Vegetation growth is assisting the Muddy Creek channel in becoming deeper and narrower (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)
Patrick Anderson
Pat is a Biologist at the Fort Collins Science Center where he leads USGS science team in support of the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI). He serves on the interagency WLCI Coordination Team since 2007 which provides oversight on the identification, selection, and effectiveness of WLCI habitat conservation and enhancement actions across the 19 million-acre WLCI area.
Pat Anderson is a biologist whose research seeks to advance the understanding of sagebrush plant communities and how natural drivers and management practices influence long-term change. Pat leads the USGS science team in support of the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI). Pat also serves on the WLCI interagency coordination Team. His science focuses on evaluating the effectiveness of habitat treatments and restoration of sagebrush and aspen communities. Pat is also interested in collaborative conservation partnerships, improving stakeholder engagement, and developing approaches to advance the co-design and coproduction of science to make it more accessible and usable. These interests are applied to the WLCI but also put into practice by being a member of the USGS Actionable and Strategic Integrated Science and Technology (ASIST) team. The ASIST team is a landscape scale project to accelerate interdisciplinary science and application of advanced technology for stakeholder-driven challenges in the Colorado River Basin.
Professional Experience
Biologist, USGS-WLCI Coordinator, Fort Collins Science Center, U. S. Geological Survey, Ft. Collins, CO: June 2019 - Present
USGS WLCI Coordination Team, Fort Collins Science Center, U. S. Geological Survey, Ft. Collins, CO: January 2007 - Present
Program co-coordinator, USGS Biomonitoring of Environmental Status and Trends Program, USGS status and Trends Program, 2005 - 2007.
Biologist, USGS Biomonitoring of Environmental Status and Trends Program, USGS status and Trends Program, 1997 - 2007
Biological Technician, Northern Prarie Science Center, Jamestown, ND. May 1994 - December, 1996
Education and Certifications
M.S. University of Southern Illinois, Carbondale, IL, 1991
B.S. University of Southern Illinois, Carbondale, IL, 1985
Science and Products
Developing a toolkit for coproducing actionable science to support public land management
Understanding Local Resistance and Resilience to Future Habitat Change in the Sagebrush Ecosystem
Energy Development and Changing Land Uses
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Inventory and Long-Term Monitoring
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Baseline Synthesis
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Mechanistic Studies of Wildlife
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Effectiveness Monitoring
The Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI)
Pygmy Rabbit Distribution and Abundance Relative to Ongoing Energy Development in Wyoming
Vascular plant data collected at Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota, USA, in 1998
Vascular plant data collected at the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND, USA in 1997
Vascular plant data collected at the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND, USA in 1996
Sagebrush recovery analyzed with a dynamic reference approach in southwestern Wyoming, USA 1985-2018
A snapshot of stakeholder science needs related to drought in the Colorado River Basin
Predicted (1989-2015) and forecasted (2015-2114) estimates for rate of change and recovery of sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) following energy development in southwestern Wyoming, USA (ver. 2.0, January 2021)
Predicted (1989-2015) and forecasted (2015-2114) estimates for rate of change and recovery of sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) following energy development in southwestern Wyoming, USA
Geospatial considerations for a multiorganizational, landscape-scale program
Vegetation growth is assisting the Muddy Creek channel in becoming deeper and narrower (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)
USGS scientist Jason Alexander, a fluvial geomorphologist with the Wyoming Montana Water Science Center, explains how he used sediment traps to evaluate sediment deposition in Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
USGS scientist Jason Alexander, a fluvial geomorphologist with the Wyoming Montana Water Science Center, explains how he used sediment traps to evaluate sediment deposition in Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Muddy Creek reach showing bank erosion and the development of a point sandbar that is being stabilized by vegetation (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson.
Muddy Creek reach showing bank erosion and the development of a point sandbar that is being stabilized by vegetation (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson.
Small rodents disturb surface soil on banks which contribute to fine sediments in the upper reaches of Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Small rodents disturb surface soil on banks which contribute to fine sediments in the upper reaches of Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Similar nearby headwater streams are being evaluated to determine how shifts in habitat availability and connectivity in drought years affect fish populations (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Similar nearby headwater streams are being evaluated to determine how shifts in habitat availability and connectivity in drought years affect fish populations (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Constructed wetland complex associated with Muddy Creek near Dad, Wyoming. USGS science indicates that the development of the wetland complex and changes to livestock grazing management practices have greatly reduced severe bank erosion and stream headcutting over the last few decades. Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)
Constructed wetland complex associated with Muddy Creek near Dad, Wyoming. USGS science indicates that the development of the wetland complex and changes to livestock grazing management practices have greatly reduced severe bank erosion and stream headcutting over the last few decades. Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)
Think regionally, act locally: Perspectives on co-design of spatial conservation prioritization tools and why end-user engagement altered our approach
Tool 3: Suggested coproduction steps and practices
Tool 2: What level of coproduction makes sense for my project
Tool 1: Coproduction in the public lands context
Tool 5: A Problem-solving checklist for coproduction
Tool 4: Suggested communication deliverables for coproduced projects
U.S. Geological Survey Rocky Mountain Region 2022 science exchange, showcasing interdisciplinary and state-of-the-art USGS science
Colorado River Basin Actionable and Strategic Integrated Science and Technology (ASIST)
Presented abstracts from the U.S. Geological Survey 2020 Rocky Mountain Region Science Exchange (September 15–17, 2020)
Assessing vegetation recovery from energy development using a dynamic reference approach
Rocky Mountain Region Science Exchange 2020—EarthMAP and the Colorado River Basin
U.S. Geological Survey science for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative—2018 annual report
Science and Products
Developing a toolkit for coproducing actionable science to support public land management
Understanding Local Resistance and Resilience to Future Habitat Change in the Sagebrush Ecosystem
Energy Development and Changing Land Uses
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Inventory and Long-Term Monitoring
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Baseline Synthesis
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Mechanistic Studies of Wildlife
Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: Effectiveness Monitoring
The Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI)
Pygmy Rabbit Distribution and Abundance Relative to Ongoing Energy Development in Wyoming
Vascular plant data collected at Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota, USA, in 1998
Vascular plant data collected at the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND, USA in 1997
Vascular plant data collected at the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND, USA in 1996
Sagebrush recovery analyzed with a dynamic reference approach in southwestern Wyoming, USA 1985-2018
A snapshot of stakeholder science needs related to drought in the Colorado River Basin
Predicted (1989-2015) and forecasted (2015-2114) estimates for rate of change and recovery of sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) following energy development in southwestern Wyoming, USA (ver. 2.0, January 2021)
Predicted (1989-2015) and forecasted (2015-2114) estimates for rate of change and recovery of sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) following energy development in southwestern Wyoming, USA
Geospatial considerations for a multiorganizational, landscape-scale program
Vegetation growth is assisting the Muddy Creek channel in becoming deeper and narrower (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)
Vegetation growth is assisting the Muddy Creek channel in becoming deeper and narrower (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)
USGS scientist Jason Alexander, a fluvial geomorphologist with the Wyoming Montana Water Science Center, explains how he used sediment traps to evaluate sediment deposition in Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
USGS scientist Jason Alexander, a fluvial geomorphologist with the Wyoming Montana Water Science Center, explains how he used sediment traps to evaluate sediment deposition in Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Muddy Creek reach showing bank erosion and the development of a point sandbar that is being stabilized by vegetation (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson.
Muddy Creek reach showing bank erosion and the development of a point sandbar that is being stabilized by vegetation (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson.
Small rodents disturb surface soil on banks which contribute to fine sediments in the upper reaches of Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Small rodents disturb surface soil on banks which contribute to fine sediments in the upper reaches of Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Similar nearby headwater streams are being evaluated to determine how shifts in habitat availability and connectivity in drought years affect fish populations (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Similar nearby headwater streams are being evaluated to determine how shifts in habitat availability and connectivity in drought years affect fish populations (Carbon County, Wyoming). Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS).
Constructed wetland complex associated with Muddy Creek near Dad, Wyoming. USGS science indicates that the development of the wetland complex and changes to livestock grazing management practices have greatly reduced severe bank erosion and stream headcutting over the last few decades. Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)
Constructed wetland complex associated with Muddy Creek near Dad, Wyoming. USGS science indicates that the development of the wetland complex and changes to livestock grazing management practices have greatly reduced severe bank erosion and stream headcutting over the last few decades. Photo by Patrick Anderson (USGS)