Robert N Fisher
Dr. Robert Fisher is a conservation biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey’s Western Ecological Research Center and works as part of a large integrated team.
His focus has been on how natural systems are responding to the Anthropocene, and what types of resiliency they have or lack as it relates to maintaining ecological integrity and biodiversity. Additionally, through understanding individual species and community responses to perturbations through modern monitoring techniques, he and his team can determine appropriate management experiments or options to possibly recover resiliency. Geographically they have two foci, the first is southern California where urbanization and conservation planning bring various direct and indirect drivers of ecological change, and climate variability is currently extreme and drives landscape level drought and wildfires. Their second foci are the tropical islands of the Pacific Basin, from Palau and Papua New Guinea east to Hawai’i. These islands have also been driven by human change and are on the front line as extreme recent weather variability in the cyclone belt impact terrestrial ecosystems. Understanding how biodiversity was generated in this ecoregion is critical to managing its loss, and their team focuses across time and space (biogeography) to understand these processes utilizing molecular tools tied to expeditions of discovery in this poorly studied ecoregion.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- Conservation biology
- Biogeography
- Modelling
- Natural history
- Speciation
- Invasive species
- Climate variability
- Anthropocene
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Population Biology, University of California, Davis, CA 1995
M.S., Zoology, University of California, Davis, CA 1991
B.S., Biology, University of California, Irvine, CA 1988
Science and Products
Multiple rod–cone and cone–rod photoreceptor transmutations in snakes: Evidence from visual opsin gene expression
An alternative framework for responding to the amphibian crisis
The biogeography of threatened insular iguanas and opportunities for invasive vertebrate management
A new species of Myotis (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) from Suriname
A new biogeographically disjunct giant gecko (Gehyra: Gekkonidae: Reptilia) from the East Melanesian Islands
A systematic survey of the integration of animal behavior into conservation
Deep divergence and structure in the Tropical Oceanic Pacific: a multilocus phylogeography of a widespread gekkonid lizard (Squamata: Gekkonidae: Gehyra oceanica)
Pathogen exposure varies widely among sympatric populations of wild and domestic felids across the United States
Integrating multiple distribution models to guide conservation efforts of an endangered toad
The source, discharge, and chemical characteristics of selected springs, and the abundance and health of associated endemic anuran species in the Mojave network parks
Chilled frogs are hot: hibernation and reproduction of the Endangered mountain yellow-legged frog Rana muscosa
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Multiple rod–cone and cone–rod photoreceptor transmutations in snakes: Evidence from visual opsin gene expression
In 1934, Gordon Walls forwarded his radical theory of retinal photoreceptor ‘transmutation’. This proposed that rods and cones used for scotopic and photopic vision, respectively, were not fixed but could evolve into each other via a series of morphologically distinguishable intermediates. Walls' prime evidence came from series of diurnal and nocturnal geckos and snakes that appeared to have pure-AuthorsBruno F Simoe, Filipa L. Sampaio, Ellis R. Loew, Kate L. Sanders, Robert N. Fisher, Nathan S. Hart, David M. Hunt, Julian C. Partridge, David J. GowerAn alternative framework for responding to the amphibian crisis
Volumes of data illustrate the severity of the crisis affecting amphibians, where > 32% of amphibians worldwide are threatened with declining populations. Although there have been isolated victories, the current approach to the issue is unsuccessful. We suggest that a radically different approach, something akin to human emergency response management (i.e. the Incident Command System), is one alteAuthorsErin L. Muths, Robert N. FisherThe biogeography of threatened insular iguanas and opportunities for invasive vertebrate management
Iguanas are a particularly threatened group of reptiles, with 61% of species at risk of extinction. Primary threats to iguanas include habitat loss, direct and indirect impacts by invasive vertebrates, overexploitation, and human disturbance. As conspicuous, charismatic vertebrates, iguanas also represent excellent flagships for biodiversity conservation. To assist planning for invasive vertebrateAuthorsBernie R. Tershy, Kelly M. Newton, Dena R. Spatz, Kirsty Swinnerton, John B. Iverson, Robert N. Fisher, Peter S. Harlow, Nick D. Holmes, Donald A. CrollA new species of Myotis (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) from Suriname
We describe a new species of bat in the genus Myotis (Vespertilionidae: Myotinae) from the district of Sipaliwini, Suriname. The new species (Myotis clydejonesi sp. nov.), known from a single specimen, is sister to a clade of M. nigricans (Schinz) from southern South America, but differs from all Neotropical species of Myotis in qualitative and quantitative morphological characters and in its cytoAuthorsRicardo Moratelli, Don E. Wilson, Alfred Gardner, Robert D. Fisher, Eliécer E. GutiérrezA new biogeographically disjunct giant gecko (Gehyra: Gekkonidae: Reptilia) from the East Melanesian Islands
The East Melanesian Islands have been a focal area for research into island biogeography and community ecology. However, previously undescribed and biogeographically significant new species endemic to this region continue to be discovered. Here we describe a phylogenetically distinct (~20% divergence at the mitochondrial ND2 gene) and biogeographically disjunct new species of gecko in the genus GeAuthorsPaul M. Oliver, Jonathan R. Clegg, Robert N. Fisher, Stephen J. Richards, Peter N. Taylor, Merlijn M. T. JocqueA systematic survey of the integration of animal behavior into conservation
The role of behavioral ecology in improving wildlife conservation and management has been the subject of much recent debate. We aim to answer two foundational questions about the current use of behavioral knowledge in conservation: 1. To what extent is behavioral knowledge used in wildlife conservation and management? 2. How does the use of behavior differ among conservation fields in both frequenAuthorsOded Berger-Tal, Daniel T. Blumstein, Scott Carroll, Robert N. Fisher, Sarah L. Mesnick, Megan A. Owen, David Saltz, Colleen Cassady St. Claire, Ronald R. SwaisgoodDeep divergence and structure in the Tropical Oceanic Pacific: a multilocus phylogeography of a widespread gekkonid lizard (Squamata: Gekkonidae: Gehyra oceanica)
Aim The islands of the Tropical Oceanic Pacific (TOP) host both local radiations and widespread, colonizing species. The few phylogeographical analyses of widespread species often point to recent human-aided expansions through the Pacific, suggesting that the communities are recently assembled. Here we apply multilocus data to infer biogeographical history of the gekkonid lizard, Gehyra oceanicaAuthorsMaria A. Tonione, Robert N. Fisher, Catherine Zhu, Craig MoritzPathogen exposure varies widely among sympatric populations of wild and domestic felids across the United States
Understanding how landscape, host, and pathogen traits contribute to disease exposure requires systematic evaluations of pathogens within and among host species and geographic regions. The relative importance of these attributes is critical for management of wildlife and mitigating domestic animal and human disease, particularly given rapid ecological changes, such as urbanization. We screened >1,AuthorsScott Carver, Sarah N. Bevins, Michael R. Lappin, Erin E. Boydston, Lisa M. Lyren, Mathew W. Alldredge, Kenneth A. Logan, Linda L. Sweanor, Seth P.D. Riley, Laurel E.K. Serieys, Robert N. Fisher, T. Winston Vickers, Walter M. Boyce, Roy McBride, Mark C. Cunnigham, Megan Jennings, Jesse S. Lewis, Tamika Lunn, Kevin R. Crooks, Sue VandeWoudeIntegrating multiple distribution models to guide conservation efforts of an endangered toad
Species distribution models are used for numerous purposes such as predicting changes in species’ ranges and identifying biodiversity hotspots. Although implications of distribution models for conservation are often implicit, few studies use these tools explicitly to inform conservation efforts. Herein, we illustrate how multiple distribution models developed using distinct sets of environmental vAuthorsMichael L. Treglia, Robert N. Fisher, Lee A. FitzgeraldThe source, discharge, and chemical characteristics of selected springs, and the abundance and health of associated endemic anuran species in the Mojave network parks
Hydrological and biological investigations were done during 2005 and 2006 in cooperation with the U.S. National Park Service to investigate the source, discharge, and chemical characteristics of selected springs and the abundance and health of endemic anuran (frog and toad) species at Darwin Falls in Death Valley National Park, Piute Spring in Mojave National Preserve, and Fortynine Palms Oasis inAuthorsRoy A. Schroeder, Gregory A. Smith, Peter Martin, Alan L. Flint, Elizabeth Gallegos, Robert N. FisherChilled frogs are hot: hibernation and reproduction of the Endangered mountain yellow-legged frog Rana muscosa
In the face of the sixth great extinction crisis, it is imperative to establish effective breeding protocols for amphibian conservation breeding programs. Captive efforts should not proceed by trial and error, nor should they jump prematurely to assisted reproduction techniques, which can be invasive, difficult, costly, and, at times, counterproductive. Instead, conservation practitioners should fAuthorsFrank E. Santana, Ronald R. Swaisgood, Jeffrey M. Lemm, Robert N. Fisher, Rulon W. Clark - News
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