Research
We are population ecologists interested in quantifying the impacts of anthropogenic factors (e.g. climate change, habitat fragmentation, urbanization) on the ecology, demography, and microevolution of wild animals (mostly birds, mammals, and reptiles). Our research calls for the analyses of longitudinal data and methodologies that stem from demography, population ecology, and life history theory. Below, you will find a non-exhaustive list of projects the lab is involved with.
Current Projects
Emperor Goose Foraging Ecology, Condition and Survival
Robyn contrasts the foraging behavior, diet composition, body condition and over-winter survival of Emperor geese on Shemya and Kodiak islands. She compares over-winter strategies at the extremes of their wintering range and finds these differences may shape overall population dynamics and partially explain recent declines in abundance.
With Tyler Lewis, Alaska Department of Fish & Game & Robyn Thomas (MS student)
Hibernator Life History Evolution
Lorena will test how life history trade-offs structure phenotypic expression, plasticity, behavior, and aging trajectories in hibernating mammals, and how interactions among these processes generate individual heterogeneity.
With Cory Williams, led by Lorena Escobosa (PhD student, Department of Biology, CSU)
Plague Resistance in Prairie Dogs
Galen aims to understand the context in which disease resistance evolves, and identify key constraints on the spread and maintenance of resistance traits among host populations. The evolutionary response of prairie dogs to sylvatic plague provides a viable model for studying the development and maintenance of disease resistance.
With Ana Davidson, Colorado Natural Heritage Program, led by Galen Burrell (PhD student)
Prairie Dog Ecology along
an Urban -> Rural -> Wild Gradient
DiDiAlice is interested in how urbanization reshapes black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) behavior and ecology, the prairie dog-human interface, and capacity for zoonotic transmission. She is currently working on defining the parameters of her dissertation within this theme.
With Ana Davidson, Colorado Natural Heritage Program, led by DiDiAlice Coker (PhD student)
Black Bear Population Dynamics and Interations with Humans
Using long-term data on spatially-explicit complaints, live mark-recapture, dead recoveries, and habitat use information on black bears, Shelley studies the causes and consequences of human-bear conflicts on black bear population dynamics and life history evolution along an anthropogenic gradient.
With the New Jersey Department of Fish and Wildlife and Shelley Nelson (Research scientist)
Demographic monitoring of common bottlenose dolphins
Emma will use long-term mark-recapture data, to estimate trends in abundance and vital rates of common bottlenose dolphins in Biscayne Bay, Florida, as well as use AI to improve individual recognition from photo ID.
With Matthew Bowers, NOAA Miami, Bill Kendall (USGS Coop Unit, CSU), and Emma Schillerstrom (MS student)
Past Projects
Very little is known about populations of Colorado checkered whiptails that still persist today and mostly overlap with the Fort Carson military base. We measured the impacts of military activities on their demography and stress levels, which improved Fort Carson’s management of this species.
Integrated Conservation of the Colorado Checkered Whiptail
Using a 40-yr study of a rapidly growing population of lesser snow geese, an over-abundant herbivore that is causing extensive damage to Arctic and sub-Arctic ecosystems, we quantified the impact of population density during early-life development.
Lesser Snow Goose Population Dynamics and Management
We studied the evolution of trade-offs between early-life breeding decisions, future reproduction, and survival. Sources of unobserved heterogeneity explained substantial amounts of variability in vital rates. Ignoring such individual heterogeneity leads to biased inference, with implications for senescence in the wild.
Life history trade-offs in the long-lived black legged kittiwake
When rates of human exploitation exceed natural mortality, harvest can “add” to overall mortality and imperil sustainable management. Using ≥ 16 years of data for heavily harvested and semi-protected cougar populations in Utah, we found that uncertainty in estimates of cause-specific mortality led to biased conclusions regarding additive and compensatory mortality hypotheses.
Cougar Population Dynamics