Laura Thompson is a Research Ecologist with the USGS National Climate Adaptation Science Center (NCASC). Her research focuses on responses of terrestrial species to changes in climate. The purpose of her research is to provide the management community with science-based information that can assist with decision making regarding adaptation options.
Laura received her Ph.D. in Environmental and Life Sciences at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario where she studied historical and contemporary genetic patterns of woodland caribou in the boreal forest regions of Ontario, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan. Laura also holds M.S. and B.S. degrees in Wildlife and Fisheries Science from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Her current research focuses on three themes:
Projects include:
Moose health in a changing environment
Evaluating Adaptations of Desert Bighorn Sheep to Climate Change in the Southwestern U.S.
In addition, Laura is serving as an author with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) on the Americas Assessment. She also is serving as an author on the Fourth National Climate Assessment’s (NCA) chapter on biodiversity.
Publications:
Thompson, L. M., M. D. Staudinger, and S. L. Carter. 2015. Summarizing components of U.S. Department of Interior vulnerability assessments to focus climate adaptation planning. U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2015-1110.
Staudinger, M. D., S. L. Carter, M. S. Cross, N. S. Dubois, J. E. Duffy, C. Enquist, R. Griffis, J. J. Hellmann, J. J. Lawler, J. O'Leary, S. A. Morrison, L. Sneddon, B. A. Stein, L. M. Thompson, and W. Turner. 2013. Biodiversity in a changing climate: a synthesis of current and projected trends in the US. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 11:465–473.
van Manen, F. T., J. M. Nicholson, M. F. McCollister, L. M. Thompson, J. L. Kindall, and M. D. Jones. 2012. Short-term impacts of a 4-lane highway on American black bears in eastern North Carolina. Wildlife Monographs 181:1–35.
Carr, N. L., A. R. Rogers, S. R. Kingston, P. N. Hettinga, L. M. Thompson, J. L. Janusz-Renton, and P. J. Wilson. 2012. Comparative woodland caribou population surveys on the Slate Islands Provincial Park, Ontario. Rangifer 20:205-218.
Hoban, S. M., D. S. Borkowski, S. L. Brosi, T. S. McCleary, L. M. Thompson, J. S. McLachlan, M. A. Pereira, S. E. Schlarbaum, and J. Romero-Severson. 2010. Range-wide distribution of genetic diversity in the North American tree Juglans cinerea: a product of range shifts, not ecological marginality or recent population decline. Molecular Ecology 19:4876–4891.
Thompson, L. M., F. T. van Manen, S. E. Schlarbaum, and M. DePoy. 2006. A Spatial Modeling Approach to Identify Potential Butternut Restoration Sites in Mammoth Cave National Park. Restoration Ecology 14:289–296.
Thompson, L. M., F. T. van Manen, T. L. King. 2005. Geostatistical analysis of allele presence patterns among American black bears in eastern North Carolina. Ursus 16:59–69
View this webinar to learn how scientists are working to identify the ecological impacts of drought.
A secretarial order identified climate adaptation as a critical performance objective for future management of U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) lands and resources in response to global change. Vulnerability assessments can inform climate adaptation planning by providing insight into what natural resources are most at risk and why. Three...
Thompson, Laura M.; Staudinger, Michelle D.; Carter, Shawn L.
This paper provides a synthesis of the recent literature describing how global biodiversity is being affected by climate change and is projected to respond in the future. Current studies reinforce earlier findings of major climate-change-related impacts on biological systems and document new, more subtle after-effects. For example, many species...
Staudinger, Michelle D.; Carter, Shawn L.; Cross, Molly S.; Dubois, Natalie S.; Duffy, J. Emmett; Enquist, Carolyn; Griffis, Roger; Hellmann, Jessica J.; Lawler, Joshua J.; O’Leary, John; Morrison, Scott A.; Sneddon, Lesley; Stein, Bruce A.; Thompson, Laura M.; Turner, Woody Among numerous anthropogenic impacts on terrestrial landscapes, expanding transportation networks represent one of the primary challenges to wildlife conservation worldwide. Larger mammals may be particularly vulnerable because of typically low densities, low reproductive rates, and extensive movements. Although numerous studies have been...
Van Manen, Frank T.; McCollister, Matthew F.; Nicholson, Jeremy M.; Thompson, Laura M.; Kindall, Jason L.; Jones, Mark D. Incorporation of disease resistance is nearly complete for several important North American hardwood species threatened by exotic fungal diseases. The next important step toward species restoration would be to develop reliable tools to delineate ideal restoration sites on a landscape scale. We integrated spatial modeling and remote sensing...
Thompson, L.M.; Van Manen, F.T.; Schlarbaum, S.E.; DePoy, M. Highways are one of the leading causes of wildlife habitat fragmentation and may particularly affect wide-ranging species, such as American black bears (Ursus americanus). We initiated a research project in 2000 to determine potential effects of a 4-lane highway on black bear ecology in Washington County, North Carolina. The research design...
Thompson, L.M.; Van Manen, F.T.; King, T.L.