Sarah J Converse, PhD
Unit Leader - Washington Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit
Dr. Converse received graduate degrees from the University of Nebraska and Colorado State University. She then completed a postdoctoral position at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center before accepting a permanent position with USGS at Patuxent, where she led a research program for 10 years focused on endangered species conservation, decision science, and quantitative ecology. In 2017 she became the Unit Leader of the Washington Unit at University of Washington, where she serves as an Associate Professor. Her research focuses on the development and application of methods to understand the functioning of populations and to improve their management. She works across a broad variety of taxa: terrestrial birds, seabirds, marine mammals, amphibians, and others. Her research projects tend to reflect two primary themes: (1) development and application of quantitative methods in population ecology, particularly for small and declining populations; and (2) development and application of decision-analytic methods to inform management of populations. Sarah collaborates extensively with managers in federal and state agencies, and she works internationally, with current research projects located in Europe, New Zealand, French Polynesia, and the Arctic. Sarah teaches graduate courses in statistics and demographic analysis, and teaches professional and graduate courses on decision analysis. Sarah is active in efforts to increase equity and justice in her professional community.
RECENT HONORS AND AWARDS
- Conference Best Paper Award, Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, 2011
- Department of Interior STAR Award, for work with Outer Continental Shelf energy development team, 2011
- Department of Interior STAR Award, for work with Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership, 2009
- Department of Interior STAR Award, for work with Washington Fish and Wildlife Office, 2009
- Department of Interior STAR Award, for work with Northeast Region Fisheries Program, 2008
CURRENT TRAINING ACTIVITIES
- Instructor: Training for Effective Conservation Translocation (with IUCN Reintroduction Specialist Group), workshop venues
- Instructor: Integrated Population Modeling (with Drs. Marc Kery and Michael Schaub), workshop venues
- Instructor: Introduction to Structured Decision Making, National Conservation Training Center
ASSOCIATED POST-DOCTORAL RESEARCHERS
- Dr. Nathan Hostetter, Improved Design and Analysis of Polar Bear Population Studies (2016-Present)
- Dr. Jonathan Cummings, Landscape Level Population Modeling as a Decision Support Tool for the Lesser Prairie-Chicken (2014-Present, w/Dr. Dave Smith, USGS Leetown Science Center)
- Dr. Sabrina Servanty, Population Viability of the Eastern Migratory Population of Whooping Cranes (2009-2013, w/Dr. Larissa Bailey, Colorado State University)
ASSOCIATED STUDENTS
- Dr. Stefano Canessa, Decision Theory for Reintroductions (2011-2015, w/Drs. Mick McCarthy and Kirsten Parris, University of Melbourne)
- Ms. Megan Brown, Causes of Poor Fertility i
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. Wildlife Biology, Colorado State University (2005)
M.S. Natural Resource Sciences, University of Nebraska (1999)
B.S. Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University (1996)
Science and Products
A decision-analytic approach to the optimal allocation of resources for endangered species consultation
Decision analysis for conservation breeding: Maximizing production for reintroduction of whooping cranes
Dynamic resource allocation in conservation planning
Optimal control of native predators
Evaluating propagation method performance over time with Bayesian updating: An application to incubator testing
A traditional and a less-invasive robust design: choices in optimizing effort allocation for seabird population studies
Multistate models for estimation of survival and reproduction in the Grey-headed Albatross (Thalassarche chrysostoma)
Sampling design considerations for demographic studies: a case of colonial seabirds
Releases of whooping cranes to the Florida nonmigratory flock: a structured decision-making approach: report to the International Whooping Crane Recovery Team, September 22, 2008
Making great leaps forward: Accounting for detectability in herpetological field studies
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 70
A decision-analytic approach to the optimal allocation of resources for endangered species consultation
The resources available to support conservation work, whether time or money, are limited. Decision makers need methods to help them identify the optimal allocation of limited resources to meet conservation goals, and decision analysis is uniquely suited to assist with the development of such methods. In recent years, a number of case studies have been described that examine optimal conservation deAuthorsSarah J. Converse, Kevin J. Shelley, Steve Morey, Jeffrey Chan, Andrea LaTier, Carolyn Scafidi, Deborah T. Crouse, Michael C. RungeDecision analysis for conservation breeding: Maximizing production for reintroduction of whooping cranes
Captive breeding is key to management of severely endangered species, but maximizing captive production can be challenging because of poor knowledge of species breeding biology and the complexity of evaluating different management options. In the face of uncertainty and complexity, decision-analytic approaches can be used to identify optimal management options for maximizing captive production. BuAuthorsDes H.V. Smith, Sarah J. Converse, Keith Gibson, Axel Moehrenschlager, William A. Link, Glenn H. Olsen, Kelly MaguireDynamic resource allocation in conservation planning
Consider the problem of protecting endangered species by selecting patches of land to be used for conservation purposes. Typically, the availability of patches changes over time, and recommendations must be made dynamically. This is a challenging prototypical example of a sequential optimization problem under uncertainty in computational sustainability. Existing techniques do not scale to problemsAuthorsD. Golovin, A. Krause, B. Gardner, Sarah J. Converse, S. MoreyOptimal control of native predators
We apply decision theory in a structured decision-making framework to evaluate how control of raccoons (Procyon lotor), a native predator, can promote the conservation of a declining population of American Oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus) on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Our management objective was to maintain Oystercatcher productivity above a level deemed necessary for population recoAuthorsJulien Martin, Allan F. O'Connell, William L. Kendall, Michael C. Runge, Theodore R. Simons, Arielle H. Waldstein, Shiloh A. Schulte, Sarah J. Converse, Graham W. Smith, Timothy Pinion, Michael Rikard, Elise F. ZipkinEvaluating propagation method performance over time with Bayesian updating: An application to incubator testing
In captive-rearing programs, small sample sizes can limit the quality of information on performance of propagation methods. Bayesian updating can be used to increase information on method performance over time. We demonstrate an application to incubator testing at USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. A new type of incubator was purchased for use in the whooping crane (Grus americana) propagatioAuthorsSarah J. Converse, J. N. Chandler, Glenn H. Olsen, C. C. ShaferA traditional and a less-invasive robust design: choices in optimizing effort allocation for seabird population studies
For many animal populations, one or more life stages are not accessible to sampling, and therefore an unobservable state is created. For colonially-breeding populations, this unobservable state could represent the subset of adult breeders that have foregone breeding in a given year. This situation applies to many seabird populations, notably albatrosses, where skipped breeders are either absent frAuthorsS. J. Converse, W. L. Kendall, P.F. Doherty, M.B. Naughton, J. E. HinesMultistate models for estimation of survival and reproduction in the Grey-headed Albatross (Thalassarche chrysostoma)
Reliable information on demography is necessary for conservation of albatrosses, the most threatened family of pelagic birds. Albatross survival has been estimated using mark-recapture data and the Cormack-Jolly-Seber (CJS) model. However, albatross exhibit skipped breeding, violating assumptions of the CJS model. Multistate modeling integrating unobservable states is a promising tool for such sitAuthorsSarah J. Converse, William L. Kendall, Paul F. Doherty, Peter G. RyanSampling design considerations for demographic studies: a case of colonial seabirds
For the purposes of making many informed conservation decisions, the main goal for data collection is to assess population status and allow prediction of the consequences of candidate management actions. Reducing the bias and variance of estimates of population parameters reduces uncertainty in population status and projections, thereby reducing the overall uncertainty under which a population manAuthorsWilliam L. Kendall, Sarah J. Converse, Paul F. Doherty, Maura B. Naughton, Angela Anders, James E. Hines, Elizabeth FlintReleases of whooping cranes to the Florida nonmigratory flock: a structured decision-making approach: report to the International Whooping Crane Recovery Team, September 22, 2008
We used a structured decision-making approach to inform the decision of whether the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission should request of the International Whooping Crane Recovery Team that additional whooping crane chicks be released into the Florida Non-Migratory Population (FNMP). Structured decision-making is an application of decision science that strives to produce transparent,AuthorsClinton T. Moore, Sarah J. Converse, Martin J. Folk, Robin Boughton, Bill Brooks, John B. French, Timothy O'Meara, Michael Putnam, James Rodgers, Marilyn SpaldingMaking great leaps forward: Accounting for detectability in herpetological field studies
Detecting individuals of amphibian and reptile species can be a daunting task. Detection can be hindered by various factors such as cryptic behavior, color patterns, or observer experience. These factors complicate the estimation of state variables of interest (e.g., abundance, occupancy, species richness) as well as the vital rates that induce changes in these state variables (e.g., survival probAuthorsMarc J. Mazerolle, Larissa L. Bailey, William L. Kendall, J. Andrew Royle, Sarah J. Converse, James D. Nichols - Science
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