Mark Wildhaber, PhD
Dr. Mark Wildhaber is a Research Ecologist at the Columbia Environmental Research Center.
Mark has worked at USGS, Columbia Environment Research Center since 1991. His major responsibilities include research in all areas of aquatic ecology, fish biology, behavioral ecology, ecological modeling, and climate change in understanding for and support of conservation and recovery efforts. His expertise includes: at-risk, threatened, and endangered fishes, reproductive ecology, bioenergetics and population, community, and ecosystem modeling and forecasting, population monitoring and experiment designs, and Bayesian and non-Bayesian approaches to analyzing fisheries data. Mark's research includes reproductive behavior and physiology and abiotic and biotic requirements for reproductive success of commercially valuable and/or federally-listed as threatened or endangered fishes; effects of heavy metals and acidic contamination on riverine ecosystems; effects of water management on the benthic fish community of riverine ecosystems; effects of organic and inorganic contamination on aquatic benthic invertebrate communities; and spatial and temporal hierarchical fish population modeling using spatially-explicit individual-based models that incorporate bioenergetics, foraging theory, and other models of habitat choice under varying environmental conditions in the context of global climate to guide conservation and recovery efforts.
Professional Experience
1997-present Research Ecologist/Quantitative Ecology Section Leader, USGS Columbia Environmental Research Center
1991-1997 Statistician, USFWS/NBS National Fisheries Contaminant Research Center
1989-1991 Research Associate and Tutor, Department of Zoology, North Carolina State University
1983-1989 Research and Teaching Assistant, Department of Zoology, North Carolina State University
1981-1983 Teaching Assistant, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Texas A&M University
1979 Laboratory Assistant, Department of Biology, Southeast Missouri State University
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. Zoology and Biomathematics, Southeast Missouri State University 1989
M.S. Wildlife and Fisheries Science, Southeast Missouri State University 1985
B.S. Zoology and Mathematics, Minor in Chemistry, Southeast Missouri State University 1981
Affiliations and Memberships*
2017-presesent, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Sturgeon Specialty Group Commission Member
2009-present Member, World Sturgeon Conservation Society
2002-present Fellow, American Institute of Fishery Research Biologists
1993-present Member, North Central Division of the American Fisheries Society
1993-1994 Continuing Education Coordinator, North Central Division of the American Fisheries Society
1993-present Member, Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society
1993-1995 Continuing Education Coordinator, Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society
1990-present Member, American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists
1988-present Member, Animal Behavior Society
2004-present Member, Conservation Committee, Animal Behavior Society
1984-present, Member, American Fisheries Society
1994-1995 Member Publications Award Committee, American Fisheries Society
1994-1998 Associate Editor, The Progressive Fish Culturist, American Fisheries Society
Science and Products
A comparison of measures of riverbed form for evaluating distributions of benthic fishes
Effects of Photoperiod on Behavior and Courtship of the Neosho madtom (Noturus placidus)
Breeding behavior and reproductive life history of the Neosho Madtom, Noturus placidus (Teleostei: Ictaluridae)
Neosho Madtom Spawning
The influence of photoperiod and temperature on the Neosho Madtom (norturus placidus) reproductive cycle
The trade-off between food and temperature in the habitat choice of bluegill sunfish
Gill lesions and death of bluegill in an acid mine drainage mixing zone
Ictalurid populations in relation to the presence of a main-stem reservoir in a midwestern warmwater stream with emphasis on the threatened Neosho madtom
Natural and anthropogenic influences on the distribution of the threatened Neosho madtom in a midwestern warmwater stream
Potential effects of interspecific competition on Neosho madtom (Noturus placidus) populations
Acute toxicity of an acid mine drainage mixing zone to juvenile bluegill and largemouth bass
Both contaminants and habitat limit Neosho madtom (Noturus Placidus) numbers in the Spring River, a midwestern warmwater stream effected by runoff from historic zinc and lead mining
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
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A comparison of measures of riverbed form for evaluating distributions of benthic fishes
A method to quantitatively characterize the bed forms of a large river and a preliminary test of the relationship between bed-form characteristics and catch per unit area of benthic fishes is presented. We used analog paper recordings of bathymetric data from the Missouri River and fish data collected from 1996 to 1998 at both the segment (???101-102-km) and macrohabitat (???10-1-100-km) spatial sAuthorsMark L. Wildhaber, Peter J. Lamberson, David L. GalatEffects of Photoperiod on Behavior and Courtship of the Neosho madtom (Noturus placidus)
To test effects of long and short day-length on behavior of the Neosho madtom (Noturus placidus), we held six pairs of fish in separate tanks under 16 hr (L): 8 hr (D) (long-day) and six pairs under 12 hr (L): 12 hr (D) (short-day) photoperiods. An ethogram was created and behavior was electronically and continuously recorded. Two-minute intervals for each hour over four 4-day periods were examineAuthorsAngela G. Bulger, Mark L. Wildhaber, David R. EddsBreeding behavior and reproductive life history of the Neosho Madtom, Noturus placidus (Teleostei: Ictaluridae)
The Neosho madtom, Noturus placidus, is a small catfish listed by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service as threatened. Little is known of its breeding biology and behavior because high turbidity and flow during its spawning season prevent direct observation in the field, and captive propagation has met with limited success. We held Neosho madtoms in laboratory aquaria in 1996 and 1998 to study sexuaAuthorsAngela G. Bulger, Christopher D. Wilkinson, David R. Edds, Mark L. WildhaberNeosho Madtom Spawning
No abstract available at this timeAuthorsJanice L. Albers, Mark L. WildhaberThe influence of photoperiod and temperature on the Neosho Madtom (norturus placidus) reproductive cycle
The key to successful fish culture is to understand the environmental cues that trigger spawning. In temperate fishes, photoperiod and temperature are important in many species including the family Ictaluridae. The object of this study was to examine whether natural photo-thermal conditions in the laboratory could stimulate the reproductive cycle of Neosho madtoms (Noturus placidus). For three yeaAuthorsJ.L. Albers, M. L. Wildhaber, Douglas B. NoltieThe trade-off between food and temperature in the habitat choice of bluegill sunfish
A model is presented to describe the trade-off between food and temperature in bluegills Lepomis macrochirus, where temperature was the primary factor used in determining the patch in which to reside.AuthorsM. L. WildhaberGill lesions and death of bluegill in an acid mine drainage mixing zone
The toxicity of an acid mine drainage (AMD) mixing zone was investigated by placing bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) at the confluence of a stream contaminated by AMD and a stream having neutral pH. A mixing channel receiving water from both streams was assembled in the field, during July and October 1996, to determine the toxicity of freshly mixed and aged water (2.9–7.5 min). The AMD stream had elAuthorsT.B. Henry, E.R. Irwin, J.M. Grizzle, W. G. Brumbaugh, M. L. WildhaberIctalurid populations in relation to the presence of a main-stem reservoir in a midwestern warmwater stream with emphasis on the threatened Neosho madtom
Ictalurid populations, including those of the Neosho madtom Noturus placidus, have been monitored in the Neosho River basin since the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the Neosho madtom as threatened in 1991. The Neosho madtom presently occurs only in the Neosho River basin, whose hydrologic regime, physical habitat, and water quality have been altered by the construction and operation of reseAuthorsM. L. Wildhaber, V.M. Tabor, J.E. Whitaker, A.L. Allert, D.W. Mulhern, Peter J. Lamberson, K.L. PowellNatural and anthropogenic influences on the distribution of the threatened Neosho madtom in a midwestern warmwater stream
We attempted to discern the contributions of physical habitat, water chemistry, nutrients, and contaminants from historic lead–zinc mining activities on the riffle‐dwelling benthic fish community of the Spring River, a midwestern warmwater stream that originates in Missouri and flows into Kansas and Oklahoma. The Spring River has a fish community that includes the Neosho madtom Noturus placidus, aAuthorsM. L. Wildhaber, A.L. Allert, C. J. Schmitt, V.M. Tabor, D. Mulhern, K.L. Powell, S.P. SowaPotential effects of interspecific competition on Neosho madtom (Noturus placidus) populations
Previous research on the distribution of Neosho madtoms, which are Federally-listed as threatened, indicated a positive relationship between density of Neosho madtoms and cumulative density of other riffle-dwelling benthic fishes. This suggested that interspecific competition was not limiting Neosho madtom populations. We provide further evidence that interspecific competition is not limiting NeosAuthorsM. L. Wildhaber, A.L. Allert, C. J. SchmittAcute toxicity of an acid mine drainage mixing zone to juvenile bluegill and largemouth bass
The toxicity of an acid mixing zone produced at the confluence of a stream that was contaminated by acid mine drainage (AMD) and a pH-neutral stream was investigated in toxicity tests with juvenile bluegill Lepomis macrochirus and largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides. Fish mortalities in instream cages located in the mixing zone, below the mixing zone, and upstream in both tributaries were comparAuthorsT.B. Henry, E.R. Irwin, J.M. Grizzle, M. L. Wildhaber, W. G. BrumbaughBoth contaminants and habitat limit Neosho madtom (Noturus Placidus) numbers in the Spring River, a midwestern warmwater stream effected by runoff from historic zinc and lead mining
No abstract available.AuthorsMark L. Wildhaber, Ann L. Allert, Christopher J. SchmittNon-USGS Publications**
Wildhaber, M.L., and Neill, W.H., 1992, Activity and distribution of northern and Florida largemouth bass in a Texas impound: Journal of Freshwater Ecology, v. 7, no. 3, p. 293-302
Wildhaber, M.L., and Crowder, L.B., 1991, Mechanisms of patch choice by bluegills (Lepomis macrochirus) foraging in a variable environment: Copeia, v. 1991, no. 2, p. 445-460Wildhaber, M.L., Green, R.F., and Crowder, L.B., 1994, Bluegills continuously update patch giving-up times based on foraging experience: Animal Behaviour, v. 47, no. 3, p. 501-513.W. Westerman, P., M. Losordo, T., and L. Wildhaber, M., 1996, Evaluation of Various Biofilters in an Intensive Recirculating Fish Production Facility: Transactions of the ASAE, v. 39, no. 2, p. 723-727.**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.
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government