Jonathan J. Spurgeon, PhD
Unit Leader - Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit
Jonathan joined the Nebraska Unit in 2020. A major focus of Jonathan's research is quantifying the patchwork of habitat conditions needed by stream fishes across their life-history. Research outcomes are intended to inform decisions regarding habitat restoration and conservation strategies including translocation and non-native species suppression. Jonathan uses a diversity of study designs and analytical techniques including occupancy modelling and mark-recapture methods. Jonathan is currently working across a gradient of systems from small streams in the Nebraska Sandhills and Ouachita Mountains to the largest rivers in North America. Jonathan teaches graduate courses in vertebrate population ecology and ecological statistics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Jonathan received graduate degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he studied large-river ecology and conservation and management of fish populations. Jonathan was an assistant professor at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.
Professional Experience
Assistant Unit Leader, Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, 2020-
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 19
Ecosystem-specific growth responses to climate pattern by a temperate freshwater fish Ecosystem-specific growth responses to climate pattern by a temperate freshwater fish
Somatic growth patterns among animal populations are maintained through complex processes that vary among ecosystems. Changes in growth patterns may be concomitant with changes in climate; however, understanding how growth will manifest among ecosystems is limited. Information embedded within fish hard-parts (i.e., otoliths, spines, vertebrae) can account for variation in growth patterns...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Mark A. Pegg, Kevin L. Pope, Lin Xie
Reservoir rehabilitations: Seeking the Fountain of Youth Reservoir rehabilitations: Seeking the Fountain of Youth
Aging of reservoirs alters the functions, and associated services, of these systems through time. The goal of habitat rehabilitation is often to alter the trajectory of the aging process such that the duration of the desired state is prolonged. There are two important characteristics in alteration of the trajectory—the amplitude relative to current state and the subsequent rate of change...
Authors
Mark A. Pegg, Kevin L. Pope, L.A. Powell, Kelly C. Turek, Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Nathaniel T. Stewart, Nick P. Hogberg, Mark T. Porath
Using standardized fishery data to inform rehabilitation efforts Using standardized fishery data to inform rehabilitation efforts
Lakes and reservoirs progress through an aging process often accelerated by human activities, resulting in degradation or loss of ecosystem services. Resource managers thus attempt to slow or reverse the negative effects of aging using a myriad of rehabilitation strategies. Sustained monitoring programs to assess the efficacy of rehabilitation strategies are often limited; however, long...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Nathaniel T. Stewart, Mark A. Pegg, Kevin L. Pope, Mark T. Porath
The global status of freshwater fish age validation studies and a prioritization framework for future research The global status of freshwater fish age validation studies and a prioritization framework for future research
Age information derived from calcified structures is commonly used to estimate recruitment, growth, and mortality for fish populations. Validation of daily or annual marks on age structures is often assumed, presumably due to a lack of general knowledge concerning the status of age validation studies. Therefore, the current status of freshwater fish age validation studies was summarized...
Authors
Kevin L. Pope, Martin J. Hamel, Mark A. Pegg, Jonathan J. Spurgeon
Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributary streams of the Colorado River: Implications for conservation of large-river fishes Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributary streams of the Colorado River: Implications for conservation of large-river fishes
The Humpback Chub Gila cypha, a large-bodied, endangered cyprinid endemic to the Colorado River basin, is in decline throughout most of its range due largely to anthropogenic factors. Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributaries of the Colorado River is one conservation activity that may contribute to the expansion of the species’ current range and eventually provide population...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Craig P. Paukert, Brian D. Healy, Melissa Trammell, Dave Speas, Emily Omana Smith
Status of native stream fishes within selected protected areas of Niobrara River in western Nebraska Status of native stream fishes within selected protected areas of Niobrara River in western Nebraska
Lotic systems within the Great Plains are characterized by highly fluctuating conditions through both space and time. Fishes inhabiting these systems have adopted specific life-history strategies to survive in such environments; however, anthropogenic disturbance to prairie streams has resulted in declines and extirpation of many native stream fishes. Terrestrial protected areas (i.e...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Richard H. Stasiak, George R. Cunningham, Kevin L. Pope, Mark A. Pegg
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 19
Ecosystem-specific growth responses to climate pattern by a temperate freshwater fish Ecosystem-specific growth responses to climate pattern by a temperate freshwater fish
Somatic growth patterns among animal populations are maintained through complex processes that vary among ecosystems. Changes in growth patterns may be concomitant with changes in climate; however, understanding how growth will manifest among ecosystems is limited. Information embedded within fish hard-parts (i.e., otoliths, spines, vertebrae) can account for variation in growth patterns...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Mark A. Pegg, Kevin L. Pope, Lin Xie
Reservoir rehabilitations: Seeking the Fountain of Youth Reservoir rehabilitations: Seeking the Fountain of Youth
Aging of reservoirs alters the functions, and associated services, of these systems through time. The goal of habitat rehabilitation is often to alter the trajectory of the aging process such that the duration of the desired state is prolonged. There are two important characteristics in alteration of the trajectory—the amplitude relative to current state and the subsequent rate of change...
Authors
Mark A. Pegg, Kevin L. Pope, L.A. Powell, Kelly C. Turek, Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Nathaniel T. Stewart, Nick P. Hogberg, Mark T. Porath
Using standardized fishery data to inform rehabilitation efforts Using standardized fishery data to inform rehabilitation efforts
Lakes and reservoirs progress through an aging process often accelerated by human activities, resulting in degradation or loss of ecosystem services. Resource managers thus attempt to slow or reverse the negative effects of aging using a myriad of rehabilitation strategies. Sustained monitoring programs to assess the efficacy of rehabilitation strategies are often limited; however, long...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Nathaniel T. Stewart, Mark A. Pegg, Kevin L. Pope, Mark T. Porath
The global status of freshwater fish age validation studies and a prioritization framework for future research The global status of freshwater fish age validation studies and a prioritization framework for future research
Age information derived from calcified structures is commonly used to estimate recruitment, growth, and mortality for fish populations. Validation of daily or annual marks on age structures is often assumed, presumably due to a lack of general knowledge concerning the status of age validation studies. Therefore, the current status of freshwater fish age validation studies was summarized...
Authors
Kevin L. Pope, Martin J. Hamel, Mark A. Pegg, Jonathan J. Spurgeon
Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributary streams of the Colorado River: Implications for conservation of large-river fishes Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributary streams of the Colorado River: Implications for conservation of large-river fishes
The Humpback Chub Gila cypha, a large-bodied, endangered cyprinid endemic to the Colorado River basin, is in decline throughout most of its range due largely to anthropogenic factors. Translocation of Humpback Chub into tributaries of the Colorado River is one conservation activity that may contribute to the expansion of the species’ current range and eventually provide population...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Craig P. Paukert, Brian D. Healy, Melissa Trammell, Dave Speas, Emily Omana Smith
Status of native stream fishes within selected protected areas of Niobrara River in western Nebraska Status of native stream fishes within selected protected areas of Niobrara River in western Nebraska
Lotic systems within the Great Plains are characterized by highly fluctuating conditions through both space and time. Fishes inhabiting these systems have adopted specific life-history strategies to survive in such environments; however, anthropogenic disturbance to prairie streams has resulted in declines and extirpation of many native stream fishes. Terrestrial protected areas (i.e...
Authors
Jonathan J. Spurgeon, Richard H. Stasiak, George R. Cunningham, Kevin L. Pope, Mark A. Pegg
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.