Michael Westphal
I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Gerber Lab. My areas of interest include: the application of decision theory/optimization methods to conservation biology, spatial ecological modeling, and ecological-economic modeling. I am currently working on a Packard Foundation-funded project evaluating the efficacy of marine reserves in the Gulf of California, Mexico and the development of a decision-support framework to explore management options and explicitly incorporate both the "currencies" of biological conservation and socioeconomics. I received a PhD in Environmental Science, Policy and Management from UC Berkeley in the Spring 2003, and my doctoral research involved metapopulation modeling and optimal habitat reconstruction for birds in the Mount Lofty Ranges, South Australia with Hugh Possingham at the University of Queensland (http://www.ecology.uq.edu.au/research/mwestphal.htm). I arrived at Arizona State University after a brief stint at UFZ - Centre for Environmental Research in Leipzig, Germany, where I was working on optimal mowing of butterfly meadows (www.oesa.ufz.de).

Jeff  Wielgus
My research focuses on the nexus between conservation  ecology and economics, specifically on how specific aspects of ecological change can be incorporated into socioeconomic decision-making. During my doctoral research, I conducted an ecological and economic assessment of anthropogenic degradation to coral reefs in the northern Red Sea, and proposed a system of charges for damages to the reef. I am currently studying the economic costs and benefits of protecting specific areas in the Gulf of California, and how the uncertainty of management alternatives may affect the choices made by individuals in stated preference valuation exercises. I am also studying the effectiveness of marine reserves on the recovery of fish populations and their benefits to local communities.

Julie Young
I am interested in spatial and behavioral ecology of large mammals. I have recently joined the Gerber lab and hope to examine territorial male behavior, behavioral effects of relatedness, and how human disturbance impacts stress levels in California sea lions. My doctoral research focused on spatial ecology of coyotes.  I specifically looked at how food dispersion affects coyote space use and territorial behavior. For my M.Sc., I evaluated territorial fidelity of male guanacos.  I also evaluated behavior of territorial males to determine if females use male behavioral traits in secondary mate choice selection.  

Jen Rupnow
Graduate Student
Marine reserves are advocated as strategies to protect reef fish stocks and promote marine conservation. Reserves are potentially useful because they can conserve and guard the ecological integrity of the reserve site while involving the community, increasing understanding of the ecosystem, and allowing an opportunity for reef fish stocks to achieve their full potential. To date, most reserve design scenarios have been largely drive by political motivations, rather than biological and societal needs. I focus on the N. Gulf of California ecoregion as a case study to develop conservation approaches that account for ecological and societal needs. In particular, I focus on predatory reef fishes and the sport fisheries that target them.

The objective of my project is to gather and analyze information on grouper and giant sea bass reproductive and ecosystem ecology. This knowledge is necessary to implement effective conservation measures in the Northern Gulf of California ecoregion. Because current and increased levels of exploitation could negatively impact Gulf of California fisheries and ecosystem health, we must also identify current levels of recreational fishing activity, and the impact of this fishery on vulnerable fish species.

Andrew Keller
Graduate Student
My independent research focuses on the eastern North Pacific gray whale population and how drastic changes in its abundance relate to classification status under Endangered Species Act criteria. Abundance estimates from over twenty years of census counts are applied to a statistical probability model that projects possible growth rates of a given species, which can then be applied to ESA classification criteria for long-lived vertebrates.

Mark Neff
Graduate Student
 Science is a powerful tool to help us make wise management decisions, but science cannot create policies. I am interested in how we as a society use science and scientific knowledge to make policy decisions. My interests lie in three areas: 1) United States science policy, 2) ecology, and 3) the links between scientific knowledge and decision making processes. I joined the Consortium for Science, Policy and Outcomes (www.cspo.org) in August, 2005 to work on their Science Policy and Research on Climate project. My research will focus on ecology and climate research policy.

I received a Masters degree from the University of Oregons Environmental Studies Program where I researched scenario planning as a way to make decisions in uncertain and politically charged ecosystem management disputes. My thesis was entitled Assessing Future Threats to the Jackson, Wyoming/ National Elk Refuge Social-Ecological System: A Scenario Planning Case Study.

Harriet Van Vleck
Lab Technician
I am currently researching management of several invasive species looking at both the effectiveness and cost of management efforts. This is part of a modeling project by Leah Gerber and John Sabo to determine the effectiveness of reducing variability of a population as a means of management.

Kathy Robertson
Undergraduate Research Student
I am an undergraduate in the Conservation Biology program and have been part of Dr. Gerber's lab for two semesters. I am broadly interested in conservation biology, policy, population dynamics, political ecology, sustainable development, and international affairs (specifically the UN Convention to Combat Desertification).  In Dr. Gerber's lab, my current research is on mapping the distribution of male territories using ArcGIS, in order to understand spatial clustering of males, spatial variation among the sites, and if variation changes throughout time. I also participated in the 2005 summer field season recording behavior data on sea lions at la Isla Granito

Mike Britt
Undergraduate Research Student
I conscientiously make [relevant] decisions in my life based on the impact on our surrounding environment. I share the interests of many to study, protect, and enjoy earth's various forms of life and the ecosystems in which they live. I'm a biology major with work experience in teaching youth of the biology/ecology of the oceans. I've been involved with the Gerber lab through field work since April '04 and currently, am working on entering and analyzing data gathered from these research trips on California sea lions and their behaviors.

Tiffany Lewis
Undergraduate Research Student
My interests as an undergraduate are in conservation biology, with a particular focus on marine ecosystems. I would like to gain a better understanding of how as human beings we can contribute to the conservation of marine ecosystems. I would like to inform others of the importance of our influence on the survival of these ecosystems. I am also working intently on my scuba diving career in order to be able to study marine life and ecosystems under the water as well as above. Currently, in the lab, I am working on entering and analyzing data gathered on the California sea lions in the Gulf of California. I am learning behavioral patterns as well as how important it is to keep track of these animals in order to better understand them.

Matthew Petelle
Undergraduate Research Student
I am an undergraduate apprentice in Dr. Gerbers lab. Currently, I am working on data gathered from this past summer's field work on the California Sea Lion. My focus for graduate school in the future will hopefully include conservation biology.

Ashley Robota
Undergraduate Research Student
As an undergraduate I'm planning on graduating with a degree in Biology. I'm interested in animal behavior, and plan on attending veterinary school to further my studies to research canine behavior. In the lab, I am entering Sea Lion data collected during the summer of 2003 in the Gulf of California. I hope that the data analysis skills that I learn will assist me in furthering my education.

Pam Marcum
Undergraduate Research Student
I'm a graduating senior here at ASU with a B.S. in Biology. In the immediate future I hope to teach marine science to youth groups either at a sea camp or an aquarium. Later I am planning to obtain a master's in zoology with an emphasis on marine biology. My research interest is in elasmobranch behavior and hope to eventually work as a shark biologist with the National Smithsonian Institute.

Cristen Jester
Bio 411 TA and Wolverine Populations in North America
I'm a teacher's assistant for Bio 411 (Advanced Conservation Biology) and concurrently working on preparing a population viability analysis of wolverines in North America (with partners Harriet Van Vleck and Duane Johnson). Data and information about wolverines has been very limited in the past because of the species' preference for secretive and discrete lifestyles. We hope to add this PVA to other available data for insight on the status of the species populations. After graduation in December, I'm planning to go on to graduate school, although the location is still a mystery!

Reneka Hutchinson
Work Study
I want to be a child psychiatrist or a pediatrician. I am majoring in psychology but I’m basically pre-med. I want to finish my undergraduate work here at ASU and then go on to UCLA for medical school, or somewhere back in California for sure. In the lab, I am working on entering articles and papers into a database so they are easily accessible and can be cited as sources easily. I’m labeling and organizing them so that they are easy for Leah to find and can be accessed whenever. I also find resources at the library and do “little things” that anyone needs done around the lab and such.

Cindi Girardin Marine reserves and pathogens My project involves looking at marine pathogens in and around marine reserves and how the presence of a pathogen in a reserve might affect the efficacy of the reserve with respect to the host population. In this case the host population is fish. This study includes looking at several different variables that may contribute to whether or not the host population is affected and if so at what point is it affected and to what degree. This study includes several case studies to better explain the problems that effect a reserve with the presence of pathogens

Kate Buenau
1) Mount Graham red squirrel population viability analysis
2) Population Viability in Unstable Environments: Classifying Endangered Species with the Diffusion-Approximation Model
I am working on population viability analysis (PVA) for populations in changing environments. More specifically, I am examining the effects of periodic fluctuations in growth rates upon a simple model for predicting future population growth. The diffusion-approximation model assumes growth rates come from a consistent distribution, but such consistency is rare in actual environments. I am using simulated populations to determine in which range and types of cyclic variation the model is still useful, working towards applications with field data for fluctuating populations. I have also done work on PVA for the Mt. Graham red squirrel and modeling carrying capacity in sea otters.

Kelly Denomy
Acanthocephalans, sand crabs, and El Nino
Shorebirds and seabirds are definitive hosts for acanthocephalan parasites. The acanthocephalan life cycle begins within the sand crab and is completed within the shore bird. Data in recent years suggests that sea otters have inadvertently become part of the acanthocephalan life cycle. Research has shown that the majority of acanthocephalan related deaths in sea otters are due to pup and juvenile ingestion of sand crabs. We hypothesize that the prevalence of acanthocepalan parasites is correlated with the relative abundance of sand crabs, and secondly that sand crab abundance is correlated with sea surface temperature. My project is to examine the relationship between sea otter mortality, warming trends (e.g., increased frequency in El Niño events), and sand crab abundance.

Yvonne Anderson
Ecology and Conservation of the Sonoran Desert Tortoise
The desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) occurs in the United States and Mexico in two main populations, the Mohave Desert and Sonoran Desert populations. The Mohave population is listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as threatened. While the Sonoran Desert population is not listed as threatened at this time, it is protected. Destruction and fragmentation of habitat are the main factors affecting the Sonoran populations. While my specific study is not yet defined, it will focus on some aspect of the desert tortoise population in Arizona.

Jill Woodrich
Marine reserves and monitoring
We are studying how current MPA’s are being monitored and also looking at guidelines for how they should be monitored. Through literature reviews, we are looking at why MPAs should be successful, but at the time, are not. We hope to come up with some general theories and suggested guidelines for establishment of monitoring protocols for MPA’s.

Jennifer Laliberte
Designing MPAs for migratory marine mammals
There are currently very few marine protected areas (MPAs) that are exclusively designed for migratory marine mammals. In my undergraduate honors thesis, I am looking at ways of designing MPAs for migratory marine mammals, and how management problems specific to these mammals may be solved. I am looking at the different aspects of MPA design and how the unique nature of migratory marine mammals requires the integration of both current MPA models and new models which take into account oceanographic and spatial issues that are normally not an issue in current MPA design. Through this research, I will present a model for creating MPAs specifically for the conservation of large-scale migratory marine mammals.