Information for prospective graduate students
In August 2004 I will be joining the faculty in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Connecticut, and will begin looking for graduate students. Although I am open to students working in any area of conservation biology or avian ecology that I feel qualified to give advice on, I expect my research over the next few years to focus in the following areas:
(1) Understanding the mechanisms behind area-sensitive distribution patterns in birds. Many species of birds, in a variety of habitat types, have lower occurrence rates, densities, and breeding success, in small habitat patches compared to large patches. Our group has begun studying this phenomenon in saltmarsh birds and we are attempting to determine whether there are general patterns for the phenomenon. Ultimately, our goals is to determine whether, and how, small patches can contribute more to meeting large-scale conservation goals.
(2) Assessing the conservation value of agricultural lands. Since my dissertation research on the birds that use California rice fields, I have been interested in the role that agricultural lands can play in conservation planning. My current interests focus on trying to develop general approaches to quantifying the value of agricultural land and assessing how these (and other) heavily modified habitats can be incorporated into the conservation planning process. At present, my interests center primarily on the value of rice lands to waterbirds, but the approaches I am taking could be applied broadly to other farming systems.
(3) Using models to better guide conservation management. Recently, I have become involved in several projects that combine modeling and empirical research to guide conservation actions. Currently these projects include: (i) modeling introduced and endangered populations to predict future population trajectories and compare management scenarios, and (ii) developing new methods for conveying the results of modeling exercises to managers working on the ground. Much of this work is being done in collaboration with people who have much better math skills than I do!
(4) Evaluating and designing monitoring programs. Again, though a combination of modeling and empirical work, I have been working on projects to design better monitoring programs. Examples of on-going work include field studies designed to improve better population estimates and monitoring protocols for saltmarsh breeding birds and the use of simulation models to compare the impact of observer errors on the efficiency of different monitoring programs.
If you feel that you would like to conduct your graduate work in our research group, please send me a note explaining (in as much detail as you can) what you think you would like to work on, why you think our lab would be good place for you to study, and what research experience you have.