Kristine Preston

No abstract available.

Understanding genetic structure and diversity within species can uncover associations with environmental and geographic attributes that highlight adaptive potential and inform conservation and management. The California gnatcatcher, Polioptila californica, is a small songbird found in desert and coastal scrub habitats from the southern end of Baja California Sur to Ventura County...

Non-native species having high per capita impacts in invaded communities are those that modulate resource availability and alter disturbance regimes in ways that are biologically incompatible with the native biota. In areas where it has been introduced by humans, American beaver (Castor canadensis) is an iconic example of such species due to its capacity to alter trophic dynamics of...

We developed a habitat suitability model for the federally endangered Least Bell’s Vireo (Vireo bellii pusillus) across its current and historic range in California. The vireo disappeared from most of its range by the 1980s, remaining only in southern California and northern Baja California, Mexico. This decline was due to habitat loss and introduction of brood parasitic brown-headed...

Habitat loss and fragmentation are primary threats to biodiversity worldwide. We studied the impacts of habitat loss and fragmentation on genetic connectivity and diversity among local aggregations of the California gnatcatcher (Polioptila californica californica) across its U.S. range. With a dataset of 268 individuals genotyped at 19 microsatellite loci, we analyzed genetic structure...

In many parts of the world, the combined effects of habitat fragmentation and altered disturbance regimes pose a significant threat to biodiversity. This is particularly true in Mediterranean-type ecosystems (MTEs), which tend to be fire-prone, species rich, and heavily impacted by human land use. Given the spatial complexity of overlapping threats and species’ vulnerability along with...