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Erin Muths, Ph.D.

Dr. Erin Muths is a Zoologist at the Fort Collins Science Center who specializes in amphibian demography, disease ecology and conservation.

Dr. Muths holds a doctorate in Zoology from the University of Queensland, Australia. Since joining the USGS in 1995, she has studied amphibians in Colorado and around the world. Dr. Muths specializes in amphibian demography, disease ecology and conservation. Current research projects include reintroductions of boreal toads in Rocky Mountain National Park, demography of chorus frog and boreal toad populations in Colorado and Wyoming, and salamander disease and occurrence in the desert southwest and Mexico. She is on several graduate student committees at Colorado State University, the University of Colorado and at the CCMB Laboratory for Conservation of Endangered Species in Hyderabad, India. 

Professional Experience

  • U.S. Geological Survey - Biological Resources Division Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, CO, April 1995 - present
  • University of Queensland Brisbane, Australia; Southwest Queensland, Australia, Ph.D. research, June 1991 - January 1995
  • Archbold Biological Station Lake Placid, FL, Research Intern, October 1990 - March 1991
  • Kansas State University, Division of Biology Manhattan, KS, Master's Research, Research Assistant, August 1988 - May 1990
  • Smithsonian Institution, Conservation Research Center Front Royal, VA, Intern, December 1987 - March 1988

Affiliations

  • USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative - Principle Investigator, Southern Rocky Mountains, 2000 - present
  • The Society for Conservation Biology, 1989 – 2011
  • The American Society of Mammalogists, 1994 – 2002
  • Colorado Boreal Toad Recovery Team, 1996 – present
  • Society for Northwestern Vertebrate Biology 1997 – 2007
  • Research Associate – Denver Zoological Foundation, 1998 – present
  • Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, 1999 – present; SW PARC – Steering Committee, 2008 – 2011
  • Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, 2000 – 2014; representative to joint Herpetological Education Committee, 2017 – 2020; Committee chair 2020
  • Co-Editor, Journal of Herpetology, 2010 – 2015; Section Editor, Journal of Herpetology, 2014 – present
  • American Society of Ichthyologists & Herpetologists, 2002 – present
  • Herpetologists’ League 2007 – present; Executive Council 2007 – 2011; Chair, EE Williams Research Grant Committee, 2009-2010

Science and Products

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USGS science for a changing world logo

A Framework for Guiding Management Decisions for Amphibians in an Uncertain Future

Amphibians are a group of animals facing especially severe declines due to many factors including climate change and a common pathogen, the amphibian chytrid fungus. To make informed decisions about amphibians, wildlife managers need to identify species facing the greatest threats and the actions that will most effectively minimize impacts of those threats. Although some amphibian species are rela
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Climate Adaptation Science Centers, Climate Adaptation Science Center
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A Framework for Guiding Management Decisions for Amphibians in an Uncertain Future

Amphibians are a group of animals facing especially severe declines due to many factors including climate change and a common pathogen, the amphibian chytrid fungus. To make informed decisions about amphibians, wildlife managers need to identify species facing the greatest threats and the actions that will most effectively minimize impacts of those threats. Although some amphibian species are rela
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USGS science for a changing world logo

A Framework for Guiding Management Decisions for Amphibians in an Uncertain Future

Amphibians are a group of animals facing especially severe declines due to many factors including climate change and a common pathogen, the amphibian chytrid fungus. To make informed decisions about amphibians, wildlife managers need to identify species facing the greatest threats and the actions that will most effectively minimize impacts of those threats. Although some amphibian species are rela
By
Climate Adaptation Science Centers, Climate Adaptation Science Center
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A Framework for Guiding Management Decisions for Amphibians in an Uncertain Future

Amphibians are a group of animals facing especially severe declines due to many factors including climate change and a common pathogen, the amphibian chytrid fungus. To make informed decisions about amphibians, wildlife managers need to identify species facing the greatest threats and the actions that will most effectively minimize impacts of those threats. Although some amphibian species are rela
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Juvenile Chiricahua leopard frog at Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, Sasabe, AZ

Modeling Colonization of a Population of Chiricahua Leopard Frogs

Managing a species with intensive tools like reintroduction may focus on single sites or entire landscapes. For mobile species like the federally-threatened Chiricahua leopard frog (Lithobates chiricahuensis [CLF]), both suitable colonization sites and suitable dispersal corridors between sites are needed. Following the eradication of the invasive American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) from...
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Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Southwest Biological Science Center
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Modeling Colonization of a Population of Chiricahua Leopard Frogs

Managing a species with intensive tools like reintroduction may focus on single sites or entire landscapes. For mobile species like the federally-threatened Chiricahua leopard frog (Lithobates chiricahuensis [CLF]), both suitable colonization sites and suitable dispersal corridors between sites are needed. Following the eradication of the invasive American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) from...
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Black and green Sonoran tiger salamander in gloved hand of a USGS researcher

Amphibian Chytrid Fungus Sampling in Arizona and Mexico

Information on disease presence can be of use to natural resource managers, especially in areas supporting threatened and endangered species that occur coincidentally with species that are suspected vectors for disease. A general sense of pathogen presence (or absence) can inform management directed at threatened and endangered species, especially in regions where disease is suspected to have...
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Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Southwest Biological Science Center
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Amphibian Chytrid Fungus Sampling in Arizona and Mexico

Information on disease presence can be of use to natural resource managers, especially in areas supporting threatened and endangered species that occur coincidentally with species that are suspected vectors for disease. A general sense of pathogen presence (or absence) can inform management directed at threatened and endangered species, especially in regions where disease is suspected to have...
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Image: Prairie Dog

Species Conservation

Large scale changes are occurring to our natural landscapes, often resulting in changes to the distribution and abundance of species living within these landscapes. Populations of many species affected by these natural or anthropogenic changes require focused management to ensure their conservation and sometimes recovery from the brink of extinction.
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Fort Collins Science Center
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Species Conservation

Large scale changes are occurring to our natural landscapes, often resulting in changes to the distribution and abundance of species living within these landscapes. Populations of many species affected by these natural or anthropogenic changes require focused management to ensure their conservation and sometimes recovery from the brink of extinction.
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Boreal toad (Bufo boreas) mating ball, Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming.

Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative: Rocky Mountain Region

The Rocky Mountain Region of Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) encompasses Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico. Two USGS Science Centers initiate and develop ARMI projects in this region. Investigations at NOROCK are headed by Dr. Blake Hossack. Investigations at the Fort Collins Science Center (FORT), Colorado, are headed by Dr. Erin Muths. The ARMI program is based on a...
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Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center
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Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative: Rocky Mountain Region

The Rocky Mountain Region of Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) encompasses Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico. Two USGS Science Centers initiate and develop ARMI projects in this region. Investigations at NOROCK are headed by Dr. Blake Hossack. Investigations at the Fort Collins Science Center (FORT), Colorado, are headed by Dr. Erin Muths. The ARMI program is based on a...
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USGS science for a changing world logo

Elucidating mechanisms underlying amphibian declines in North America using hierarchical spatial models

Amphibian populations are declining globally at unprecedented rates but statistically rigorous identification of mechanisms is lacking. Identification of reasons underlying large-scale declines is imperative to plan and implement effective conservation efforts. Most research on amphibian population decline has focused on local populations and local factors. However, the ubiquity of declines across
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John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis
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Elucidating mechanisms underlying amphibian declines in North America using hierarchical spatial models

Amphibian populations are declining globally at unprecedented rates but statistically rigorous identification of mechanisms is lacking. Identification of reasons underlying large-scale declines is imperative to plan and implement effective conservation efforts. Most research on amphibian population decline has focused on local populations and local factors. However, the ubiquity of declines across
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Chorus frog density and population growth, Cameron Pass, Colorado, 1986-2020

We investigated population dynamics in chorus frogs (Pseudacris maculata) relative to extrinsic (air temperatures and snowpack) and intrinsic (density dependence) characteristics at 2 sites in Colorado, USA. We used capture-mark-recapture (cmr) data (i.e., 1 or 0, provided here) and a Bayesian model framework to assess our a priori hypotheses about interactions among covariates and chorus frog sur
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Fort Collins Science Center

Boreal toad metamorph capture, recapture and covariates data, Colorado 2017-2018

This dataset includes two files, 1) site -specific covariates including the presence of predators (fish), disease (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis [Bd] - amphibian chytrid fungus), and permanence (ephemeral or permanent) of sites in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. The dataset was analyzed for planned publication of a manuscript in Population Ecology, Crockett, J., E. Muths and L.L. Bailey a
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Fort Collins Science Center

Capture-recapture, disease and covariate data for boreal toads from Blackrock Wyoming 2019

We investigated population dynamics in boreal toads relative to abiotic (fall temperatures and snowpack -the covariates provided here) and biotic (the abundance of another anuran host,data provide here) characteristics of the local environment at 6 sites in Wyoming, USA. We used capture-recapture data (i.e., 1 or 0, provided here) and a robust design multi-state model framework that incorporates d
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Fort Collins Science Center

Amphibian capture mark-recapture

These data represent capture mark recapture data along with associated disease status for boreal toads (Anaxyrus boreas) from Wyoming and Montana from 2004-2016 and four frog species (Rana draytonii, R. muscosa, R. pretiosa, R. sierrae) from 2001-2016.
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Ecosystems, Fish & Wildlife Disease, National Wildlife Health Center

Amphibian Occupancy and Effects of Habitat Use on Pesticide Exposure in Iowa Wetlands

Amphibians living in agricultural areas encounter many challenges. Two factors affecting individuals in these landscapes are habitat loss and pesticides. This thesis focuses on amphibians using agricultural wetlands in Iowa, where row crops such as corn and soybeans dominate the landscape. The goal of my first study was to determine the influences of site characteristics on amphibian presence and
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Ecosystems, Contaminant Biology, Cooperative Research Units, Environments Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology

Demography and habitat use of boreal toads (Anaxyrus boreas) and other amphibians in northern Wyoming (Blackrock).

Amphibian decline is a problem of global importance, with over 40% of species considered at risk. This phenomenon is not limited to the tropics or to other countries. Amphibian species in the U.S. are also declining, contributing to the larger, global phenomenon. For example, in the State of Wyoming, the Wyoming toad has been extirpated in the wild and the boreal toad is a species of special conce
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Fort Collins Science Center
Filter Total Items: 130

Thermal conditions predict intraspecific variation in senescence rate in frogs and toads

Variation in temperature is known to influence mortality patterns in ectotherms. Even though a few experimental studies on model organisms have reported a positive relationship between temperature and actuarial senescence (i.e., the increase in mortality risk with age), how variation in climate influences the senescence rate across the range of a species is still poorly understood in free-ranging
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Ecosystems, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Fort Collins Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center

Staggered-entry analysis of breeding phenology and occupancy dynamics of Arizona toads from historically occupied habitats of New Mexico, USA

For species with variable phenology, it is often challenging to produce reliable estimates of population dynamics or changes in occupancy. The Arizona Toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus) is a southwestern USA endemic that has been petitioned for legal protection, but status assessments are limited by a lack of information on population trends. Also, timing and consistency of Arizona Toad breeding varies
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Southwest Biological Science Center

Amphibian population responses to mitigation: Relative importance of wetland age and design

Wetland creation is a common practice to mitigate for the loss of natural wetlands. However, there is still uncertainty about how effectively created wetlands replace habitat provided by natural wetlands. This uncertainty is due in part because post-construction monitoring of biological communities, and vertebrates especially, is rare and typically short-term (
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center

Accommodating the role of site memory in dynamic species distribution models

First-order dynamic occupancy models (FODOMs) are a class of state-space model in which the true state (occurrence) is observed imperfectly. An important assumption of FODOMs is that site dynamics only depend on the current state and that variations in dynamic processes are adequately captured with covariates or random effects. However, it is often difficult to understand and/or measure the covari
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Ecosystems, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center

Why disease ecology needs life-history theory: A host perspective

When facing an emerging infectious disease of conservation concern, we often have little information on the nature of the host‐parasite interaction to inform management decisions. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that the life‐history strategies of host species can be predictive of individual‐ and population‐level responses to infectious disease, even without detailed knowledge on the sp
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center

Density dependence and adult survival drive the dynamics in two high elevation amphibian populations

Amphibian conservation has progressed from the identification of declines to mitigation, but efforts are hampered by the lack of nuanced information about the effects of environmental characteristics and stressors on mechanistic processes of population regulation. Challenges include a paucity of long-term data and scant information about the relative roles of extrinsic (e.g., weather) and intrinsi
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center

Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) not detected in an intensive survey of wild North American amphibians

The salamander chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans [Bsal]) is causing massive mortality of salamanders in Europe. The potential for spread via international trade into North America and the high diversity of salamanders has catalyzed concern about Bsal in the U.S. Surveillance programs for invading pathogens must initially meet challenges that include low rates of occurrence on the l
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Ecosystems, Eastern Ecological Science Center, National Wildlife Health Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC), Wetland and Aquatic Research Center

Informing amphibian conservation efforts with abundance-based metapopulation models

Science-based management strategies are needed to halt or reverse the global decline of amphibians. In many cases, sound management requires reliable models built using monitoring data. Historically, monitoring and statistical modeling efforts have focused on estimating occupancy using detection–nondetection data. Spatial occupancy models are useful for studying colonization–extinction dynamics, b
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Southwest Biological Science Center

Effects of snowpack, temperature, and disease on the demography of a wild population of amphibians

Understanding the demographic consequences of interactions among pathogens, hosts, and weather conditions is critical in determining how amphibian populations respond to disease and in identifying site-specific conservation actions that can be developed to bolster persistence of amphibian populations. We investigated population dynamics in Boreal Toads (Anaxyrus boreas) relative to abiotic (fall t
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center

Amphibian population declines: 30 Years of progress in confronting a complex problem

In 1989, it dawned on participants at the First World Congress of Herpetology that observed declines in amphibian populations might actually be global in scope and unprecedented in severity. Three decades of research since then has produced an enormous increase in our knowledge of amphibian ecology and appreciation of the complexity of possible causes for amphibian population declines. In Septembe
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center

A synthesis of evidence of drivers of amphibian declines

Early calls for robust long-term time series of amphibian population data, stemming from discussion following the first World Congress of Herpetology, are now being realized after 25 yr of focused research. Inference from individual studies and locations have contributed to a basic consensus on drivers of amphibian declines. Until recently there were no large-scale syntheses of long-term time seri
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center

Survival estimates for the invasive American bullfrog

American bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus) are significant invaders in many places and can negatively impact native species. Despite their impact and wide distribution, little is known about their demography. We used five years of capture mark-recapture data to estimate annual apparent survival of post-metamorphic bullfrogs in a population on the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge in their in
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Southwest Biological Science Center

Pre-USGS Publications

Muths, E. 2015. Dust jacket blurb for book Salamandria by S. Trauth and J. Trauth. Mockingbird Lane Press.
Muths, E. 1999. Dwarf shrew found in Rocky Mountain National Park. Park Science 19(1): 25.
Muths, E., and L.A. Hinds. 1996. Circulating levels of prolactin and progesterone in a wild population of red kangaroos (Macropus rufus) Marsupialia: Macropodidae. General and Comparative Endocrinology. 101: 317-3.
Muths, E., and O.J. Reichman. 1996. Kangaroo rat bone compared to white rat bone after short-term disuse and exercise. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. 114A(4): 355-3.
Muths, E. 1996. Milk composition in a field population of red kangaroos, Macropus rufus (Desmarest) (Macropodidae: Marsupialia). Australian Journal of Zoology. 44: 165-1.
Muths, E. 1991. Substrate Discrimination in Burying Beetles, Nicrophorus orbicollis (Coleoptera: Silphidae). Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society. 64(4): 447-450.
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Conservation Research Across Scales in a National Program

In 2000, the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative - or ARMI - was established, under the direction of the President and Congress, in...

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A Unified Research Strategy for Disease Management

As wildlife diseases increase globally, an understanding of host-pathogen relationships can elucidate avenues for management and improve conservation...

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Large-scale Review of Amphibian Species and Community Response to Climate Change

Amphibian species and community richness has been declining in North America and climate change may play a role in these declines. Global climate...

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