Wayne E Thogmartin, PhD
I am a quantitative ecologist conducting scholarly research at the intersection of animal ecology, spatial analyses, and statistics.
My interests are in population ecology for animals declining in abundance, asking new questions of multiple, combined data sets to gain novel insight into the dynamics of animal populations, and translating science into guidance for practical management decisions.
Professional Experience
2014 to the present Research Ecologist, US Geological Survey, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, La Crosse, Wisconsin 54603
2002 to 2014 Research Statistician (Biology), US Geological Survey, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, La Crosse, Wisconsin 54603
1995 Wildlife Biologist, United States Forest Service, Forestry Sciences Lab
Education and Certifications
PhD, Zoology, Southern Illinois University, May, 2002
MS, Zoology, University of Arkansas, May, 1998
BA, Ecology / Behavior / Evolution, University of California, San Diego, June, 1990
Science and Products
Evaluating the Role of Climate on Midwestern Butterfly Trajectories, Monarch Declines, and the Broader “Insect Apocalypse”
Monarch Conservation Science Partnership Map Viewer and Tools
Species Distributional Modeling and Spatial Patterns in Genetic Introgression: the Case of Golden-winged Warblers and Blue-winged Warblers
Dynamic Occupancy Models: Improving our Understanding of Animal Populations and Survey Techniques using Computer Simulations
Population Demographic Models for the Conservation of Endangered Indiana Bats at Risk to White-Nose Syndrome
Infection by White-nose Syndrome is likely to Extirpate the Endangered Indiana Bat over major portions of its current range
Monarch Conservation Science Partnership
North American Bat Monitoring Program (NABat)
Animal Migration and Spatial Subsidies: Establishing a Framework for Conservation Markets
Multi-species, multi-country analysis reveals North Americans are willing to pay for transborder migratory species conservation, code
Multi-species, multi-country analysis reveals North Americans are willing to pay for transborder migratory species conservation, data
R code: Landscape- and local-level variables associated with monarch breeding occurrence and abundance at patches in Wisconsin grasslands
Monarch Butterfly patch and landscape data for Wisconsin, 2018-2019
In Support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 3-Bat Species Status Assessment: Winter Colony Count Analysis
Data release for ecosystem service flows from a migratory species: spatial subsidies of the northern pintail
Multi-species, multi-country analysis reveals North Americans are willing to pay for transborder migratory species conservation
Effects of weather variation on waterfowl migration: Lessons from a continental-scale generalizable avian movement and energetics model
Landscape- and local- level variables affect monarchs in Midwest grasslands
Demographic and potential biological removal models identify raptor species sensitive to current and future wind energy
Bridging the research-implementation gap in avian conservation with translational ecology
TrendPowerTool: A lookup tool for estimating the statistical power of a monitoring program to detect population trends
The scope and severity of white-nose syndrome on hibernating bats in North America
Summary of available data from the monarch overwintering colonies in central Mexico, 1976–1991
NABat: A top-down, bottom-up solution to collaborative continental-scale monitoring
Editorial: North American monarch butterfly ecology and conservation
Quantifying the contribution of habitats and pathways to a spatially structured population facing environmental change
At the end of the road: Lessons learned from comparing model- and design-based approaches to estimate population sizes of boreal birds in Alberta, Canada
Science and Products
- Science
Filter Total Items: 21
Evaluating the Role of Climate on Midwestern Butterfly Trajectories, Monarch Declines, and the Broader “Insect Apocalypse”
Global concern of an “insect apocalypse” is fueling demand for large-scale, long-term studies of insect population dynamics. Butterflies associated with open habitat, like prairies and grasslands, have long been identified as species of concern in the Midwest. The iconic monarch butterfly, which serves as a flagship for both migration and insect conservation, is one such species of conservation coMonarch Conservation Science Partnership Map Viewer and Tools
This web mapping application is a repository for data and tools that support the Monarch Conservation Science Partnership.Species Distributional Modeling and Spatial Patterns in Genetic Introgression: the Case of Golden-winged Warblers and Blue-winged Warblers
The Golden-winged Warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera) is a species of considerable conservation concern in North America, primarily due to widespread population declines attributable to habitat loss (Confer et al. 1992, Buehler et al. ) and displacement by the Blue-winged Warbler (V. pinus) in areas of sympatry (Gill 1980, 2004; Will 1986). Recent research highlighted an important mechanism in the...Dynamic Occupancy Models: Improving our Understanding of Animal Populations and Survey Techniques using Computer Simulations
Humans often look at wild places and guess animals are either abundant because they see large numbers of animals or animals are limited because they observe low numbers or little sign of activity. In reality, our estimates of animal numbers may be limited because of our inability to accurately detect animals and predict habitat occupancy or persistence over different seasons. Scientists and land...Population Demographic Models for the Conservation of Endangered Indiana Bats at Risk to White-Nose Syndrome
Bat Research Bats are nocturnal, flying mammals that eat insects or fruits, pollinate flowers, distribute seeds, and are important to many ecosystems. Across North America there are 45 species of bats, many of which are threatened or endangered. One species of federally endangered bat, the Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis), is a medium-sized, gray, black, or chestnut brown bat living primarily in...Infection by White-nose Syndrome is likely to Extirpate the Endangered Indiana Bat over major portions of its current range
White-nose syndrome (WNS), a novel fungal pathogen of cave-hibernating bat species in east and central North America, is causing the most precipitous decline in bat populations ever reported. This disease causes mortality in at least 6 species of bats, including the endangered Indiana Bat (Myotis sodalis), with mortality rates in some hibernacula averaging 95%. Since the onset of this disease in...Monarch Conservation Science Partnership
The Challenge Over the last two decades, the Eastern migratory population of monarch butterflies has declined by about 80%, leading many scientists to consider how to best conserve and rebuild monarch populations. Conservation efforts can be challenging to design and execute because of the multi-generational migration of monarchs that spans North America. Conservationists must consider many...North American Bat Monitoring Program (NABat)
North American bats face unprecedented threats including habitat loss and fragmentation, white-nose syndrome, wind energy development, and climate change. However, it is difficult to evaluate the impacts of these threats due to a lack of basic information about the distribution and abundance of bats across the continent. Although bat monitoring has long been conducted in individual areas and for...Animal Migration and Spatial Subsidies: Establishing a Framework for Conservation Markets
Migratory species may provide more ecosystem goods and services to humans in certain parts of their range than others. These areas may or may not coincide with the locations of habitat on which the species is most dependent for its continued population viability. This situation can present significant policy challenges, as locations that most support a given species may be in effect subsidizing th - Data
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Multi-species, multi-country analysis reveals North Americans are willing to pay for transborder migratory species conservation, code
Migratory species often provide ecosystem service benefits to people in one country while receiving habitat support in other countries. The multinational cooperation necessary to ensure continued provisioning of these benefits by migrational processes may be informed by understanding the benefits that people in different countries derive from migratory wildlife. We conducted stated preferences surMulti-species, multi-country analysis reveals North Americans are willing to pay for transborder migratory species conservation, data
Migratory species often provide ecosystem service benefits to people in one country while receiving habitat support in other countries. The multinational cooperation necessary to ensure continued provisioning of these benefits by migrational processes may be informed by understanding the benefits that people in different countries derive from migratory wildlife. We conducted stated preferences surR code: Landscape- and local-level variables associated with monarch breeding occurrence and abundance at patches in Wisconsin grasslands
This code file accompanies a manuscript describing associations of monarch breeding occurrence and abundance with landscape and local characteristics at locations in northern and southern Wisconsin. Context for the study can be obtained from the manuscript (Bruce (nee Harnsberger), A.S., Thogmartin, W.E., Trosen, C., Oberhauser, K., and Gratton, C., In-Press, Landscape- and local- level variablesMonarch Butterfly patch and landscape data for Wisconsin, 2018-2019
To ensure habitat restoration efforts are targeted towards areas maximizing monarch population growth, it is important to understand the effects of landscape heterogeneity on monarch occurrence in habitat patches (i.e. grasslands with milkweeds). Over two summers (2018-2019), monarch adults, larvae, and eggs were surveyed at sixty grassland sites in Wisconsin varying in patch size and landscape coIn Support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 3-Bat Species Status Assessment: Winter Colony Count Analysis
Through the North American Bat Monitoring Program, Bat Conservation International and U.S Geological Survey (USGS) provided technical and science support to assistance in U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Species Status Assessment ("SSA") for the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis), little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus), and tri-colored bat (Perimyotis subflavus). USGS facilitated the SSAData release for ecosystem service flows from a migratory species: spatial subsidies of the northern pintail
Migratory species provide important benefits to society, but their cross-border conservation poses serious challenges. By quantifying the economic value of ecosystem services (ES) provided across a species range and ecological data on a species habitat dependence, we estimate spatial subsidieshow different regions support ES provided by a species across its range. We illustrate this method for mig - Publications
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Multi-species, multi-country analysis reveals North Americans are willing to pay for transborder migratory species conservation
Migratory species often provide ecosystem service benefits to people in one country while receiving habitat support in other countries. The multinational cooperation that could help ensure continued provisioning of these benefits by migration may be informed by understanding the economic values people in different countries place on the benefits they derive from migratory wildlife.We conducted conAuthorsWayne E. Thogmartin, Michelle A. Haefele, James E. Diffendorfer, Darius J. Semmens, Jonathan J. Derbridge, Aaron M. Lien, Ta-Ken Huang, Laura López-HoffmanEffects of weather variation on waterfowl migration: Lessons from a continental-scale generalizable avian movement and energetics model
We developed a continental energetics-based model of daily mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) movement during the non-breeding period (September to May) to predict year-specific migration and overwinter occurrence. The model approximates movements and stopovers as functions of metabolism and weather, in terms of temperature and frozen precipitation (i.e., snow). The model is a Markov process operating aAuthorsKevin Aagaard, Eric V. Lonsdorf, Wayne E. ThogmartinLandscape- and local- level variables affect monarchs in Midwest grasslands
ContextIt is estimated that over one billion milkweed stems need to be restored to sustain the eastern North American migratory population of monarch butterflies; where and in what context the stems should be placed on the landscape is key to addressing habitat deficits.ObjectivesWe assessed how the amount of appropriate habitat surrounding a particular patch of monarch habitat affects monarch preAuthorsAnna Skye Bruce, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Chris Trosen, Karen Oberhauser, Claudio GrattonDemographic and potential biological removal models identify raptor species sensitive to current and future wind energy
A central challenge in applied ecology is understanding the effect of anthropogenic fatalities on wildlife populations and predicting which populations may be particularly vulnerable and in greatest need of management attention. We used 3 approaches to investigate potential effects of fatalities from collisions with wind turbines on 14 raptor species for both current (106 GW) and anticipated futurAuthorsJames E. Diffendorfer, Jessica C. Stanton, Julie A. Beston, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Scott R. Loss, Todd E. Katzner, Douglas H. Johnson, Richard A. Erickson, Matthew D. Merrill, Margo D. CorumByEcosystems Mission Area, Energy Resources Program, Species Management Research Program, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences CenterBridging the research-implementation gap in avian conservation with translational ecology
The recognized gap between research and implementation in avian conservation can be overcome with translational ecology, an intentional approach in which science producers and users from multiple disciplines work collaboratively to co-develop and deliver ecological research that addresses management and conservation issues. Avian conservation naturally lends itself to translational ecology becauseAuthorsSarah P. Saunders, Joanna X. Wu, Elizabeth A. Gow, Evan A. Adams, Brooke L. Bateman, Trina Bayard, Stephanie Beilke, Ashley A. Dayer, Auriel M.V. Fournier, Kara Fox, Christoper Hamilton, Patricia J. Heglund, Susannah B. Lerman, Nicole L. Michel, Eben H. Paxton, Çağan H. Şekercioğlu, Melanie A. Smith, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Mark S Woodrey, Charles van RiperTrendPowerTool: A lookup tool for estimating the statistical power of a monitoring program to detect population trends
A simulation-based power analysis can be used to estimate the sample sizes needed for a successful monitoring program, but requires technical expertise and sometimes extensive computing resources. We developed a web-based lookup app, called TrendPowerTool (https://www.usgs.gov/apps/TrendPowerTool/), to provide guidance for ecological monitoring programs when resources are not available for a simulAuthorsEmily L. Weiser, James E. Diffendorfer, Laura Lopez-Hoffman, Darius J. Semmens, Wayne E. ThogmartinThe scope and severity of white-nose syndrome on hibernating bats in North America
Assessing the scope and severity of threats is necessary for evaluating impacts on populations to inform conservation planning. Quantitative threat assessment often requires monitoring programs that provide reliable data over relevant spatial and temporal scales, yet such programs can be difficult to justify until there is an apparent stressor. Leveraging efforts of wildlife management agencies toAuthorsTina L. Cheng, Jonathan D. Reichard, Jeremy TH Coleman, Ted Weller, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Brian Reichert, Alyssa Bennett, Hugh G. Broders, Joshua Campbell, Katherine Etchison, Daniel J. Feller, Richard Geboy, Traci Hemberger, Carl Herzog, Alan C. Hicks, Sandra Houghton, Jessica Humber, Joseph A. Kath, Andrew L. King, Susan C. Loeb, Ariane Masse, Katrina M. Morris, Holly Niederriter, Gerd E. Nordquist, Roger W. Perry, Rick Reynolds, David Blake Sasse, Michael R. Scafini, Richard C. Stark, Craig W. Stihler, Steven C. Thomas, Gregory G. Turner, Shevenell Webb, Bradley Westrich, Winifred F. FrickSummary of available data from the monarch overwintering colonies in central Mexico, 1976–1991
Historical estimates of the area occupied by overwintering Danaus plexippus (monarchs) in central Mexico (between winters of 1976 and 1991) were published in García-Serrano and others (2004) and more recently in Mawdsley and others (2020). Our primary objectives were to identify the specific data that informed those estimates and, importantly, determine the degree to which the reported estimates rAuthorsErin R Zylstra, Wayne E. Thogmartin, M. Isabel Ramirez, Elise F. ZipkinNABat: A top-down, bottom-up solution to collaborative continental-scale monitoring
Collaborative monitoring over broad scales and levels of ecological organization can inform conservation efforts necessary to address the contemporary biodiversity crisis. An important challenge to collaborative monitoring is motivating local engagement with enough buy-in from stakeholders while providing adequate top-down direction for scientific rigor, quality control, and coordination. CollaborAuthorsBrian Reichert, Mylea L. Bayless, Tina L. Cheng, Jeremy T.H. Coleman, Charles M. Francis, Winifred F. Frick, Benjamin Gotthold, Kathryn Irvine, Cori Lausen, Han Li, Susan C. Loeb, Jonathan D. Reichard, Thomas J. Rodhouse, Jordi L. Segers, Jeremy Siemers, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Theodore WellerEditorial: North American monarch butterfly ecology and conservation
Spanning Canada, the United States, and Mexico, North America contains two populations of the migratory monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus). The smaller “western” population overwinters in groves along the California coast and breeds west of the Rocky Mountains, while the much larger “eastern” population breeds east of the Rocky Mountains and overwinters in Oyamel fir forests in central Mexico. BAuthorsJames E. Diffendorfer, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Ryan G. Drum, Cheryl SchultzQuantifying the contribution of habitats and pathways to a spatially structured population facing environmental change
The consequences of environmental disturbance and management are difficult to quantify for spatially structured populations because changes in one location carry through to other areas as a result of species movement. We develop a metric, G, for measuring the contribution of a habitat or pathway to network-wide population growth rate in the face of environmental change. This metric is different frAuthorsChristine Sample, Joanna A. Bieri, Benjamin L. Allen, Yulia Dementieva, Alyssa Carson, Connor Higgins, Sadie Piatt, Shirley Qiu, Summer Stafford, Brady J. Mattsson, Darius J. Semmens, James E. Diffendorfer, Wayne E. ThogmartinAt the end of the road: Lessons learned from comparing model- and design-based approaches to estimate population sizes of boreal birds in Alberta, Canada
Estimating population abundance is a challenging task complicated by the amount, type, and quality of available data. Conservationists have relied on design-based estimates from Partners in Flight (PIF), which primarily uses roadside data from the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) to estimate populations sizes. However, the BBS was not designed to estimate population sizes. We developed moAuthorsPeter Solymos, Judith D Toms, Steven M. Matsuoka, Steven G. Cumming, Nicole K. S. Barker, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Diana Stralberg, Andrew D. Crosby, Francisco V Denes, Samuel Hache, C Lisa Mahon, Fiona K A Schmiegelow, Erin M. Bayne - Web Tools
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