Current Students

Climate change education, civic ecology practices in areas threatened by sea level rise, online learning

Ecology and conservation of migratory birds in Central America

Socio-political institutions, Human well-being & Biological conservation

Environmental factors affecting the survival of blacklegged ticks in New York state

Policy of market based instruments for conservation in developing countries

Community-based ecological conservation, high elevation ecosystem dynamics, agroecology

Native and nonnative threats to forest plant communities; invasive earthworm dynamics; restoration ecology

My research interests lie in conservation, movement ecology, and population biology of migratory organisms, especially birds. In particular, I am interested in understanding how seasonal interactions influence population dynamics, movement, and behavior between different periods of the annual cycle.

Examining the processes of developing and implementing landscape-level conservation across complex social-ecological systems, with an emphasis on understanding the role of local stakeholders in conservation decision-making.

Using passive acoustic technology to monitor African forest elephant distribution and abundance in response to anthropogenic activities

Evaluating limits to the restoration of cisco in Lake Ontario

Political ecology of market based environmental governance

Intended and unintended impacts of payment for ecosystem service projects on biodiversity conservation and local livelihoods in areas with high poverty and weak governance

Evolution of ownership, public trust thinking, environmental governance

Bird damage to fruit crops as part of a multi-state, interdisciplinary USDA project

Spatial ecology and acoustic sampling of Mysid "shrimps"

Civic ecology practices in coastal communities, environmental education, the political ecology of plastics, citizen science and participatory observatories for microplastic pollution in coastal zones of the North Atlantic and Mediterranean systems.

Using GIS to model soil moisture and nutrient transport

Quantifying the relative contribution of Hudson River tributaries to river herring spawning densities

Ecohydrology and carbon flux in Southeastern Alaska

I am investigating the northern United States tallgrass prairie region, as well as adjacent agricultural land, for an extensive suite of physical, chemical, biological and microbial soil properties. These data will be used to establish a landmark, comprehensive soil health profile for relict, natural tall grass prairies and a consequent set of targets for grassland remediation efforts. This research will also provide Midwest relict (near virgin) grassland soil data, which is scarce at best and contribute to national efforts to map the health of domestic soil. Lastly, when compared to the active agricultural land samples, these data will establish a quantifiable estimate of post-European colonization degradation of soil.
 

Critical environmental policy and institutional analysis, environmental governance, science and technology studies.

Nutrient cycling and limitation in northern hardwood ecosystems.

The application of genomic tools in fisheries management and conservation

Modeling trout population dynamics in NY streams

My research examines how framing, specifically word choice, can impact the long term conservation of a species. I'm broadly interested in overarching questions related to how humans act towards and think about non human animals, and particularly interested in categories of animals that become targeted for mass management (such as feral, non native, invasive, etc). I hope to better understand the complicated ethics behind why people make certain decisions or take certain actions in relation to these animals- and ultimately influence those decisions and actions.

My primary research goal is to study the ecology of rare/declining wildlife species to aid in conservation/management efforts

The impact individuals' perceptions of the environment, community and sense of place have on environmental behavior

Spawning habitat utilization by cisco in the Great Lakes and applications for cisco restoration in Lake Ontario

Socio-economic impacts of rural landscape policies in developing countries

Motivating civic ecology practices, educating for systems thinking and environmental stewardship

Effectiveness of social marketing campaign on wildlife conservation in Nam Et — Phou Louey, Lao People’s Democratic Republic

The preservation of traditional ecological knowledge and its application in conservation.

Deep chlorophyll layers and lower food web ecology in the Great Lakes

I study the effect of climate change, habitat patchiness and landscape configuration over the structure and composition of Polylepis (Rosacea) bird community in Huascaran National Park and Biosphere Reserve in norther Peru.

Ecology, biogeochemistry, and management of water chestnut. Broadly interested in biological invasions and their impacts on ecological interactions and nutrient cycling. 

Modeling residential develop and assessing potential impacts on bio-diversity habitat

I study the effect of human development activities on the behavior and population structure of forest birds in the Chilean temperate forests, both in mainland and oceanic islands. For my dissertation, I investigate how the deforestation for firewood and cleaning for cattle and agriculture affects habitat use and survival of Magellanic woodpeckers. 

Occupancy and co-occurrence dynamics of carnivore species in the Ecuadorian Andes

Estimating population abundance and genetic relatedness of New York state black bears.

Migratory connectivity and the effects of climate change on arctic shorebirds

I focus on the ethnobiological dimensions of plant genetic resource value.  I have conducted interdisciplinary research in Turkey and Azerbaijan in a context where rural smallholders and society at large are adapting to significant threats to the native chestnut species caused by imported pathogens and rural abandonment.  I strive to make contributions to ethno-landscape ecology, conservation ethics, theories of plant value and participatory mapping.  My research is best described as conservation-driven ethnobiology and cultural geography.    
 

Nutrient limitations of algal in streams and lakes. The nutrients I am interested in include: nitrogen, phosphorus, and thiamine (vitamin B1). 

Impacts of water extraction for Marcellus Shale development on stream habitat and species

I am investigating the abundance of moose in New York State's Adirondack Park, as well as helping develop new sampling and analysis methods for assessing population characteristics of rare species. 

The civic role of NGO and domestic communities in responding social environmental issues;
conservation governance; community mobilization