Dept. Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Tel: (860) 486-4547
Fax: (860) 486-6364
E-mail:
elphick@uconnvm.uconn.edu
Web site:
http://www.eeb.uconn.edu/faculty/Elphick/
EDUCATION
1992-1998 |
Ph.D. in Ecology,
Evolution and Conservation Biology |
1989-1990 |
(B.Sc., Exchange year.) |
1987-1991 |
B.Sc. (First Class, with Honors) in Biological
Sciences (Ecology program) |
Academic positions
2003-present |
Assistant Professor in Residence |
1998-2003 |
Research Scientist |
ACADEMIC PRIZES
& AWARDS
1998 Southwood Prize for best applied ecology paper by a
young scientist (British Ecological Society)
1997 Marcia Brady Tucker Travel Award (American
Ornithologists’
1997 Graduate Student Association Student Paper Award (
1996 Annual Meeting Travel Award (British Ecological
Society)
1996 Jay Dow Sr. Scholarship (
1996 Marcia Brady Tucker Travel Award (American
Ornithologists’
1992 Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology
Research Fellowship (
1989 Bernard Matthews Scholarship (
1988 Birds Eye Scholarship (
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
1998-present |
Population and behavioral ecology; conservation
ecology of rare and invasive species; landscape-scale conservation planning;
wildlife management, especially in agricultural and wetland ecosystems;
dispersal behavior; effects of population biology and survey techniques on ecological
monitoring. Funded projects in |
1992-1998 |
Ph.D. research, |
1996-1998 |
Collaborator (with Dr. J.M. Reed). Life-history and
population viability of Hawaiian stilts. Simulation modeling of population
dynamics. |
|
Collaborator (with Dr. C. Thompson). Effects of
hormones on plumage maturation in house finches. Trapping and blood
collection for hormone and genetic studies. |
1996 |
Research Associate (with L. Tibbitts). |
1991 |
Field Assistant (with Dr. B. Stutchbury). |
1990, 1991 |
Field Assistant (with Dr. M. Rubega). |
1990 |
Management plan coordinator, |
|
Field Assistant (with Dr. D. Irons). |
|
Member, CALCOFI oceanographic cruise (with Dr. R.
Veit). |
|
Field Assistant (with Dr. F. Smith). |
1989 - 1990 |
Undergraduate research project at UC Irvine (with Dr.
G. Hunt). The distribution of pelagic seabirds at sea in the Chirikov Basin,
Alaska. Data management and analysis. |
1989 |
Undergraduate expedition to |
1980 - 1989 |
Many volunteer surveys for British Trust for
Ornithology and local naturalist and ornithological societies. Including:
breeding bird atlases, wintering bird atlas, dragonfly atlas, monthly counts
of estuarine bird populations, single-species breeding surveys, winter
surveys of shorebird use of agricultural fields, migration banding, mute swan
banding, etc. |
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Administration
Coordinator of Joint Bachelors/Masters Degree in
Biodiversity and Conservation Biology at the
Courses
General Ecology (Instructor)
Field Ecology (Instructor; including 2 week field trip
to
Introduction to Conservation Biology (Instructor)
Ornithology Lecture (Instructor)
Ornithology Laboratory (Instructor)
Biology of Invasive Species (Instructor, Graduate
Seminar)
Behavior and Conservation Biology (Instructor, Graduate
Seminar)
Current Topics in Conservation Biology: Science and the
Endangered Species Act (Instructor)
Conservation Biology (Guest Lecturer)
Topics in Modern Biology (Guest Lecturer)
Graduate student committee memberships
Ad hoc reviews for graduate student dissertation
proposals
Field Methods in Ornithology (Instructor)
Avian Ecology and Management (Teaching Assistant, Guest
Lecturer)
Natural Resource Management (Guest Lecturer)
Shorebird Ecology and Management (3-day workshop for
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries; invited guest lecturer and
co-leader)
Undergraduate Research Advisees
Selena Humphreys.
2003. What determines nest
construction variability in saltmarsh-sharp-tailed sparrows? Funded through
Martha Ellis. 2003.
Population ecology and dispersal behaviour of mute swans. Funded through
PROFESSIONAL
SOCIETIES
American Ornithologists' Association of Field Ornithologists British Ecological Society British Ornithologists' Cooper Ornithological Society Ecological Society of |
Pacific Seabird Group Society for Conservation Biology The Wildlife Society Wader Study Group Waterbird Society Western Shorebird Group |
OTHER PROFESSIONAL
ACTIVITIES & SERVICE
2003-present |
Member,
Student Affairs and Media Committees, Society for Conservation Biology. |
|
|
2003 |
Member,
Peer review panel for US Fish and Wildlife Service Delaware Bay
shorebird-horseshoe crab assessment report. |
|
Technical
editor/peer review for report:
Protecting |
|
Technical
editor/peer review for report: Great
Captain’s Island Heron and Egret Study (August, 2002; Audubon |
2002- present |
Member,
Connecticut DEP’s Endangered Species Advisory Committee for Avian Species. |
|
Member,
|
2001-present |
Member,
Connecticut Grassland Conservation Working Group. |
|
Member,
Canada-US Shorebird Monitoring and Assessment Committee. |
2000–present |
Member, Editorial board of Journal of Applied Ecology. |
1997–present |
Scientific advisor to Great Basin Bird Observatory for
Nevada Breeding Bird Atlas project. |
1997-2003 |
Member, |
1997-2001 |
Research consultant and technical editor. National
Audubon Society. Sibley Guide to Bird
Life and Behavior. Chanticleer Press/Knopf. |
1997–2000 |
|
1996 |
Member, Expert Panel on Waterbirds. |
1993–present |
Peer-reviews for: Animal Conservation, Auk, Biological
Conservation, Bird Populations, Condor, Conservation Biology, Ecology, Great
Basin Birds, Journal of Applied Ecology, Journal of Wildlife Management,
Southwestern Naturalist, Waterbirds, Western Birds, Wilson Bulletin, EarthWatch
Institute, National Fish and Wildlife Federation, and Rice Foundation
competitive grants program, Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network
nominations, Blackwell publications (Begon et al.’s Ecology). |
GRANTS
Total extramural funding awarded to date: $754,227
$326,590 |
Pending.
Persistence of |
$ 7,256 |
2004.
Modeling brown pelican populations in the |
$138,895 |
2003.
Determining the causes of area-sensitivity: a prerequisite for saltmarsh bird
conservation and restoration. |
$ 23,225 |
2003.
Assessing the impact of mute swan grazing on LIS eelgrass beds. CT DEP - OLISP. (Co-PIs: M. Huang and M.
Rubega.) |
$ 24,635 |
2002.
Effects of artificial lighting on beach-nesting waterbirds: integrating
experimental and observational studies. CT DEP - OLISP. (Co-PI: M. Rubega.) |
$ 24,434 |
2002.
Saltmarsh-breeding sparrows in Long Island Sound marshes: testing the status
of globally important populations. CT DEP - OLISP. (Co-PI: M. Rubega.) |
$102,874 |
2002.
Saltmarsh-breeding sparrows in Long Island Sound marshes: status and
productivity of globally important populations. EPA. (Co-PIs: M. Rubega and
P. Comins.) |
$ 12,779 |
2002. Saltmarsh-breeding sparrows along the |
$205,130 |
2000. Rice production and water bird sustainability in
|
$ 36,000 |
1999. Predicting breeding bird distributions in |
$ 2,500 |
1999. Evaluating shorebird monitoring schemes using
simulation modelling. Manomet Observatory. |
$ 20,000 |
1999. Bird conservation planning in the |
$ 63,485 |
1997. Assessing the conservation value of agricultural
lands. STA/NSF International Research Fellow Award: |
$ 20,000 |
1996. Wetland management on private lands: effects of
the “Ricelands/Habitat Project” on birds. Ducks Unlimited, Inc. (Co-PI: L.
Oring.) |
$ 42,000 |
1994. Wetland management on private lands: effects of
the “Ricelands/Habitat Project” on aquatic birds. Institute for Wetland and
Waterfowl Research Doctoral Fellowship. |
$ 31,014 |
1992. Effects of the "Ricelands/Habitat
Project" on nongame species: an
experimental study. Nature Conservancy.
(Co-PI: L. Oring). |
PUBLICATIONS
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Elphick, C.S. 2004. Assessing
conservation trade-offs: Identifying the effects of flooding rice fields for
waterbirds on non-target bird species. Biological Conservation 117: 105-110.
Elphick, C.S.,
and L.W. Oring. 2003. Effects of rice field management on winter waterbird
communities: conservation and agronomic implications. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 94:17-29.
Elphick, C.S.,
and J. Klima. 2002. Hudsonian Godwit (Limosa
haemastica). The Birds of
Anderson, C., R. Rozzi, C. Elphick, and S. McGehee. 2002. El
programa Omora de anillamiento de aves en los bosques subantárticos: la
estandarización
Elphick, C.S.,
J.M. Reed, and J.M. Bonta. 2001. Correlates of endangered species
recovery goals. Conservation Biology 15:1285-1291.
Elphick, C.S.
2000. Functional equivalency between rice fields and
seminatural wetland habitats. Conservation Biology 14:181-191.
Elphick, C.S.,
and L.W. Oring. 1998. Winter management of
Elphick, C.S.
and T.L. Tibbitts. 1998. Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca). The
Birds of
Reed, J.M., C.S. Elphick, and L.W. Oring.
1998. Life-history and viability analysis of the endangered Hawaiian stilt. Biological Conservation 84:35-45.
Elphick, C.S.
1997. Experimental approaches to shorebird habitat management. In Conservation
and Management of Shorebirds in the Western Great Basin (J.M. Reed, N. Warnock,
and L.W. Oring, eds.). International
Wader Studies
Elphick, C.S.
1997. Correcting avian richness estimates for unequal sample effort in atlas
studies. Ibis 139:189-190.
Elphick, C.S.,
and M.A. Rubega. 1995. Prey choices and foraging efficiency of recently-fledged
California Gulls at
Elphick, C.S.,
and G.L. Hunt. 1993. Variations in the distributions of marine birds with water
masses in the northern
Books
Floyd, T., C.S.
Elphick, K. Mack, R. Elston, G. Chisholm. 2004.
Elphick,
C.S., J.B. Dunning, and D.S. Sibley (eds.). 2001. National Audubon Society. Sibley Guide to
Bird Life and Behavior. Knopf. 608 pp. (New York Times best seller list.)
Software
Reed, J. M., N. Fefferman,
C. S. Elphick, and M. D. Silbernagle.
2004. MESHH: Managing endangered species habitat in
Manuscripts available
Elphick, C.S., C. Gjerdrum, and M.
Rubega. Does artificial lighting affect
breeding by beach nesting birds?
Submitted to Biological Conservation.
Gjerdrum, C., C.S. Elphick, and M. Rubega. Molt in saltmarsh
Ammodramus sparrows: differences
among species, sexes and sites. Intended
for Condor.
Elphick, C.S.,
and N. LaFleur. Demographic data limitations for bird
conservation. Intended for Journal of Field Ornithology.
Elphick, C.S. Influence of landscape features on
waterbird densities in
Invited Book Chapters
Eadie, J.M., C.S. Elphick, K.J. Reinecke, and M.R.
Miller. Accepted. Wildlife values of North American ricelands. In: Conservation in Ricelands of
Warnock, N., C.S. Elphick, and M.A. Rubega. 2001.
Biology of marine birds: shorebirds. Pages 581-615 in Biology of Marine Birds (J. Burger and B.A. Schreiber, eds.). CRC
Press.
Cech, R., J.B. Dunning, C.S. Elphick, and M. Rubega. 2001.
Flight, form and function. In: National
Audubon Society. Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior.
Knopf. pp. 15-38.
Cech, R., J.B. Dunning, and
C.S. Elphick. 2001. Bird
behavior. In: National Audubon Society. Sibley Guide to
Bird Life and Behavior. Knopf.
pp. 51-79.
Cech, R., D.S. Sibley, C.S. Elphick and J.B. Dunning. 2001.
Habitats and distribution. In: National Audubon Society. Sibley Guide to
Bird Life and Behavior. Knopf. pp. 80-106.
Reed, J. M., and
C.S. Elphick. 2001. Populations and
conservation. In: National Audubon
Society. Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Knopf. pp. 107-120.
Sibley, D.A., and C.S. Elphick. 2001. Jacanas. In: National Audubon Society. Sibley Guide to Bird Life and
Behavior. Knopf. pp. 271-272.
Conservation Reports, Book
Reviews and Other Publications
Elphick,
C.S. Accepted. A landmark in ornithology: The Birds of North
America. Birding.
Elphick,
C.S., C, Gjerdrum, and M.A. Rubega. 2004. Does artificial lighting affect
breeding by beach-nesting birds? Report
to Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection.
Elphick,
C.S. 2004. Review of: Adamus, P. et al., Oregon Breeding Bird Atlas, and Wernham, C. et al., The Migration
Atlas: movements of the birds of
Elphick,
C.S. 2003. Review of: Clark, G., Birds of
Elphick, C.S. 2001. A comprehensive revision of the Nevada Bird
Records Committee review list.
Elphick, C.S. 2000.
Recommendations for bird conservation planning in the
Howe, M., J. Bart, S. Brown, C. Elphick, B. Harrington, C. Hickey, G. Morrison, S. Skagen, and
N. Warnock, eds. 2000. A Comprehensive Monitoring Program for North
American Shorebirds.
Elphick, C.S.
1999. Consequences of observer bias for trend estimation: preliminary results
of a simulation model. Report to Manomet Observatory.
Baepler,
D., D. Crowe, C.S. Elphick, L. Hoskins,
L. Neel, F. Ryser, Jr., and J. Eidel. 1999. Report of the
Elphick, C.S. 1998. Waterbird conservation and ecology: the
role of rice field management in habitat restoration. Ph.D. dissertation.
Oring, L.W., and C.S. Elphick. 1994. Review of: Helmers,
D.L. 1992. Shorebird Management Manual. Auk
110:672-674.
Coffin, J., J. Dutton, C.S. Elphick, C. Graham, and E.
Rekowski. 1990. Report of the 1989 “UEA Expedicion Bosque Tropical” to Chiapas,
Mexico.
Newspaper Columns
Sibley, D., C. S. Elphick and J. B. Dunning.
Weekly, Aug 2002 to present. Sibley on Birds.
Nationally syndicated newspaper column, distributed by New York Times
Special Features.
PRESENTATIONS
Invited Symposium Talks &
Keynote Addresses
Elphick, C. S. 2004. Studying the
ecological consequences of molt: a citizen science role for banders. Eastern
Bird Banding Association Annual Meeting.
Elphick, C.S., J.M.
Reed, and J.M. Bonta. 2004. Correlates of population
recovery goals in endangered birds in the United States. Species At Risk Conference, March 2004,
Smith,
D., B. Andres, J. Nichols, C. Elphick.
2003. An adaptive resource management approach for migratory shorebirds and
horseshoe crabs that use Delaware Bay.
Eadie, J.M., C.S. Elphick, K.J. Reinecke, and M.R.
Miller. 2002. Wildlife values of North American ricelands. Annual meeting, Wildlife Society, Bismark, North Dakota, USA.
Elphick,
C.S. 1999. Prioritizing research on how we monitor
shorebird populations: results from a simulation model.
Eadie, J.M., C.S. Elphick, and F.A. Reid. 1999. The value of rice fields as
habitat for water birds. Temperate Rice Conference,
Elphick,
C.S. 1997. Conservation implications of flooding
rice fields during winter in California. Waterbirds
and Flooded Agriculture (Symposium), Annual meeting, Colonial Waterbird
Society,
Elphick, C.S.
1996. Shorebird habitat use in rice fields.
Rice straw management workgroup,
Agronomy and Range Science Continuing Conference, Davis, California,
Elphick, C.S.
1995. Habitat creation on private lands: bird use of flooded rice-fields in
winter. Second Biennial Institute for
Wetland and Waterfowl Research Symposium, Oak Hammock
Elphick, C.S.
1994. The value of experiments to shorebird management. Conservation and Management of Shorebirds in the
Invited Research Seminars
Canadian Wildlife Service – Delta Field Office; Connecticut
College; Linnaean Society of New York; Louisiana State University; Natchaug
Ornithological Association; Simon Fraser University; Trinity College;
University of California – Davis; University of Connecticut; University of
Delaware; University of Minnesota; University of Nevada – Reno, University of
New Orleans, University of Southern Illinois, University of Tennessee.
Presentations at Professional
Meetings
Elphick,
C.S., T. Floyd, G. Chisholm, R.
Elston. 2003. How accurately can one predict species distributions with simple
models and sparse data? Annual meeting,
Society for Conservation Biology, Duluth, Minnesota, USA.
Elphick, C.S., C. Gjerdrum, P.
Comins, and M. Rubega. 2003. Point counts accurately reflect sparrow abundance,
but not breeding success. (Poster) Annual
meeting, American Ornithologists’
Gjerdrum,
C., C.S. Elphick, and M. Rubega.
2003. Molt in Ammodramus sparrows:
differences among species, sexes and sites. (Poster) Annual meeting, American Ornithologists’
Rubega,
M., J. Boster, and C.S. Elphick.
2003. What do students learn about birds when they study ornithology? (Poster) Annual meeting, American Ornithologists’
Elphick, C.S., J.M. Reed, and J.M. Bonta. 2001. Correlates
of endangered species recovery goals. Annual meeting, Society for Conservation
Biology, Hilo, Hawaii, USA.
Elphick, C.S.,
and N. LaFleur. 2000. Data
limitations for demographic modeling in bird conservation. Annual meeting, Society for Conservation Biology, Missoula, Montana,
USA.
Elphick,
C.S. 1999. The influence of landscape features on
waterbird densities in California rice fields during winter. Annual
meeting, American Ornithologists’
Elphick, C.S.,
and L.W. Oring. 1999. Measuring the conservation
value of rice fields for waterbirds. Annual
meeting, Society for Conservation Biology, College Park, Maryland, USA.
Elphick,
C.S. 1998. A multivariate analysis of the factors
affecting foraging behavior of shorebirds and egrets. Annual meeting, Association of Field Ornithologists, Eastham,
Massachusetts, USA.
Elphick,
C.S. 1997. Trade-offs in conservation biology:
effects of flooding rice fields for waterbirds on non-target species. Annual meeting, American Ornithologists’
Elphick, C.S.
1997. Are flooded rice fields and semi-natural wetlands functionally equivalent
foraging habitats for waterbirds? Annual
meeting, Society for Conservation Biology, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Elphick, C.S.,
and L.W. Oring. 1997. Effects of water depth on winter bird use of rice-paddies
in
Elphick, C.S.
1996. Effects of agricultural flooding on winter bird populations. Winter meeting, British Ecological Society,
Durham, UK.
Elphick, C.S.
1996. Management of private lands for
birds: experiments in the
J.M. Reed, C.S. Elphick, and L.W. Oring. 1996.
Population viability analysis of Hawaiian stilts: implications for management
and future research. Joint meeting,
American Ornithologists’ Union and Raptor Research Foundation, Boise, Idaho,
USA.
J.M. Reed, C.S. Elphick, and L.W. Oring. 1996.
Population viability analysis of Hawaiian stilts. Annual meeting, Society for Conservation Biology,
Elphick, C.S.
1995. Effects of winter management regimes on waterbird use of rice-fields. Joint meeting, Colonial Waterbird Society
and Pacific Seabird Group, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Elphick, C.S.
1995. Does the total number of shorebirds at a site effectively characterize
its conservation value? Annual meeting,
Cooper Ornithological Society meeting,
Elphick, C.S.
1994. Effects of different rice-field management regimes on winter use by
aquatic birds in the Sacramento Valley, California. (Poster) Joint meeting, American Ornithologists’,
Cooper Ornithological Society, and Wilson Ornithological Society,
Elphick, C.S.,
and G.L. Hunt. 1993. Seabird community structure in the northern Bering Sea:
importance of patch scale and definition. Annual
meeting, American Ornithologists’ Union meeting,
Elphick, C.S.,
and M.A. Rubega. 1993. Prey choices and foraging efficiency of juvenile
California gulls at Mono Lake. Annual
meeting, Pacific Seabird Group meeting,