance to breeding waterbird colonies. However, sometimes disturbance cannot be avoided and other actions must be considered. During the 2017 breeding season, a colony of Sterna hirundo (Common terns) were deterred from a...
McGowan, Peter C.; Sullivan, Jeffery D.; Callahan, Carl C.; Schultz, William; Wall, Jennifer L.; Prosser, Diann Seasonal occurrence and abundance of dabbling ducks across the continental United States: Joint spatio-temporal modelling for the Genus Anas
Estimating the distribution and abundance of wildlife is an essential task in species conservation, wildlife management and habitat prioritization. Although a host of methods and tools have been proposed to accomplish this undertaking, several challenges remain in accurately forecasting occurrence and abundance for highly mobile species....
Humphreys, John M.; Murrow, Jennifer L.; Sullivan, Jeffery D.; Prosser, Diann
Hurricane Sandy impacts on coastal wetland resilience
The goal of this research was to evaluate the impacts of Hurricane Sandy on surface elevation trends in estuarine marshes located across the northeast region of the United States from Virginia to Maine using data from an opportunistic (in other words, not strategic) and collaborative network (from here on, an opportunistic network) of surface...
Cahoon, Donald R.; Olker, Jennifer H.; Yeates, Alice G.; Guntenspergen, Glenn R.; Grace, James B.; Adamowicz, Susan C.; Anisfeld, Shimon C.; Baldwin, Andrew H.; Barrett, Nels; Beckett, Leah; Benzecry, Alice; Blum, Linda K.; Burdick, David M.; Crouch, William; Ekberg, Marci Cole; Fernald, Sarah; Grimes, Kristin Wilson; Grzyb, Joseph; Hartig, Ellen Kracauer; Kreeger, Danielle A.; Larson, Marit; Lerberg, Scott; Lynch, James C.; Maher, Nicole; Maxwell-Doyle, Martha; Mitchell, Laura R.; Mora, Jordan; O'Neill, Victoria; Padeletti, Angela; Prosser, Diann J.; Quirk, Tracy; Raposa, Kenneth B.; Reay, William G.; Siok, Drexel; Snow, Christopher; Starke, Adam; Stevenson, J. Court; Staver, Lorie; Turner, Vincent Waterfowl spring migratory behavior and avian influenza transmission risk in the changing landscape of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway
Avian influenza has advanced from a regional concern to a global health issue with significant economic, trade, and public health implications. Wild birds, particularly waterfowl (Anseriformes), are known reservoirs for low-pathogenic avian influenza viruses (AIV) and recent studies have shown their potential in the spread of highly pathogenic...
Sullivan, Jeffery D.; Takekawa, John Y.; Spragens, Kyle A.; Newman, Scott H.; Xiao, Xiangming; Leader, Paul J.; Smith, Bena; Prosser, Diann J. A video surveillance system to monitor breeding colonies of common terns (Sterna Hirundo)
Many waterbird populations have faced declines over the last century, including the common tern (Sterna hirundo), a waterbird species with a widespread breeding distribution, that has been recently listed as endangered in some habitats of its range. Waterbird monitoring programs exist to track populations through time; however, some of the more...
Wall, J.L.; Marban, Paul; Brinker, D.F.; Sullivan, J.D.; Zimnik, M.; Murrow, J.L.; McGowan, P.C.; Callahan, Carl R.; Prosser, Diann J. Investigating home range, movement pattern, and habitat selection of Bar-headed Geese during breeding season at Qinghai Lake, China
The Bar-headed Goose is an important species in Asia, both culturally and ecologically. While prior studies have shown Qinghai Lake supports one of the largest breeding areas for Bar-headed Geese, little is known regarding the species movement ecology during the breeding season. In this study, we examined Bar-headed Goose home range size within...
Zheng, Ruobing; Smith, Lacy M.; Prosser, Diann J.; Takekawa, John Y.; Newman, Scott H.; Sullivan, Jeffery D.; Luo, Ze; Yan, Baoping Preliminary evaluation of behavioral response of nesting waterbirds to small unmanned aircraft flight
Small unmanned aircraft systems present an emerging technology with the potential to survey colonial waterbird populations while reducing disturbance in comparison to traditional ground counts. Recent research with these systems has been performed on some colonially nesting avian species; however, none have focused on wading bird species. During...
Reintsma, Kaitlyn; McGowan, Peter C.; Callahan, Carl R.; Collier, Tom; Gray, David; Sullivan, Jeffery D.; Prosser, Diann J. Effects of local shoreline and subestuary watershed condition on waterbird community integrity: Influences of geospatial scale and season in the Chesapeake Bay
In many coastal regions throughout the world, there is increasing pressure to harden shorelines to protect human infrastructures against sea level rise, storm surge, and erosion. This study examines waterbird community integrity in relation to shoreline hardening and land use characteristics at three geospatial scales: (1) the shoreline scale...
Prosser, Diann J.; Nagel, Jessica L.; Howlin, Shay; Marban, Paul; Day, Daniel D.; Erwin, R. Michael Impacts of coastal land use and shoreline armoring on estuarine ecosystems: An introduction to a special issue
The nearshore land-water interface is an important ecological zone that faces anthropogenic pressure from development in coastal regions throughout the world. Coastal waters and estuaries like Chesapeake Bay receive and process land discharges loaded with anthropogenic nutrients and other pollutants that cause eutrophication, hypoxia, and other...
Prosser, Diann J.; Jordan, Thomas E.; Nagel, Jessica L.; Seitz, Rochelle D.; Weller, Donald E.; Whigham, Dennis F. Use of Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia) burrows as shelter by Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) chicks
The availability of shelter to avoid predation and ameliorate physiologically stressful conditions is often important to the survival of avian hatchlings. However, as changes in habitat availability force birds to nest in nontraditional locations, young must quickly adapt to using novel sources of shelter. Two Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) colonies...
McGowan, Peter C.; Reintsma, Kaitlyn; Sullivan, Jeffery D.; DeVoss, Katie P.; Wall, Jennifer L.; Zimnik, Mia D.; Callahan, Carl R.; Schultz, Bill; Prosser, Diann J. Integrating animal movement with habitat suitability for estimating dynamic landscape connectivity
Context High-resolution animal movement data are becoming increasingly available, yet having a multitude of empirical trajectories alone does not allow us to easily predict animal movement. To answer ecological and evolutionary questions at a population level, quantitative estimates of a species’ potential to link patches or populations are of...
van Toor, Mariëlle L.; Kranstauber, Bart; Newman, Scott H.; Prosser, Diann J.; Takekawa, John Y.; Technitis, Georgios; Weibel, Robert; Wikelski, Martin; Safi, Kamran
Waterbirds at Risk in the Chesapeake Bay
Scientists investigate the impacts of shoreline armoring
Unusual Suspects: Diving Ducks and Avian influenza
Due to the global threat to health and human safety posed by avian influenza monitoring has been conducted in the United States to determine the prevalence of such viruses in our wild waterfowl.