Current Research projects
Spatial ecology of grassland birdsLoss and fragmentation of grasslands has been implicated in the decline of many grassland species, including many species of birds. In collaboration with Tall Timbers, the Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources, and UGA's Gamebird & Managed Ecosystems Lab (led by James Martin) I am exploring the impact of land use change and management alternatives on grassland bird populations across the US. Related products: Lunsford et al. 2019 data integration for improved status and trend assessments of north american birdsIn collaboration with the U.S. Geological Survey and Cornell Lab of Ornithology I am developing flexible space-time modeling frameworks that integrate more traditional surveys with community science data to support population assessments, conservation and management decision-making for North American birds. Related products: Coming soon! Metapopulation Ecology and ConservationMany populations exist as spatially-segregated subpopulations whose persistence depends on local population growth and the movement of individuals among habitat patches that vary in quality. Together with the USGS Amphibian Research & Monitoring Initiative, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Arizona Game & Fish, and Dr. Richard Chandler (UGA), I am using recently developed statistical metapopulation models and long-term monitoring data to evaluate the efficacy of various management strategies for decreasing amphibian extinction risk. Related products: To maintain a commitment to transparent and reproducible research, I have a figshare repository with code and data needed to implement modeling approaches developed as a part of my work. For an example: population viability analysis. Automated acoustic monitoring for estimating wildlife population densitiesPopulation monitoring is central to wildlife management. However, monitoring can be costly and invasive. Development of automated acoustic recording devices, software to process data and statistical methods for using acoustic data to estimate population parameters could mean a substantial decrease in time and cost of monitoring. Together with UGA's Gamebird and Managed Ecosystems Lab and U.S. Geological Survey I am evaluating the efficacy of using song meters for landscape scale monitoring of grassland bird populations. Related products: Wilhite et al. 2020 |
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