Peter Coates, PhD
Dr. Peter Coates is a Wildlife Biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey's Western Ecological Research Center.
He is interested in sound science and management practices aimed at restoring wildlife communities and their habitats. He is committed to progressive, scientifically defensible conservation actions in the face of increasing human population size and individual consumption. Abundance and distribution of wild populations often can be linked to changes in their environments caused by human land use practices, but identifying the ecological mechanisms of declining populations are often challenging. Specifically, Dr. Coates is interested in investigating the links between nesting habitat, predator composition, and incubation behavior and success of birds. Additionally, he is interested in the effects of anthropogenic-resource subsidies on the survival and reproduction of predators and how these changes influence demographics and distribution of prey populations. Dr. Coates seeks to develop a broader understanding of how human-caused landscape changes affect communities and aim to identify restoration practices that preserve natural ecological processes. He is also interested in behavioral traits of grouse that affect population establishment and persistence in the face of environmental challenges.
Professional Experience
Wildlife Biologist, U. S. Geological Survey, 2008–present
Postdoctoral Appointment, Idaho State University, 2008
Seasonal Wildlife Biologist, Wildlife Conservation Society, 2007
Graduate Research Assistantship, Idaho State University, 2002–2007
Teaching Assistantship, Idaho State University, 2004–2007
National Science Foundation GK–12 Teaching F, Idaho State University, 2005–2006
Seasonal Biological Specialist, U. S. Department of Agriculture, 2003–2005
Field Research Technician, University of Nevada Reno, 1999
Conservation Biological Technician I, II, and III, Nevada Department of Wildlife, 1996–1998
Education and Certifications
Ph. D., Biology, Idaho State University 2007
M. S., Biology, University of Nevada Reno 2001
B. S., Conservation Biology, University of Nevada Reno 1998
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Ornithologists Union
Cooper Ornithological Society
Jack H. Berryman Institute
Society for Conservation Biology
The Wildlife Society
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 34
Filter Total Items: 67
Selection and Survival of Greater Sage-Grouse Broods in Mesic Areas of Long Valley, California (2003 - 2018) Selection and Survival of Greater Sage-Grouse Broods in Mesic Areas of Long Valley, California (2003 - 2018)
We evaluated brood-rearing habitat selection and brood survival of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, sage-grouse) in Long Valley, California, an area where the water rights are primarily owned by the city of Los Angeles and water is used locally to irrigate for livestock. This area thus represents a unique balance between the needs of wildlife and people that...
Sagebrush Restoration Following Fire Disturbance in the Virginia Mountains, Nevada (2018) Sagebrush Restoration Following Fire Disturbance in the Virginia Mountains, Nevada (2018)
We developed a framework that strategically targets burned areas for restoration actions (e.g., seeding or planting sagebrush) that have the greatest potential to positively benefit Greater Sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter sage-grouse) populations through time. Specifically, we estimated sagebrush (Artemisia Spp.) recovery following wildfire and risk of non-native annual...
Spatially-Explicit Predictive Maps of Greater Sage-Grouse Brood Selection Integrated with Brood Survival in Nevada and Northeastern California, USA Spatially-Explicit Predictive Maps of Greater Sage-Grouse Brood Selection Integrated with Brood Survival in Nevada and Northeastern California, USA
We used a hierarchical Bayesian modeling framework to estimate resource selection functions and survival for early and late brood-rearing stages of sage-grouse in relation to a broad suite of habitat characteristics evaluated at multiple spatial scales within the Great Basin from 2009 to 2019. Sage-grouse selected for greater perennial grass cover, higher relative elevations, and areas...
grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases, version 1.1.0 grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases, version 1.1.0
Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) are landscape-scale sagebrush obligate species and an important gamebird and iconic species of the western United States. They occupy the sagebrush biome in western North America, extending east of the Sierra Nevada/Cascade Mountain ranges to the western regions of the Great Plains of the United States. Sage-grouse are one of the most...
Greater Sage-Grouse Nest Observations Before and After Wildfire Disturbance in Northeastern California (2007-2018) Greater Sage-Grouse Nest Observations Before and After Wildfire Disturbance in Northeastern California (2007-2018)
We monitored Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, Sage-Grouse) nests and various habitat characteristics at the nest locations near Susanville in northeastern California, crossing over into northwestern Nevada. We employed a before-after-control-impact (BACI) experimental design to account for spatiotemporal heterogeneity in the system and to derive estimates of...
Fire Response Effects, Biocrust, and Vascular Plant Abundance Following Wildfire near Boise, Idaho (October 2021) Fire Response Effects, Biocrust, and Vascular Plant Abundance Following Wildfire near Boise, Idaho (October 2021)
Twenty quadrats within the burn perimeter of a September 2021 wildfire outside of Boise, Idaho were surveyed for the abundance of fire effects, biocrusts and vascular plants immediately post-fire. The fire was too small to be named. Char was measured as a proxy for fire intensity. Biocrusts were surveyed by morphogroup (crustose lichens, cup lichens, fruticose lichens, gelatinous lichens...
Filter Total Items: 146
Defining fine-scaled population structure among continuously distributed populations Defining fine-scaled population structure among continuously distributed populations
Understanding wildlife population structure and connectivity can help managers identify conservation strategies, as structure can facilitate the study of population changes and habitat connectivity can provide information on dispersal and biodiversity. To facilitate the use of wildlife monitoring data for improved adaptive management, we developed a novel approach to define hierarchical...
Authors
Michael O’Donnell, David Edmunds, Cameron Aldridge, Julie Heinrichs, Adrian P. Monroe, Peter Coates, Brian Prochazka, Steve Hanser, Lief Wiechman
Targeting sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) restoration following wildfire with Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) nest selection and survival models Targeting sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) restoration following wildfire with Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) nest selection and survival models
Unprecedented conservation efforts for sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystems across the western United States have been catalyzed by risks from escalated wildfire activity that reduces habitat for sagebrush-obligate species such as Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). However, post-fire restoration is challenged by spatial variation in ecosystem processes influencing...
Authors
Cali Roth, Shawn O’Neil, Peter Coates, Mark Ricca, David Pyke, Cameron Aldridge, Julie Heinrichs, Shawn Espinosa, David Delehanty
Invasion of annual grasses following wildfire corresponds to maladaptive habitat selection by a sagebrush ecosystem indicator species Invasion of annual grasses following wildfire corresponds to maladaptive habitat selection by a sagebrush ecosystem indicator species
Numerous wildlife species within semi-arid shrubland ecosystems across western North America are experiencing substantial habitat loss and fragmentation. These changes in habitat are often attributed to a diverse suite of factors including prolonged and increasingly severe droughts, conifer expansion, anthropogenic development, domestic and feral livestock grazing, and invasion of exotic...
Authors
Brianne Brussee, Peter Coates, Shawn O’Neil, Michael Casazza, Shawn Espinosa, John D. Boone, Elisabeth M. Ammon, Scott Gardner, David Delehanty
Behavioral state-dependent habitat selection and implications for animal translocations Behavioral state-dependent habitat selection and implications for animal translocations
Post-release monitoring of translocated animals is often used to inform future translocation protocols. Quantifying habitat selection of translocated individuals may help identify features that characterize good settlement habitat and thus inform the choice of future release sites. However, translocated animals often undergo post-release behavioural modification, and their habitat...
Authors
Simona Picardi, Peter Coates, Jesse Kolar, Shawn O’Neil, Steven Mathews, David Dahlgren
Health surveillance of a potential bridge host: Pathogen exposure risks posed to avian populations augmented with captive-bred pheasants Health surveillance of a potential bridge host: Pathogen exposure risks posed to avian populations augmented with captive-bred pheasants
Augmentation of wild populations with captive-bred individuals presents an inherent risk of co-introducing novel pathogens to naïve species, but it can be an important tool for supplementing small or declining populations. Game species used for human enterprise and recreation such as the ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) are commonly raised in captivity and released onto public...
Authors
Ian Dwight, Peter Coates, Simone Stoute, Maurice Pitesky
Efficacy of manipulating reproduction of common ravens to conserve sensitive prey species: Three case studies Efficacy of manipulating reproduction of common ravens to conserve sensitive prey species: Three case studies
Expansion of human enterprise across western North America has resulted in an increase in availability of anthropogenic resource subsidies for generalist species. This has led to increases in generalists’ population numbers across landscapes that were previously less suitable for their current demographic rates. Of particular concern are growing populations of common ravens (Corvus corax...
Authors
Corina Sanchez, Brianne Brussee, Peter Coates, Kerry Holcomb, Seth Harju, Timothy Shields, Mercy Vaughn, Brian Prochazka, Steven Mathews, Steffen Cornell, Chad Olson, David Delehanty
Filter Total Items: 18
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 34
Filter Total Items: 67
Selection and Survival of Greater Sage-Grouse Broods in Mesic Areas of Long Valley, California (2003 - 2018) Selection and Survival of Greater Sage-Grouse Broods in Mesic Areas of Long Valley, California (2003 - 2018)
We evaluated brood-rearing habitat selection and brood survival of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, sage-grouse) in Long Valley, California, an area where the water rights are primarily owned by the city of Los Angeles and water is used locally to irrigate for livestock. This area thus represents a unique balance between the needs of wildlife and people that...
Sagebrush Restoration Following Fire Disturbance in the Virginia Mountains, Nevada (2018) Sagebrush Restoration Following Fire Disturbance in the Virginia Mountains, Nevada (2018)
We developed a framework that strategically targets burned areas for restoration actions (e.g., seeding or planting sagebrush) that have the greatest potential to positively benefit Greater Sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter sage-grouse) populations through time. Specifically, we estimated sagebrush (Artemisia Spp.) recovery following wildfire and risk of non-native annual...
Spatially-Explicit Predictive Maps of Greater Sage-Grouse Brood Selection Integrated with Brood Survival in Nevada and Northeastern California, USA Spatially-Explicit Predictive Maps of Greater Sage-Grouse Brood Selection Integrated with Brood Survival in Nevada and Northeastern California, USA
We used a hierarchical Bayesian modeling framework to estimate resource selection functions and survival for early and late brood-rearing stages of sage-grouse in relation to a broad suite of habitat characteristics evaluated at multiple spatial scales within the Great Basin from 2009 to 2019. Sage-grouse selected for greater perennial grass cover, higher relative elevations, and areas...
grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases, version 1.1.0 grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases, version 1.1.0
Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) are landscape-scale sagebrush obligate species and an important gamebird and iconic species of the western United States. They occupy the sagebrush biome in western North America, extending east of the Sierra Nevada/Cascade Mountain ranges to the western regions of the Great Plains of the United States. Sage-grouse are one of the most...
Greater Sage-Grouse Nest Observations Before and After Wildfire Disturbance in Northeastern California (2007-2018) Greater Sage-Grouse Nest Observations Before and After Wildfire Disturbance in Northeastern California (2007-2018)
We monitored Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, Sage-Grouse) nests and various habitat characteristics at the nest locations near Susanville in northeastern California, crossing over into northwestern Nevada. We employed a before-after-control-impact (BACI) experimental design to account for spatiotemporal heterogeneity in the system and to derive estimates of...
Fire Response Effects, Biocrust, and Vascular Plant Abundance Following Wildfire near Boise, Idaho (October 2021) Fire Response Effects, Biocrust, and Vascular Plant Abundance Following Wildfire near Boise, Idaho (October 2021)
Twenty quadrats within the burn perimeter of a September 2021 wildfire outside of Boise, Idaho were surveyed for the abundance of fire effects, biocrusts and vascular plants immediately post-fire. The fire was too small to be named. Char was measured as a proxy for fire intensity. Biocrusts were surveyed by morphogroup (crustose lichens, cup lichens, fruticose lichens, gelatinous lichens...
Filter Total Items: 146
Defining fine-scaled population structure among continuously distributed populations Defining fine-scaled population structure among continuously distributed populations
Understanding wildlife population structure and connectivity can help managers identify conservation strategies, as structure can facilitate the study of population changes and habitat connectivity can provide information on dispersal and biodiversity. To facilitate the use of wildlife monitoring data for improved adaptive management, we developed a novel approach to define hierarchical...
Authors
Michael O’Donnell, David Edmunds, Cameron Aldridge, Julie Heinrichs, Adrian P. Monroe, Peter Coates, Brian Prochazka, Steve Hanser, Lief Wiechman
Targeting sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) restoration following wildfire with Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) nest selection and survival models Targeting sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) restoration following wildfire with Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) nest selection and survival models
Unprecedented conservation efforts for sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystems across the western United States have been catalyzed by risks from escalated wildfire activity that reduces habitat for sagebrush-obligate species such as Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). However, post-fire restoration is challenged by spatial variation in ecosystem processes influencing...
Authors
Cali Roth, Shawn O’Neil, Peter Coates, Mark Ricca, David Pyke, Cameron Aldridge, Julie Heinrichs, Shawn Espinosa, David Delehanty
Invasion of annual grasses following wildfire corresponds to maladaptive habitat selection by a sagebrush ecosystem indicator species Invasion of annual grasses following wildfire corresponds to maladaptive habitat selection by a sagebrush ecosystem indicator species
Numerous wildlife species within semi-arid shrubland ecosystems across western North America are experiencing substantial habitat loss and fragmentation. These changes in habitat are often attributed to a diverse suite of factors including prolonged and increasingly severe droughts, conifer expansion, anthropogenic development, domestic and feral livestock grazing, and invasion of exotic...
Authors
Brianne Brussee, Peter Coates, Shawn O’Neil, Michael Casazza, Shawn Espinosa, John D. Boone, Elisabeth M. Ammon, Scott Gardner, David Delehanty
Behavioral state-dependent habitat selection and implications for animal translocations Behavioral state-dependent habitat selection and implications for animal translocations
Post-release monitoring of translocated animals is often used to inform future translocation protocols. Quantifying habitat selection of translocated individuals may help identify features that characterize good settlement habitat and thus inform the choice of future release sites. However, translocated animals often undergo post-release behavioural modification, and their habitat...
Authors
Simona Picardi, Peter Coates, Jesse Kolar, Shawn O’Neil, Steven Mathews, David Dahlgren
Health surveillance of a potential bridge host: Pathogen exposure risks posed to avian populations augmented with captive-bred pheasants Health surveillance of a potential bridge host: Pathogen exposure risks posed to avian populations augmented with captive-bred pheasants
Augmentation of wild populations with captive-bred individuals presents an inherent risk of co-introducing novel pathogens to naïve species, but it can be an important tool for supplementing small or declining populations. Game species used for human enterprise and recreation such as the ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) are commonly raised in captivity and released onto public...
Authors
Ian Dwight, Peter Coates, Simone Stoute, Maurice Pitesky
Efficacy of manipulating reproduction of common ravens to conserve sensitive prey species: Three case studies Efficacy of manipulating reproduction of common ravens to conserve sensitive prey species: Three case studies
Expansion of human enterprise across western North America has resulted in an increase in availability of anthropogenic resource subsidies for generalist species. This has led to increases in generalists’ population numbers across landscapes that were previously less suitable for their current demographic rates. Of particular concern are growing populations of common ravens (Corvus corax...
Authors
Corina Sanchez, Brianne Brussee, Peter Coates, Kerry Holcomb, Seth Harju, Timothy Shields, Mercy Vaughn, Brian Prochazka, Steven Mathews, Steffen Cornell, Chad Olson, David Delehanty
Filter Total Items: 18
*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