Gabe graduated from Bloomsburg University, PA in 2013, majoring in Biology. His undergraduate research focused on life-history trait evolution in Fowler’s toads (Anaxyrus fowleri ) on several Atlantic Coast barrier islands. Additionally, Gabe compared time-budgeting behavior between captive and free-ranging black-handed spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi ) on the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica. After graduation, he taught coastal and marine ecology at the Chincoteague Bay Field Station near Wallops Island, VA.
Gabe recently earned a Ph.D. in Ecology (May 2021) from the University of Wyoming, where he was hosted by the Department of Zoology and Physiology and the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. His doctoral research investigated the behavioral and demographic responses of amphibian populations to infectious disease and various forms of environmental change. Gabe currently works as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Quantitative Ecology at the Colorado Natural Heritage Program, Colorado State University. His research seeks to better understand the boom-and-bust cycles of black-tailed prairie dogs in the context of climate and sylvatic plague, as well as the implications of those dynamics for livestock production and wildlife conservation in grassland ecosystems. Gabe plans to remain at the interface of basic and applied science by conducting research that both advances ecological theory and helps to develop practical solutions to conservation challenges.
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SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Barrile, G. M., Chalfoun, A. D., and Walters, A. W. (2021). Infection status as the basis for habitat choices in a wild amphibian. The American Naturalist, 197(1), 128–137. https://doi.org/10.1086/711927
Barrile, G. M., Walters, A. W., Webster, M. E.*, and Chalfoun, A. D. (2021). Informed breeding dispersal following stochastic changes to patch quality in a pond-breeding amphibian. Journal of Animal Ecology, 90(8), 1878–1890. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13503
Barrile, G. M., Chalfoun, A. D., and Walters, A. W. (2021). Livestock grazing, climatic variation, and breeding phenology jointly shape the disease dynamics and survival in a wild amphibian. Biological Conservation, 261:109247. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109247
LeCheminant, A. G., Barrile, G. M., Albeke, S. E., and Walters, A. W. (2021). Movement dynamics and survival of stocked Colorado River Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii pleuriticus). Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, 150(6), 679-693. https://doi.org/10.1002/tafs.10322
Barrile, G. M., Chalfoun, A. D, Estes-Zumpf, W., and Walters, A. W. (2022). Wildfire influences individual growth and breeding dispersal, but not survival and recruitment in a montane amphibian. Ecosphere, 13(8), e4212. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4212
Barrile, G. M., Walters, A. W., and Chalfoun, A. D. (2022). Stage-specific environmental correlates of reproductive success in Boreal Toads (Anaxyrus boreas boreas). Journal of Herpetology, 56(1), 34-44. https://doi.org/10.1670/21-023
ONLINE COURSES
Statistical modeling in population ecology (includes instructional videos with associated code and data): https://github.com/gbarrile/PopEcoModeling
MEDIA
Interview with UnDisciplined, a research-themed program on Utah Public Radio: https://www.upr.org/programs/2021-12-02/undisciplined-lets-talk-toads
Selected Presentations
Barrile, G. M. Behavioral and demographic responses to environmental change in a pond-breeding amphibian. University of Wyoming. December 2020. Dissertation defense.
Webster, M. E.*, Barrile, G. M., Chalfoun, A. D., and Walters, A. W. Temporal variation in the number and area of beaver ponds in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, USA during 2006–2018. Wyoming/Colorado Chapter Meeting of the American Fisheries Society. Laramie, Wyoming. February 2020. *indicates mentored presenter
Barrile, G. M., Chalfoun, A. D., and Walters, A. W. Host habitat choices provide behavioral immunity in a natural population. Wyoming/Colorado/Utah Chapter Meeting of the American Fisheries Society. Laramie, Wyoming. February 2018. Best student talk award
Barrile, G. M, Walters, A. W., and Chalfoun, A. D. Host behavior and thermal profile influence infection risk in a wild amphibian population. Wyoming Chapter Meeting of The Wildlife Society. Jackson, Wyoming. November 2017. Best student talk award
Barrile, G. M. Quantitative methods for the analysis of animal movement and habitat selection. Wildlife and Rangeland Workshop. Pinedale, Wyoming. November 2016. Invited talk.