Ralph W Tingley, III, PhD
I am a biologist at the Great Lakes Science Center in Ann Arbor, MI.
I am responsible for the annual assessment of Lake Michigan prey fish populations. I also lead research focused on trophic ecology, recruitment bottlenecks, and habitat use of ecologically and culturally important fishes of the Great Lakes. I am particularly interested in spatial and temporal heterogeneity in fish habitat use within the Great Lakes and connected waters.
Professional Experience
September 2020 – present. Biologist, USGS Great Lakes Science Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan
May 2017 – August 2020. Post-doctoral researcher, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri.
January 2017 – May 2017. Instructor – Statistics for Ecologists, The Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.
June 2010 – December 2016. Graduate Research Associate, The Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.
September 2007 – May 2010. Graduate Research Associate, The Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. 2017. Michigan State University; Fisheries and Wildlife Biology, East Lansing, MI.
M.S. 2010. Michigan State University; Fisheries and Wildlife Biology, East Lansing, MI.
B.S. 2007. University of Connecticut; Natural Resource Management - Fisheries, Storrs, CT.
Science and Products
Science pages by this scientist
Webinar: Turning Ecological Stream Classifications into Actionable Science
View this webinar to learn about stream classification efforts in Hawai'i.
Data releases by this scientist
Demographic, morphometric, and meristic data describing cisco (Coregonus artedi) captured in the Spanish River, Ontario, Canada, 15-16 November 2022
These data describe demographic (e.g, age), morphometric (body shape), and meristic (total number of gill rakers) measurements of a probable spawning run of cisco (Coregonus artedi) collected from the Spanish River (Ontario, Canada) immediately downstream of the Espanola Dam from 15-16 November 2022. These data were used to provide baseline biological, demographic, and morphological information on
Lake Michigan juvenile lake trout diets 2015-2017, 2019-2022
These data consist of juvenile lake trout biological and diet information collected from USGS bottom trawl, beam trawl, and gillnet surveys in Lake Michigan from 2015-2017 and 2019-2022. All prey were identified, enumerated and weighed. Only fish prey and Mysis had lengths measured.
Study attributes and summary results of fish responses to restoration extracted from systematic review of studies published between 2010 and 2020
Study attributes and summary results of fish responses to restoration extracted from systematic review of studies published between 2010 and 2020. Data were used in meta-analysis as part of the publication "Are river restoration projects designed and evaluated to effectively address current stressors to inland fish and fisheries?" by Rogosch et al. Each row is data extracted from a study with comp
Fish and Climate Change (FiCli) Database: Informing climate change adaptation and management actions for freshwater fishes
Inland fishes provide important ecosystem services to communities worldwide and are especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Fish respond to climate change in diverse and nuanced ways, which creates challenges for practitioners of fish conservation, climate change adaptation, and management. Although climate change is known to affect fish globally, a comprehensive online, public dat
Hawaii Waterfalls Linked to the National Hydrography Dataset
This dataset contains information about waterfall locations and estimated waterfall heights on five of the main Hawaiian Islands including Kauai, Oahu, Maui, Molokai, and Hawaii. Initial spatial information was gathered from the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD), Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), the Hawaii Statewide GIS Program, and the World Waterfall Database. Where image quality per
National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP) 2015 Human Disturbance Data for Hawaii
This CSV file contains landscape factors representing anthropogenic disturbances to stream habitats summarized within local and network stream catchments as well as the downstream main channel catchment perennial and intermittent stream reaches of the five main islands of Hawai'i. The source datasets compiled and attributed to spatial units were identified as being: (1) meaningful for assessing fl
National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP) 2015 Cumulative Habitat Condition Scores and Disturbance Indices for Hawaii Linked to Catchments of the Hawai'i Fish Habitat Partnership Stream Layer
This shapefile contains cumulative fish habitat condition index (HCI) scores and specific disturbance indices for local and network stream catchments as well as the downstream main channel catchment of perennial and intermittent streams reaches of the five main island of Hawaii. In this dataset indices are linked to the Hawaii Fish Habitat Partnership (HFHP) stream layer (Tingley et al. in prep) w
Publications by this scientist
Filter Total Items: 15
Documentation of a probable spawning run of cisco Coregonus artedi in the Spanish River, Ontario, Canada
Coregonines were historically diverse and abundant in the Laurentian Great Lakes but declined throughout the 19th and 20th centuries due to multiple factors, including overfishing, habitat degradation, and interactions with invasive species. Great Lakes fishery managers are now working to restore coregonines across the basin. An important aspect of restoration efforts is the identification of key
Authors
Andrew Edgar Honsey, Ralph W. Tingley, Katie Victoria Anweiler, Cory Brant, Marc Chalupnicki, Chris Davis, Steve A. Farha, Paul William Fedorowicz, Todd Hayden, Philippa Kohn, Benjamin Scott Leonhardt, Brian O'Malley
Synthesizing professional opinion of Lake Whitefish and Cisco recruitment drivers across the Great Lakes
Disentangling the suite of ecological drivers that explain recruitment variability for Lake Whitefish Coregonus clupeaformis and Cisco C. artedi is of critical importance for their conservation, management, and stewardship in the Laurentian Great Lakes. However, recruitment is inherently variable and can be regulated by many interacting processes, the relative importance of which can vary spatiall
Authors
Taylor A. Brown, Lars G. Rudstam, Suresh A. Sethi, Chris Hessell, Erik Olsen, Jory L. Jonas, Benjamin J. Rook, Steven A. Pothoven, Sarah J.H. Beech, Erin S. Dunlop, Stephen James, Jason B. Smith, Zach Amidon, Dray D. Carl, David Bunnell, Ralph W. Tingley, Brian Weidel, Andrew Edgar Honsey
Evaluating effectiveness of restoration to address current stressors to riverine fish
River restoration programmes with the goal of conserving and rehabilitating inland fishes have a multi-decadal history, but evaluation and synthesis of past restoration actions have been limited by a lack of monitoring and reporting. Given that calls for both monitoring and systematic reviews of restoration have increased, we were interested in the influence that restoration has had on improving c
Authors
Jane Rogosch, Hadley I. A. Boehm, Ralph W. Tingley, Kiah D. Wright, Elisabeth B. Webb, Craig P. Paukert
Status and trends of pelagic and benthic prey fish populations in Lake Michigan, 2023
Fall bottom trawl (fall BT) and lakewide acoustic (AC) surveys are conducted annually to generate indices of pelagic and benthic prey fish densities in Lake Michigan. The fall BT survey has been conducted each fall since 1973 using 12-m trawls at depths ranging from 9 to 110 m at fixed locations distributed across seven transects; this survey estimates densities of seven prey fish species [i.e., A
Authors
David Warner, Ralph W. Tingley, Charles P. Madenjian, Cory Brant, Steve A. Farha, Patricia Dieter, Benjamin A. Turschak, Dale Hanson, Kristy Phillips, Caleb Geister
Gap analysis: A proposed methodology to describe and map historical and contemporary populations and habitats
This is a methodology paper that describes an approach for modeling and mapping historical and contemporary spawning areas for coregonine fishes in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Coregonines are a family of native whitefishes and ciscoes that are now greatly reduced or extirpated, but once served important roles for both the food web and society. This method can illustrate where habitats once existed
Authors
Cory Brant, Karen M Alofs, Chris Castiglione, Susan E. Doka, Alexander T. Duncan, Dave Fielder, Matthew Herbert, Arunas Liskauskus, Edward S. Rutherford, Jason Smith, Ralph W. Tingley, Ted Treska, Ted Turschak, Cindy Chu, Peter C. Esselman
Spatial distribution and diet of Lake Michigan juvenile lake trout
Most studies of Lake Michigan lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) have focused on adults, with scant attention to juveniles (<400 mm). We explored the spatial distribution and diet of juvenile lake trout using U.S. Geological Survey September bottom trawl data (2015–2022) and stomach content information opportunistically collected since 2012 by various agencies using multiple gear types. Most juveni
Authors
Benjamin Scott Leonhardt, Ralph W. Tingley, Charles P. Madenjian, Lynn M. Ogilvie, Brian Roth, Jory L. Jonas, Jason B. Smith
Status and trends of pelagic and benthic prey fish populations in Lake Michigan, 2022
Fall bottom trawl (fall BT) and lakewide acoustic (AC) surveys are conducted annually to generate indices of pelagic and benthic prey fish densities in Lake Michigan. The fall BT survey has been conducted each fall since 1973 using 12-m trawls at depths ranging from 9 to 110 m at fixed locations distributed across seven transects; this survey estimates densities of seven prey fish species [i.e., A
Authors
Ralph W. Tingley, David Warner, Charles P. Madenjian, Patricia Dieter, Ben Turschak, Dale Hanson, Kristy Phillips, Caleb Geister
Subindicator: Native Prey Fish Diversity
No abstract available.
Authors
Brian Weidel, Mark Vinson, Darryl W. Hondorp, Ralph W. Tingley, Joseph Schmitt
Reducing uncertainty in climate change responses of inland fishes: A decision-path approach
Climate change will continue to be an important consideration for conservation practitioners. However, uncertainty in identifying appropriate management strategies, particularly for understudied species and regions, constrains the implementation of science-based solutions and adaptation strategies. Here, we share a decision-path approach to reduce uncertainty in climate change responses of inland
Authors
Abigail Lynch, Bonnie Myers, Jesse P. Wong, Cindy Chu, Ralph W. Tingley, Jeffrey A. Falke, Thomas J. Kwak, Craig Paukert, Trevor J. Krabbenhoft
Societal values of inland fishes
a.Aim: To demonstrate the societal values of inland fishes through nine services provided by inland fishes. Each service is defined, key stakeholders identified, and threats enumerated. Diverse case studies (geography, taxonomy, fishery-type) provide examples to highlight the societal values around the world.b.Main concepts: Nine societal services of inland fishes – 1. Livelihoods and subsistence
Authors
Abigail Lynch, Robert I. Arthur, Claudio Baigun, Julie E. Claussen, Külli Kangur, Aaron A. Koning, Karen J. Murchie, Bonnie Myers, Gretchen L. Stokes, Ralph William Tingley, So-Jung Youn
A Resist-Accept-Direct decision-support tool for walleye Sander vitreus (Mitchill) management in Wisconsin
Large-scale modelling and prediction provide insight into general influences of climate change on inland recreational fisheries; however, small-scale dynamics and local expertise will be key in developing explicit goals for managing recreational fisheries as the climate changes. The resist-accept-direct (RAD) framework encompasses the entire decision space managers consider when addressing climate
Authors
Colin J. Dassow, Alex W. Latzka, Abigail Lynch, Greg G. Sass, Ralph W. Tingley, Craig Paukert
A landscape approach for identifying potential reestablishment sites for extirpated stream fishes: an example with Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus) in Michigan
Habitat degradation combined with climate change increases the threat of extinction for stream fishes. In response to these threats, efforts to reestablish species within formerly occupied streams or translocation to suitable areas may be effective conservation strategies. In the absence of historic species presence data, identifying locations where suitable habitat exists across many fluvial habi
Authors
Ralph William Tingley, Dana M. Infante, Emily M. Dean, Douglas W. Schemske, Arthur R. Cooper, Jared Ross, Wesley M. Daniel
News about this scientist
Science and Products
Science pages by this scientist
Webinar: Turning Ecological Stream Classifications into Actionable Science
View this webinar to learn about stream classification efforts in Hawai'i.
Data releases by this scientist
Demographic, morphometric, and meristic data describing cisco (Coregonus artedi) captured in the Spanish River, Ontario, Canada, 15-16 November 2022
These data describe demographic (e.g, age), morphometric (body shape), and meristic (total number of gill rakers) measurements of a probable spawning run of cisco (Coregonus artedi) collected from the Spanish River (Ontario, Canada) immediately downstream of the Espanola Dam from 15-16 November 2022. These data were used to provide baseline biological, demographic, and morphological information on
Lake Michigan juvenile lake trout diets 2015-2017, 2019-2022
These data consist of juvenile lake trout biological and diet information collected from USGS bottom trawl, beam trawl, and gillnet surveys in Lake Michigan from 2015-2017 and 2019-2022. All prey were identified, enumerated and weighed. Only fish prey and Mysis had lengths measured.
Study attributes and summary results of fish responses to restoration extracted from systematic review of studies published between 2010 and 2020
Study attributes and summary results of fish responses to restoration extracted from systematic review of studies published between 2010 and 2020. Data were used in meta-analysis as part of the publication "Are river restoration projects designed and evaluated to effectively address current stressors to inland fish and fisheries?" by Rogosch et al. Each row is data extracted from a study with comp
Fish and Climate Change (FiCli) Database: Informing climate change adaptation and management actions for freshwater fishes
Inland fishes provide important ecosystem services to communities worldwide and are especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Fish respond to climate change in diverse and nuanced ways, which creates challenges for practitioners of fish conservation, climate change adaptation, and management. Although climate change is known to affect fish globally, a comprehensive online, public dat
Hawaii Waterfalls Linked to the National Hydrography Dataset
This dataset contains information about waterfall locations and estimated waterfall heights on five of the main Hawaiian Islands including Kauai, Oahu, Maui, Molokai, and Hawaii. Initial spatial information was gathered from the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD), Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), the Hawaii Statewide GIS Program, and the World Waterfall Database. Where image quality per
National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP) 2015 Human Disturbance Data for Hawaii
This CSV file contains landscape factors representing anthropogenic disturbances to stream habitats summarized within local and network stream catchments as well as the downstream main channel catchment perennial and intermittent stream reaches of the five main islands of Hawai'i. The source datasets compiled and attributed to spatial units were identified as being: (1) meaningful for assessing fl
National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP) 2015 Cumulative Habitat Condition Scores and Disturbance Indices for Hawaii Linked to Catchments of the Hawai'i Fish Habitat Partnership Stream Layer
This shapefile contains cumulative fish habitat condition index (HCI) scores and specific disturbance indices for local and network stream catchments as well as the downstream main channel catchment of perennial and intermittent streams reaches of the five main island of Hawaii. In this dataset indices are linked to the Hawaii Fish Habitat Partnership (HFHP) stream layer (Tingley et al. in prep) w
Publications by this scientist
Filter Total Items: 15
Documentation of a probable spawning run of cisco Coregonus artedi in the Spanish River, Ontario, Canada
Coregonines were historically diverse and abundant in the Laurentian Great Lakes but declined throughout the 19th and 20th centuries due to multiple factors, including overfishing, habitat degradation, and interactions with invasive species. Great Lakes fishery managers are now working to restore coregonines across the basin. An important aspect of restoration efforts is the identification of key
Authors
Andrew Edgar Honsey, Ralph W. Tingley, Katie Victoria Anweiler, Cory Brant, Marc Chalupnicki, Chris Davis, Steve A. Farha, Paul William Fedorowicz, Todd Hayden, Philippa Kohn, Benjamin Scott Leonhardt, Brian O'Malley
Synthesizing professional opinion of Lake Whitefish and Cisco recruitment drivers across the Great Lakes
Disentangling the suite of ecological drivers that explain recruitment variability for Lake Whitefish Coregonus clupeaformis and Cisco C. artedi is of critical importance for their conservation, management, and stewardship in the Laurentian Great Lakes. However, recruitment is inherently variable and can be regulated by many interacting processes, the relative importance of which can vary spatiall
Authors
Taylor A. Brown, Lars G. Rudstam, Suresh A. Sethi, Chris Hessell, Erik Olsen, Jory L. Jonas, Benjamin J. Rook, Steven A. Pothoven, Sarah J.H. Beech, Erin S. Dunlop, Stephen James, Jason B. Smith, Zach Amidon, Dray D. Carl, David Bunnell, Ralph W. Tingley, Brian Weidel, Andrew Edgar Honsey
Evaluating effectiveness of restoration to address current stressors to riverine fish
River restoration programmes with the goal of conserving and rehabilitating inland fishes have a multi-decadal history, but evaluation and synthesis of past restoration actions have been limited by a lack of monitoring and reporting. Given that calls for both monitoring and systematic reviews of restoration have increased, we were interested in the influence that restoration has had on improving c
Authors
Jane Rogosch, Hadley I. A. Boehm, Ralph W. Tingley, Kiah D. Wright, Elisabeth B. Webb, Craig P. Paukert
Status and trends of pelagic and benthic prey fish populations in Lake Michigan, 2023
Fall bottom trawl (fall BT) and lakewide acoustic (AC) surveys are conducted annually to generate indices of pelagic and benthic prey fish densities in Lake Michigan. The fall BT survey has been conducted each fall since 1973 using 12-m trawls at depths ranging from 9 to 110 m at fixed locations distributed across seven transects; this survey estimates densities of seven prey fish species [i.e., A
Authors
David Warner, Ralph W. Tingley, Charles P. Madenjian, Cory Brant, Steve A. Farha, Patricia Dieter, Benjamin A. Turschak, Dale Hanson, Kristy Phillips, Caleb Geister
Gap analysis: A proposed methodology to describe and map historical and contemporary populations and habitats
This is a methodology paper that describes an approach for modeling and mapping historical and contemporary spawning areas for coregonine fishes in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Coregonines are a family of native whitefishes and ciscoes that are now greatly reduced or extirpated, but once served important roles for both the food web and society. This method can illustrate where habitats once existed
Authors
Cory Brant, Karen M Alofs, Chris Castiglione, Susan E. Doka, Alexander T. Duncan, Dave Fielder, Matthew Herbert, Arunas Liskauskus, Edward S. Rutherford, Jason Smith, Ralph W. Tingley, Ted Treska, Ted Turschak, Cindy Chu, Peter C. Esselman
Spatial distribution and diet of Lake Michigan juvenile lake trout
Most studies of Lake Michigan lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) have focused on adults, with scant attention to juveniles (<400 mm). We explored the spatial distribution and diet of juvenile lake trout using U.S. Geological Survey September bottom trawl data (2015–2022) and stomach content information opportunistically collected since 2012 by various agencies using multiple gear types. Most juveni
Authors
Benjamin Scott Leonhardt, Ralph W. Tingley, Charles P. Madenjian, Lynn M. Ogilvie, Brian Roth, Jory L. Jonas, Jason B. Smith
Status and trends of pelagic and benthic prey fish populations in Lake Michigan, 2022
Fall bottom trawl (fall BT) and lakewide acoustic (AC) surveys are conducted annually to generate indices of pelagic and benthic prey fish densities in Lake Michigan. The fall BT survey has been conducted each fall since 1973 using 12-m trawls at depths ranging from 9 to 110 m at fixed locations distributed across seven transects; this survey estimates densities of seven prey fish species [i.e., A
Authors
Ralph W. Tingley, David Warner, Charles P. Madenjian, Patricia Dieter, Ben Turschak, Dale Hanson, Kristy Phillips, Caleb Geister
Subindicator: Native Prey Fish Diversity
No abstract available.
Authors
Brian Weidel, Mark Vinson, Darryl W. Hondorp, Ralph W. Tingley, Joseph Schmitt
Reducing uncertainty in climate change responses of inland fishes: A decision-path approach
Climate change will continue to be an important consideration for conservation practitioners. However, uncertainty in identifying appropriate management strategies, particularly for understudied species and regions, constrains the implementation of science-based solutions and adaptation strategies. Here, we share a decision-path approach to reduce uncertainty in climate change responses of inland
Authors
Abigail Lynch, Bonnie Myers, Jesse P. Wong, Cindy Chu, Ralph W. Tingley, Jeffrey A. Falke, Thomas J. Kwak, Craig Paukert, Trevor J. Krabbenhoft
Societal values of inland fishes
a.Aim: To demonstrate the societal values of inland fishes through nine services provided by inland fishes. Each service is defined, key stakeholders identified, and threats enumerated. Diverse case studies (geography, taxonomy, fishery-type) provide examples to highlight the societal values around the world.b.Main concepts: Nine societal services of inland fishes – 1. Livelihoods and subsistence
Authors
Abigail Lynch, Robert I. Arthur, Claudio Baigun, Julie E. Claussen, Külli Kangur, Aaron A. Koning, Karen J. Murchie, Bonnie Myers, Gretchen L. Stokes, Ralph William Tingley, So-Jung Youn
A Resist-Accept-Direct decision-support tool for walleye Sander vitreus (Mitchill) management in Wisconsin
Large-scale modelling and prediction provide insight into general influences of climate change on inland recreational fisheries; however, small-scale dynamics and local expertise will be key in developing explicit goals for managing recreational fisheries as the climate changes. The resist-accept-direct (RAD) framework encompasses the entire decision space managers consider when addressing climate
Authors
Colin J. Dassow, Alex W. Latzka, Abigail Lynch, Greg G. Sass, Ralph W. Tingley, Craig Paukert
A landscape approach for identifying potential reestablishment sites for extirpated stream fishes: an example with Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus) in Michigan
Habitat degradation combined with climate change increases the threat of extinction for stream fishes. In response to these threats, efforts to reestablish species within formerly occupied streams or translocation to suitable areas may be effective conservation strategies. In the absence of historic species presence data, identifying locations where suitable habitat exists across many fluvial habi
Authors
Ralph William Tingley, Dana M. Infante, Emily M. Dean, Douglas W. Schemske, Arthur R. Cooper, Jared Ross, Wesley M. Daniel
News about this scientist