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Jeffery Sullivan

Jeff is a Biologist at the Eastern Ecological Science Center in Laurel, MD. Jeff works under Diann Prosser on projects focused on understanding avian influenza infection dynamics and waterbird ecology within the Chesapeake Bay 

Jeff began working for USGS in 2016, where he studies breeding ecology of colonial nesting waterbirds in the Chesapeake Bay as well as the persistence, spread, and amplification of avian influenza viruses in wild waterfowl. His graduate work focused on understanding the movement ecology of female white-tailed deer relative to estrous and hunting pressure. 

Professional Experience

  • 2016-present - U.S. Geological Survey Eastern Ecological Science center 

Education and Certifications

  • M.S., Auburn University, Forestry and Wildlife Management (2016

  • B.S., Washington College, Environmental Studies (2010)

Science and Products

Assessing nest attentiveness of Common Terns via video cameras and temperature loggers

While nest attentiveness plays a critical role in the reproductive success of avian species, little nest attentiveness data with high temporal resolution is available for many species. However, improvements in both video monitoring and temperature logging devices present an opportunity to improve our understanding of this aspect of avian behavior. To investigate nest attentiveness behaviors and ev
Authors
Jeffery D. Sullivan, Paul R. Marban, Jennifer M. Mullinax, David F. Brinker, Petter C. McGowan, Carl C. Callahan, Diann Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

Using thermal infrared cameras to detect avian chicks at various distances and vegetative coverages

Population monitoring of nesting waterbirds often involves frequent entries into the colony, but alternative methods such as local remotely sensed thermal imaging may help reduce disturbance while providing a cost-effective way to survey breeding populations. Such an approach can have high initial costs, however, which may have reduced the number of studies investigating functionality of paired th
Authors
Diann Prosser, Tom Collier, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Katherine Emily Dale, Carl R. Callahan, Peter C. McGowan, Edward Gaylord, Julia M. Geschke, Lucas Howell, Paul R. Marban, Saba Raman
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

Eviction notice: Observation of a Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) usurping an active Least Tern (Sternula antillarum) Nest

Although nest usurpation is common in some species and orders of birds, usurpation has rarely been reported for Sterninae. We observed a Sterna hirundo (Common Tern) egg in an active Sternula antillarum(Least Tern) nest with a complete clutch in a mixed-species Sterninae colony in Chesapeake Bay, MD, in May 2018. Based on observations from a game camera following usurpation, Common Terns incubated
Authors
Georgia J. Riggs, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Kayla M. Harvey, Dimitri A. Pappas, Jennifer L. Wall, Peter C. McGowan, Carl R. Callahan, Craig A. Koppie, Diann Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

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 historic nesting site due to concerns that nearby resto
Authors
Peter C. McGowan, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Carl C. Callahan, William Schultz, Jennifer L. Wall, Diann Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

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. Exhibiting extensive geographic ranges with seasonally varyi
Authors
John M. Humphreys, Jennifer L. Murrow, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Diann Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

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 forms of virus. East Asia remains an epicenter for the
Authors
Jeffery D. Sullivan, John Y. Takekawa, Kyle A. Spragens, Scott H. Newman, Xiangming Xiao, Paul J. Leader, Bena Smith, Diann J. Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

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 intensive approaches require entering colonies and ca
Authors
J.L. Wall, Paul Marban, D.F. Brinker, J.D. Sullivan, M. Zimnik, J.L. Murrow, P. C. McGowan, Carl R. Callahan, Diann J. Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

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 the breeding grounds at Qinghai Lake and documented t
Authors
Ruobing Zheng, Lacy M. Smith, Diann J. Prosser, John Y. Takekawa, Scott H. Newman, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Ze Luo, Baoping Yan
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

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 2015–2016, this study tested the behavioral response
Authors
Kaitlyn Reintsma, Peter C. McGowan, Carl R. Callahan, Tom Collier, David Gray, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Diann J. Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Species Management Research Program, Eastern Ecological Science Center

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 (one vegetated and one barren) were observed durin
Authors
Peter C. McGowan, Kaitlyn Reintsma, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Katie P. DeVoss, Jennifer L. Wall, Mia D. Zimnik, Carl R. Callahan, Bill Schultz, Diann J. Prosser
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center

Species distribution modeling in regions of high need and limited data: waterfowl of China

BackgroundA number of conservation and societal issues require understanding how species are distributed on the landscape, yet ecologists are often faced with a lack of data to develop models at the resolution and extent desired, resulting in inefficient use of conservation resources. Such a situation presented itself in our attempt to develop waterfowl distribution models as part of a multi-disci
Authors
Diann J. Prosser, Changqing Ding, R. Michael Erwin, Taej Mundkur, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Erle C. Ellis
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Eastern Ecological Science Center
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GIS data layers visualization

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.
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Biological Threats and Invasive Species Research Program, Eastern Ecological Science Center
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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.
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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.
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Species Management Research Program, Eastern Ecological Science Center
Movement of a lesser scaup infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza
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Movement of a Lesser Scaup Infected with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza
Lesser Scaup
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Lesser Scaup
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First Study to Track a Wild Bird Known to Have Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza

LAUREL, Md. — For the first time, scientists have tracked the movement of a wild bird known to be infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza in...

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