Conservation Biology Area of Study for M.S., M.P.S. or Ph.D. in Environmental Biology
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This area entails study and maintenance of biological diversity at the level of genes, populations, communities, ecosystems and biomes; intellectual underpinnings include evolutionary theory, systematic biology, population biology and ecosystem science. Conservation biology seeks ways to integrate biological principles with social, economic and political perspectives to achieve conservation goals.
The field is a response of the scientific community to the biodiversity crisis. Conservation biologists view nature’s diversity as important and having inherent value. Training in this field includes experience with the fundamental disciplines and theory of conservation biology, as well as specialization in conservation issues. Students are encouraged to explore the human dimensions of biological conservation through coursework in other departments of the College, and to acquire firsthand experience in the application of biological knowledge to problems by working for a conservation agency. Students find employment in a variety of government and private conservation agencies and in academic institutions. Many also work as administrators, policymakers, teachers and communicators. Current research areas in conservation biology include global climate change, endangered species biology, conservation genetics theory and practice, behavioral ecology, habitat fragmentation, restoration ecology, exotic species biology and control, forest and wetland ecosystem management, tropical ecology, ecological monitoring, conservation education and harvest management.
Participating Faculty
- Jerrold L. Belant; jbelant@esf.edu
wildlife ecology and management, carnivore conservation, human-wildlife conflicts, ecological plasticity, international conservation - Jonathan Cohen; jcohen14@esf.edu
wildlife ecology and management, population and habitat ecology, threatened and endangered species - Stewart Diemont; sdiemont@esf.edu
systems ecology, ecological engineering, traditional ecological knowledge, Latin America, ecosystem restoration, sustainability analysis, natural wastewater treatment systems and re-use, less-developed countries, agroecology - Martin Dovciak; mdovciak@esf.edu
Plant Ecology, Forest Ecosystems, Biodiversity, Global Change, Ecosystem Management and Restoration - Joshua A. Drew; jadrew@esf.edu
- John M. Farrell; jmfarrell@esf.edu
Fisheries Science and Management, Aquatic Ecology, Wetlands Restoration, Invasive Species. - Danilo D. Fernando; dfernando@esf.edu
plant structure and development, reproductive biology of conifers, pollen transformation, genomics and proteomics of pine pollen tube development, willow flowering and tissue culture, genetic diversity of rare and endangered ferns, and plant evolution, diversity and conservation. - Melissa K. Fierke; mkfierke@esf.edu
forest entomology, forest ecology, invasive forest pests, insect-tree interactions, tree defenses - Jacqueline Frair; jfrair@esf.edu
wildlife ecology and management, ecology of large herbivores and predators, animal movements, resource selection, population demography, quantitative methods in conservation, landscape ecology - James Gibbs; jpgibbs@esf.edu
herpetology, vertebrate conservation biology, genetics and ecology in birds, reptiles and amphibians, songbirds, giant tortoise, statistics, wildlife population monitoring, galapagos islands, conservation biology, ecological monitoring, population genetics, applied demography, undergraduate conservation education - Eliezer Gurarie; egurarie@esf.edu
Quantitative wildlife ecology, animal movements, spatial ecology, habitat use, behavior, cognition, population ecology, statistical methods, mathematical modeling, co-production of knowledge. - Thomas R. Horton; trhorton@esf.edu
mycorrhizal plant ecology, molecular ecology, ecology, fungal communities, mycology, fire ecology - Robin W. Kimmerer; rkimmer@esf.edu
plant restoration ecology, bryology, bryoecology, restoration ecology, ethnobotany, conservation biology and bryophyte ecology, traditional ecological knowledge - Donald J. Leopold; djleopold@esf.edu
forest and freshwater wetland ecology, conservation, and restoration, peatland ecology and conservation, local and regional controls of species richness and rarity, dynamics of plant communities as affected by man and environment, management for unique communities and rare species, dendrology, native plants, restoration ecology, rare species conservation - Karin E. Limburg; klimburg@esf.edu
riverine fish and estuarine ecology, fisheries ecology, watershed ecology, systems ecology, ecological economics, fisheries and ecosystem science, coupled human-natural systems, biogeochemistry, fisheries ecology, ecosystem ecology, biogeochemical tracers, modeling - Mark V. Lomolino; island@esf.edu
conservation biology, wildlife, ecology, evolution and biogeography - Dylan Parry; dparry@esf.edu
Biological invasion, climate change, and conservation, primarily in the context of insects in forested ecosystems. - William A. Powell; wapowell@esf.edu
forest biotechnology, molecular plant-microbe interactions, genetic engineering in plant conservation, antimicrobial peptide design, plant gene design, plant pathology, molecular biology - Rebecca Rundell; rrundell@esf.edu
evolutionary biology, conservation biology, speciation, adaptive and nonadaptive radiations, biogeography, phylogenetics, systematics, Pacific island radiations and biodiversity conservation, land snails, marine/aquatic microscopic invertebrates - Kimberly L. Schulz; kschulz@esf.edu
nutrient and exotic species effects on aquatic ecosystems, ecological stoichiometry, aquatic community and ecosystem ecology, bioenergetics, nutrient cycling, lower food web studies, great lakes, finger lakes, plankton, limnology, aquatic ecology, biogeochemistry, invasive species - Michael L. Schummer; mlschumm@esf.edu
Waterfowl Ecology, Waterfowl Management, Waterfowl Conservation, Wetlands Management, Wetlands Conservation, Ornithology, Plant-Animal Associations, Conservation Biology, Wildlife Ecology, Wetlands Ecology, Wildlife-habitat relationships, ecology, climate change, human dimensions of wildlife, avian toxicology - Stephen A. Teale; sateale@esf.edu
forest entomology, insect behavior, pheromones of forest insects, insect ecology, pest management, chemical ecology, evolution of pheromone communications - H. Brian Underwood; hbunderw@syr.edu
wildlife ecology, deer, small mammals, songbirds, quantitative ecology and biostatistics, population surveys, ecological modeling and simulation, national park management, applied population analysis, life-history evolution, trophic dynamics, large mammal management - Alexander Weir; aweir@esf.edu
conservation mycology, fungal biodiversity and conservation, fungal-arthropod interactions, biology of parasites and symbionts, systematics and evolutionary biology of fungi, fungi and humans, biology of parasites and symbionts
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Current Graduate Students in Conservation Biology
Current Students Only currently registered students appear — new names appear at start of academic year
Personal Statement
I majored in Zoology in Argentina, and earned an MSc for working towards the conservation of native ecosystems in productive landscapes. My practice as an environmental consultant took me on extended tours through the wild side of some of the most important natural landscapes of Argentina: the Patagonian deserts, the Andes mountains, the Iberá wetlands, and the subtropical forests in Misiones.
Graduate Research Topic
My current research takes place across the Finger Lakes and the Adirondack Mountains in New York State, and aims to understand the role and importance of ants in the dispersal of forest wildflowers and in the recovery of the herbaceous layer in secondary forests.
Previous Graduate Study: Universidade Federal de Minas (Ecology )
Graduate Research Topic
Effects of forest loss and fragmentation on felids in Brazil. Collaboration with Brazilian institutions, including CENAP/ ICMBio (National Research Center for Carnivore Conservation/ Chico Mendes for the Conservation of Biodiversity), Guarulhos Zoo, and São Paulo City Hall.
Graduate Research Topic
My current research, and dissertation topic, is focused on the influence of climate induced snow cover variability and its corresponding impact on behavioral ecology and trophic interactions of snowshoe hare and fisher.
google scholar profile
Web Link
Personal Statement
Well howdy there! I study the causes and correlates of species diversity, especially as they pertain to ants and land snails in Palau. Check out the links for more info!
Graduate Research Topic
Conservation Biology; community ecology; evolutionary biology; biogeography; some dabbling in simulations of evolution
Home Page
Web Link
follow me on twitter or don't
Web Link
Palau field course blog
Web Link
sometimes I help this ant blog
Web Link
I fell into a soil pit once
Web Link
Graduate Research Topic
I am studying winter zooplankton assemblages in the Finger Lakes of New York.
Graduate Research Topic
Effects of anthropogenic mercury pollution and land use change on avian health and diversity
Graduate Research Topic
Assessing impacts of removing European buckthorn, Rhamnus cathartica, in neighborhood parks in the City of Syracuse
Graduate Research Topic
My research will examine changes in fish community compositions in the Oswego River watershed from 1927 to the present, and which environmental factors may have driven these changes.
Graduate Research Topic
Marginal plant species for use on green roofs and the effects of species composition on green roof functioning for stormwater reduction
Undergraduate Study
University of Pittsburgh (Ecology and Evolution, Linguistics)
Social Media
@mslissecologist on Instagram and Twitter
Joseph Makaure
jmakaure@syr.eduConservation Biology
Degree Sought: PHD
Advisor(s): Stewart and Rundell
Personal Statement
In addition to research, classwork, and teaching here at SUNY-ESF, I am also a professional wedding photographer traveling to photograph people in love. Through photographs, I found my love for people, and that love for people has been incorporated into my love for science, so I am fascinated by the intersection of human culture and ecological community. Particularly, I hope to show that humans can not only be a force for environmental good, but that we have a responsibility to do so. It would be an honor if you stopped by my corner of the web: www.garrettmaynard.com
Graduate Research Topic
I am developing a project relating to the urban restoration of locally relevant food species (such as Morus rubra, the red mulberry) in Syracuse city parks. The project's focal points are the effects of European buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) and multiple planting strategies on the efficacy of this restoration. This will provide meaningful insights and guidance for the growing urban food forest movement, city planners, and ecological restorationists alike.
Undergraduate Study
Roberts Wesleyan College (Biology with Environmental Science). My undergraduate honors capstone project focused on restoring native pollinator habitat on campus while also performing a three-season pollinator population assessment in multiple campus areas.
Graduate Research Topic
My research will focus on how science and policy interactions affect the management and protection of endangered species.
Personal Statement
I am currently a Ph.D student in the Fierke lab working on the long term biocontol of the emerald ash borer. As introduced parasitoids are established across New York State we must assess their ecological impacts over time. My current projects include assessing the distribution of biocontrol agents across the urban gradient, and constructing EAB lifetables in aftermath forests.
Graduate Research Topic
Emerald ash borer and associated parasitoids
Graduate Research Topic
My dissertation research is focused on the inland salt marshes of the northeastern United States. I am performing the first thorough survey of the halophytic flora of Central New York's inland salt marshes in over 40 years and using my findings to assess how it has changed over time. It is unknown how halophytes native to these rare disjunct wetlands came to occupy them: by dispersal or vicariance events, and from eastern or western populations. I am addressing this question by investigating the phylogeography of the widespread halophyte Schoenoplectus americanus (Cyperaceae) as a case study.
Favorite Quote
"There is a kind of lazy pleasure in useless and out-of-the-way erudition." -Jorge Luis Borges
Daisy de Fatima Sanchez Mosqueda
dsanch15@syr.eduConservation Biology
Degree Sought: MS
Advisor(s): Frair
Personal Statement
From Iquitos, the capital of the biggest "state" of Peru, which is part of the Amazon rainforest and contains one of the highest levels of biodiversity in South America. I'm a Fulbright and Concytec grantee Master's student in Environmental & Forest Biology. My background includes wildlife monitoring (using invasive and non-invasive sampling methods for terrestrial and aquatic mammals, primates, alligators, birds, and bats) in the tropical rainforests of Peru and part of the Andes Amazon region. My focus is on wildlife conservation, particularly mammal research. I also have experience in field work in extreme conditions with indigenous communities and rural citizens as part of different projects launched in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest. My research interests center on wild cats and their prey, understanding their inter- and intraspecific interactions, and human-wildlife conflicts.
Favorite Quote
“YOU cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around YOU. What YOU do makes a difference, and YOU have to decide what kind of difference YOU want to make.” Jane Goodall (:
Links
My Photography: https://www.instagram.com/mr.zarfos/
Personal Statement
At ESF I study the relationships between acid rain, beech bark disease, and plant and bird community composition in Adirondack hardwood forests. I am enrolled in the MA of international relations program at Syracuse University, where I focus on international security. My volunteering efforts are dedicated to improving land conservation in my home town of Deep River CT. I enjoy producing nature and landscape photography in my free time.
