Projects

Current projects

An assessment of the limiting factors for boreal toads in the LaBarge Creek watershed

Boreal toads (Anaxyrus boreas boreas) were once common throughout their native range but have undergone severe declines as well as local extinctions over the past decades. Fungal pathogen Bd (Batrachochytrium…

Climate Refugia and Restoration for Rangeland Fishes

Drought and increasing stream temperatures are isolating many native fishes to smaller areas where conditions will remain suitable for persistence. These areas are known as “refugia.” We aim to Determine…

Community assembly in alpine lakes of the Wind River Range

The interactive effects of top down (fish) and bottom up (nutrients) controls on aquatic biodiversity are poorly understood, particularly in alpine lake environments. Alpine lakes are generally nutrient poor, young…

Elk and Mule Deer Migrations: Wind River Indian Reservation

The Wind River Reservation provides vast and intact winter range for at least 10,000 elk and approximately 5,000 deer on the Owl Creek and Wind River Mountain winter ranges in…

Evaluating moose movement strategies and habitat use across Wyoming

Ecologists are increasingly quantifying animal movement strategies as a function of the underlying patterns of seasonal resources (Merkle et al. 2016, Aikens et al. 2020). Aikens and colleagues found that…

Evaluating the Influence of Wind Energy on the Movement, Distribution, and Habitat Quality of Pronghorn

Although Wyoming has approximately half of the world’s total population of pronghorn, factors influencing local herds have been little studied. We propose to study the effects of wind energy development…

Evaluating the role of spring-fed streams to Snake River cutthroat trout population dynamics

The upper Snake River watershed in northwest Wyoming is characterized by a diversity of stream and river types and is home to the morphologically distinct Snake River cutthroat trout (SRC).…

Red Desert to Hoback Mule Deer Project

Although migration may be the most optimal strategy in numerous ungulate systems, many migratory herds contain individuals that do not migrate or migrate relatively short distances – a phenomena known…

Understanding the Sensitivity of Prairie Fish to Stream Intermittency

Periodic drying of prairie streams is an integral process, and many species present in these areas have adapted to intermittent conditions. In intermittent streams, areas that are resistant to drying…

Past projects

Absaroka Elk Ecology Project

We are working to understand the changing demography and distribution of the Clarks Fork elk herd, which ranges widely in the Absaroka Mountains between Cody, WY and the headwaters of…

Absaroka Wolf-Livestock Project

The Absaroka Wolf-Cattle project was created to evaluate wolf habitat selection and predation in a multiple-use landscape in the Absaroka Mountains of Wyoming, an area characterized by high levels of…

Alpine ecology and climate change

Rapid climate change is one of the defining conservation issues of the 21st century. The effects of changing conditions are seen in most of the biomes on earth and influence…

Amphibian ecology and demography in response to disease and livestock grazing

Forecasting population responses to natural and anthropogenic stressors is a fundamental challenge for ecologists, conservation biologists, and wildlife managers. Predicting amphibian population trajectories, in particular, poses an additional challenge because…

Assessment of Wildlife Vulnerability to Energy Development

With over 200 Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) identified by Wyoming’s State Wildlife Action Plan, and energy infrastructure likely to double in the next twenty years, there are insufficient…

Baggs Mule Deer Study

What are the migration patterns of buck mule deer in Wyoming? There has been such an emphasis on mule deer migration research lately that folks probably think researchers and managers…

Burbot in the Wind River Drainage

Burbot (Lota lota) are native to the Wind River and Bighorn drainage of Wyoming. Over the last several decades, burbot abundance has decreased throughout the species’ native range in Wyoming.…

Columbia Spotted Frogs

Spatially isolated populations of species, especially those with limited mobility, are at an increased risk of extirpation. Though Columbia spotted frogs (Rana luteiventris) have a widespread range throughout western North…

Conservation and recovery of Hornyhead Chub

Hornyhead chub in Wyoming have a highly limited distribution and are classified as a Species of Greatest Conservation Need by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. Western populations of Hornyhead…

Devil’s Canyon Bighorn Sheep Translocation Analysis

Over the past 120 years, many bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) herds throughout Wyoming and the Rocky Mountain west have declined or been extirpated due to disease, habitat loss and fragmentation,…

Ecological Responses to Multiple Stressors in Headwater Streams of the Wyoming Range

Managers and ecologists are under increased pressure to quantify and understand how stressors, natural or anthropogenic, interact to affect environmental and ecological change. While most research has focused on single…

Elk Nutritional Condition Project

For many animal taxa, nutritional condition (i.e., fat levels) is a balance of food intake that increases condition versus energy outputs (i.e., cost of reproduction) that diminish condition.  While nutritional…

Evaluating colonization of mottled sculpin and mountain sucker in the Wyoming Range

Native fish populations in the Wyoming Range are heavily impacted by multiple stressors including oil and gas development, grazing, flow alteration, and climate change. Determining what drives native fish persistence…

Evaluating the effects of Brook Stickleback on native nongame fishes

In Wyoming Brook Stickleback Culaea inconstans co-occur with native non-game fishes including at least six species that are listed as Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN). Despite extensive overlap with…

Evaluating the influence of development on mule deer migrations project

We are evaluating the influence of development type and intensity on migratory behavior of several western Wyoming mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) populations using GPS collar data. These migration routes span…

Evaluation of potential translocation sites for finescale dace in Eastern Wyoming

Specific ecological factors that influence persistence of cold-adapted, native cyprinids on the western Great Plains are not well understood. Finescale Dace (Chrosomus neogaeus) occur in isolated, glacial relict populations in…

Exploring potential mechanisms of reproductive isolation between Yellowstone cutthroat trout and rainbow trout

Yellowstone cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii bouvieri, YSC) are a species of greatest conservation need in Wyoming. Increased angler harvest, habitat loss and interactions with introduced species have led to range-wide declines…

Full Annual Cycle Ecology: Evaluating Seasonal Movements of Mule Deer, Elk and Moose Living in a Common Environment

Numerous taxa, migrate between seasonal ranges to meet nutritional requirements and avoid severe conditions (Si et al. 2015, Armstrong et al. 2016, Acker et al. 2021). Traditional ecological research tends…

Habitat relationships of the Black Rosy-Finch

Seasonally located in high mountain ranges, Black Rosy-Finch (Leucosticte atrata) breed exclusively in alpine environments where snowfields and tundra facilitate foraging, and cracks in cliffs provide nest sites. They are…

Habitat selection and quality of the wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus) in the Snowy Mountains of Wyoming

The wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus) is a glacial relict species in Wyoming, found only within the Snowy and Bighorn Mountains. The Wyoming Game & Fish Department has listed the wood…

Impacts of Natural Gas Development on the Fisheries Communities of the Wyoming Range

Wyoming has experienced a significant increase in energy development over the last two decades. The eastern front of the Wyoming Range has been impacted by this increase. Oil and gas…

Improving Connectivity Across Interstate-80: Pronghorn Movement along a Statewide Barrier

Interstate-80 is a barrier to ungulate movement across Southern Wyoming. Pronghorn (antilocapra Americana) are particularly affected by the Interstate, as it impedes their ability to roam in winter range. Meanwhile,…

Infection Rates and Effects of Ectoparasites on Declining Sagebrush Songbirds

Parasites can affect the fitness of host organisms in a variety of different ways, but the extent of impacts are unknown for many species. While parasites and their hosts have…

Influence of Beetle Kill on Elk and Hunter Resources Selection​ and Interactions

For large ungulates, factors such as nutrition, energetics, and hiding and thermal cover all influence habitat use. For nearly two decades, the forests of the Rocky Mountains (USA) have been…

Jackson Moose Project

We are working to understand the influnece of seasonal limitations and limiting factors on ungulate populations. Landscapes are being altered at increasing rates from both anthropogenic and natural causes. Growing…

Linking plant phenology & elk migratory behavior to predict brucellosis risk

Brucellosis is a bacterial disease resulting in abortions for some ungulates. It remains endemic to elk and bison in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and can be transmitted to cattle via…

Long-term response of sagebrush songbirds to energy development

We are evaluating the long-term effects of energy development on sagebrush songbirds. Specifically, we are comparing historic (2008-2009) and contemporary (2018-2019) abundance data collected in two natural gas fields in…

Mechanisms underlying variation in movements and demography by Great Gray Owls (Strix nebulosa)

This research evaluates the mechanisms underlying variation in movements and demography by irruptive, facultative-migrant species using the Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa) as a model system. Specifically, we will assess…

Mice and Birds Project: Interactions between deer mice and sagebrush-obligate songbirds

We are experimentally investigating the direct (predation of offspring) and indirect (competition for food) effects of deer mice on sagebrush-obligate songbirds in relation to energy development and whether predator removal…

Mountain Pine Beetle Epidemic Impacts on Wildlife

Lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) forests of the Intermountain West are currently experiencing a widespread epidemic of the mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae), due in part to climate change.  Major habitat…

Movement dynamics and survival of hatchery-reared Colorado River cutthroat trout post-stocking

Colorado River Cutthroat trout (CRC) populations have declined significantly across their range. Currently, conservation populations of CRC occupy an estimated 11% of their historic range. In Wyoming, CRC are classified…

Mule Deer Migration Project

Increased levels of energy development across the Intermountain West have created a variety of wildlife management and conservation concerns. Because many of the energy resources in the region occur in…

Native small mammals and invasive grasses

A pervasive and intensifying form of disturbance that can vastly alter wildlife habitat is non-native species invasion. Invasive species threaten biodiversity worldwide and are considered the most significant conservation threat…

Native Sport Fish Conservation Project

Reconstructing the life histories of fish has been a challenging problem for fisheries biologists. Unlike terrestrial organisms, the aquatic environments fish inhabit make direct observations difficult. Traditionally, fisheries biologists have…

Northern Long-eared Bat Maternity Roost Project

Bats provide ecosystem services that benefit the human economy and agriculture. Many bat species across the US are in population decline due to the degradation of natural roosting habitat, wind…

Pika Status in Wyoming Project

Distinctive life-history traits of the pika such as their sensitivity to temperature, limited dispersal ability and occurrence in small isolated populations render them particularly vulnerable to climate change. In the…

Proposed Revisions to Wyoming Surface Water Temperature Regulations

Human activity has the potential to alter a stream’s natural thermal regime both through point source thermal effluent and through indirect alteration of a watershed, commonly seen with intensive grazing…

Raptor Energy Project

Beginning in 2003, the BLM Buffalo Field Office began searching for and monitoring active and inactive raptor nests in close proximity to proposed coal bed methane (CBM) wells in the…

Salmonid movement in the Upper North Platte River Drainage

The Upper North Platte River Drainage, located south of Saratoga, Wyoming, supports a nationally recognized fishery with 76 miles of the North Platte River and 11 miles of the Encampment…

Sediment and Fisheries: An Assessment to Inform Sediment Management Practices at Wyoming Dams

Sediment is a fundamental driver of the physical, chemical and biological integrity of aquatic ecosystems and numerous studies have indicated sediment is a major control on aquatic species composition. Managing…

Shiras Moose Demography Project

Populations of Shiras moose (Alces alces shirasi) in Wyoming and most western states have experienced declines in population size, and recruitment of young in recent decades.  Wildlife managers have expressed…

Songbirds and Energy Development

Energy development has become a primary source of anthropogenic habitat alteration in the western US, with the majority of development occurring within sagebrush dominated landscapes. Since May 2008 we have…

Sublette Moose Project

In February 2011, we began research in the Hoback River watershed to analyze demography and movement of the largest population of Shiras moose in the continental U.S. Our study was…

Sweetwater Mule Deer Movement and Habitat Use Study

Mule deer in the Sweetwater mule deer herd move seasonally from high elevations in Green and Crooks Mountains to wintering habitats at low elevations along the Sweetwater River, but relatively…

Teton Bighorn Sheep Project

Loss of migration patterns and access to seasonal ranges are threats facing ungulate populations throughout the world. Historically, bighorn sheep in the Teton Range near Jackson Hole, Wyoming undertook an…

Umbrella Species Project

The umbrella species concept holds promise as a shortcut to broad-reaching wildlife management and conservation. In this project, we assessed whether dozens of at-risk wildlife species benefit under the umbrella…

Understanding Resource Limitation in Moose

A major goal for many management and conservation efforts is to understand if food limitation is responsible for poor reproduction and subsequently poor or negative population growth rates. The point…

Ungulate Monitoring Project

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s survey, data collection, and modeling protocols have evolved over the years but may not be optimized to allow efficient management of mule deer and…

Usambara Bird Project

Island biogeography theory resulted in now-classic predictions about how habitat fragmentation influences species richness. In particular, small and isolated remnants should have fewer species than larger and less isolated remnants…

Using trail cameras to monitor migratory elk herds in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem

Herd composition surveys are conducted annually for big game species in Wyoming and elsewhere. These surveys provide biologists with information regarding the age and sex ratios of each herd as…

Wind Energy and Grassland Birds

Anthropogenic disturbances can lead to wildlife population declines due to habitat loss and changes in habitat quality. Understanding wildlife responses to these changes can aid us in mediating impacts to…

Yellowstone cutthroat trout hybridization

Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) have been widely introduced across the world, and in some locations hybridize with native trout. LIz Mandeville along with Annika Walters, Katie Wagner (University of Wyoming) and…

In addition to these labs, the Monteith Shop in the University of Wyoming’s Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources helps meet the mission of the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit.

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Chalfoun Lab

 

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Kauffman Lab

 

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Walters Lab