Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) invasion of sagebrush habitats after a fire in northwestern Nevada, U.S.A.
Cameron L Aldridge, PhD
Dr. Cameron Aldridge is a Supervisory Research Ecologist at the Fort Collins Science Center. Dr. Aldridge's work focuses on understanding animal-habitat relationships, with an emphasis on conservation ecology and population demography, across grassland, shrubland, and alpine ecosystems.
Dr. Cameron Aldridge is a Supervisory Research Ecologist with the US Geological Survey, based at the Fort Collins Science Center, and Chief of the Ecosystem and Landscape Dynamics Research Branch. He works in collaboration with the Natural Resource Ecology Lab at Colorado State University, as an Affiliate Research Scientist at NREL and an Affiliate Professor with ESS and GDPE. His research is diverse, but he is best recognized as one of the foremost sage-grouse ecologists in the world. He has a large research program focused on understanding the conservation and management of greater and Gunnison sage-grouse and their habitats. His research team includes both undergraduate and graduate students, research associates, post-doctoral fellows, and research scientists, all of which collaborate to understand why sage-grouse populations have declined, what major factors affect resource conditions and quality for sage-grouse, and what drives population dynamics. The Aldridge Lab works closely on these issues with state and federal partners, as well as NGOs, conservation groups and industry. More broadly, research in the Aldridge Lab involves understanding animal-habitat relationships, with an emphasis on conservation ecology and population demography, with a focus on grassland, shrubland, and alpine ecosystems. Researchers in the lab are addressing the effects of energy development, land-use change, and climate change on conserving wildlife populations, their habitats, and the ecosystems they inhabit. Species that we are currently studying include songbirds and small mammals, snakes and lizards, and grouse, such as white-tailed ptarmigan and sage-grouse. We also work with plant communities and exotic invasive plants, understanding how external drivers such as climate, grazing and energy development affect plant communities. We work across spatial scales and use statistical and empirical modeling to answer these research and conservation questions, most of which have direct applications for conservation and management of species, most notably sage-grouse, and their habitats.
Professional Experience
August 2023-Present Branch Chief, and Research Supervisory Ecologist, Ecosystem and Landscape Dynamic Research Branch, US Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado.
March 2022-Present Acting Branch Chief, Ecosystem and Landscape Dynamic Research Branch, US Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado
Feb. 2020-Present Research Ecologist, US Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado
Feb. 2020-Present Affiliate Research Scientist, Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University
Feb. 2020-Present Affiliate Professor, Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University
Jan. 2017-20 Finance Committee Member for the Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University
July 2015-20 Associate Professor with Tenure, Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State University
July 2015-Present Research Scientist III, Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University & U.S. Geological Survey, FORT Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado
Aug. 2014-16 Executive Committee Member, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University
Jan. 2012-18 Graduate Program Advisor for the Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University.
Aug. 2010 Assistant Professor, Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State University.
July 2009 Research Scientist II, Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University & U.S. Geological Survey, FORT Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado.
Feb. 2007-Present Faculty Member, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology (GDPE), Colorado State University
Feb. 2007-11 Joint Faculty Member, Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University
Oct. 2006 Research Scientist, Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University & U.S. Geological Survey, FORT Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado.
Education and Certifications
2005 - 2006 Post Doctoral Research Fellow, Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University & U.S. Geological Survey, FORT Science Center, Fort Collins, CO.
2000 - 2005 Doctorate of Philosophy in Ecology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta.
1998 - 2000 Master of Science in Biology, Department of Biology, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan.
1991 - 1996 Bachelor of Science double major in Ecology and Zoology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta.
Science and Products
Remote sensing for monitoring mine lands and recovery efforts
Leveraging local habitat suitability models to enhance restoration benefits for species of conservation concern
Despite regional variation, Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus (Pinyon Jay) densities generally increase with local pinyon–juniper cover and heterogeneous ground cover
Estimating traffic volume and road age in Wyoming to inform resource management planning: An application with wildlife-vehicle collisions
Modeling the potential habitat gained by planting sagebrush in burned landscapes
Think regionally, act locally: Perspectives on co-design of spatial conservation prioritization tools and why end-user engagement altered our approach
Geographic principles applied to population dynamics: A spatially interpolated integrated population model
Status of greater sage-grouse in the Bi-State Distinct Population Segment—An evaluation of population trends, habitat selection, and efficacy of conservation actions
The potential influence of genome-wide adaptive divergence on conservation translocation outcome in an isolated greater sage-grouse population
Range-wide population trend analysis for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)—Updated 1960–2023
A habitat-centered framework for wildlife climate change vulnerability assessments: Application to Gunnison sage-grouse
Evaluating spatial coverage of the greater sage-grouse umbrella to conserve sagebrush-dependent species biodiversity within the Wyoming basins
Gunnison Sage-grouse Prioritizing Restoration of Sagebrush Ecosystems Tool (PReSET)
Prioritizing Restoration of Sagebrush Ecosystems Tool (PReSET): A USGS-facilitated Decision-support Tool for Sagebrush Ecosystem Conservation and Restoration Actions
Data Harmonization for Greater Sage-Grouse Populations
Modeling Songbird Density-Habitat Relationships to Predict Population Responses to Environmental Change Within Pinyon-juniper and Sagebrush Ecosystems
Estimating road age and traffic volume for disturbance assessments in Wyoming
Characterizing greater sage-grouse climate-driven maladaptation
Characterizing the environmental drivers of range-wide gene flow for greater sage-grouse
Development and application of genomic resources for the greater sage-grouse
Linking post-fire sagebrush restoration and sage-grouse habitat recovery
Prioritizing restoration and conservation of Wyoming’s sagebrush ecosystems for wildlife and sagebrush connectivity
Prioritizing sagebrush protection and restoration within the upper Colorado River Basin
Prioritizing restoration and conservation of sagebrush ecosystems in northwestern Colorado
Fuel Break Treatments in the Sagebrush Biome of the Western United States, 1953 - 2018
Sagebrush recovery projections across the biome, 30 years after two seeding treatment applications, and associated model data (1986-2021)
Maps of habitat suitability improvement potential for the Gunnison Sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) satellite populations in Southwestern Colorado
Data and analytical code associated with pinyon jay local-scale density-habitat relationship model (2008 - 2020) in the InterMountain West, USA
Wyoming road age and traffic volume estimated with machine learning and graph theory
Greater sage-grouse habitat suitability 15-years post simulated fire event and sagebrush transplanting (2015-2030)
Greater sage-grouse genetic data and R code for evaluating conservation translocations in the northwestern United States, 1992–2021
Summer Roost Site Suitability Analyses of Four North American Bat Species in the Eastern United States
Maps of multiple future threats and stable areas for Gunnison sage-grouse habitats across three scenarios (2016-2070)
Data and analytical code assessing eleven songbird species' responses to environmental change during summertime (2008 - 2020) in the InterMountain West, USA
Bibliography of hydrological and ecological research in the Great Basin terminal lakes, USA
Sagebrush structural connectivity yearly and temporal trends based on RCMAP sagebrush products, biome-wide from 1985 to 2020
Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) invasion of sagebrush habitats after a fire in northwestern Nevada, U.S.A.
A white-tailed ptarmigan on Mt. Evans, a fourteener in Northern Colorado.
A white-tailed ptarmigan on Mt. Evans, a fourteener in Northern Colorado.
A white-tailed ptarmigan sits on the side of Mt. Evans in northern Colorado.
A white-tailed ptarmigan sits on the side of Mt. Evans in northern Colorado.
grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases (version 1.3.0)
veg_sim: Modeling Greater sage-grouse habitat suitability 15-years post simulated fire event and sagebrush transplanting (2015-2030)
grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases, version 1.2.0
popcluster: hierarchical population monitoring frameworks, Version 2.0.0
Spatial scale selection for greater sage-grouse population trends, Version 1.0.0
grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases, version 1.1.0
lcp_centrality: Defining least-cost paths and graph theory centrality measures
grsg_lekdb: Compiling and standardizing greater sage-grouse lek databases
popcluster: Developing Hierarchical Population Monitoring Frameworks for mobile species with high site fidelity
Science and Products
Remote sensing for monitoring mine lands and recovery efforts
Leveraging local habitat suitability models to enhance restoration benefits for species of conservation concern
Despite regional variation, Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus (Pinyon Jay) densities generally increase with local pinyon–juniper cover and heterogeneous ground cover
Estimating traffic volume and road age in Wyoming to inform resource management planning: An application with wildlife-vehicle collisions
Modeling the potential habitat gained by planting sagebrush in burned landscapes
Think regionally, act locally: Perspectives on co-design of spatial conservation prioritization tools and why end-user engagement altered our approach
Geographic principles applied to population dynamics: A spatially interpolated integrated population model
Status of greater sage-grouse in the Bi-State Distinct Population Segment—An evaluation of population trends, habitat selection, and efficacy of conservation actions
The potential influence of genome-wide adaptive divergence on conservation translocation outcome in an isolated greater sage-grouse population
Range-wide population trend analysis for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)—Updated 1960–2023
A habitat-centered framework for wildlife climate change vulnerability assessments: Application to Gunnison sage-grouse
Evaluating spatial coverage of the greater sage-grouse umbrella to conserve sagebrush-dependent species biodiversity within the Wyoming basins
Gunnison Sage-grouse Prioritizing Restoration of Sagebrush Ecosystems Tool (PReSET)
Prioritizing Restoration of Sagebrush Ecosystems Tool (PReSET): A USGS-facilitated Decision-support Tool for Sagebrush Ecosystem Conservation and Restoration Actions
Data Harmonization for Greater Sage-Grouse Populations
Modeling Songbird Density-Habitat Relationships to Predict Population Responses to Environmental Change Within Pinyon-juniper and Sagebrush Ecosystems
Estimating road age and traffic volume for disturbance assessments in Wyoming
Characterizing greater sage-grouse climate-driven maladaptation
Characterizing the environmental drivers of range-wide gene flow for greater sage-grouse
Development and application of genomic resources for the greater sage-grouse
Linking post-fire sagebrush restoration and sage-grouse habitat recovery
Prioritizing restoration and conservation of Wyoming’s sagebrush ecosystems for wildlife and sagebrush connectivity
Prioritizing sagebrush protection and restoration within the upper Colorado River Basin
Prioritizing restoration and conservation of sagebrush ecosystems in northwestern Colorado
Fuel Break Treatments in the Sagebrush Biome of the Western United States, 1953 - 2018
Sagebrush recovery projections across the biome, 30 years after two seeding treatment applications, and associated model data (1986-2021)
Maps of habitat suitability improvement potential for the Gunnison Sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) satellite populations in Southwestern Colorado
Data and analytical code associated with pinyon jay local-scale density-habitat relationship model (2008 - 2020) in the InterMountain West, USA
Wyoming road age and traffic volume estimated with machine learning and graph theory
Greater sage-grouse habitat suitability 15-years post simulated fire event and sagebrush transplanting (2015-2030)
Greater sage-grouse genetic data and R code for evaluating conservation translocations in the northwestern United States, 1992–2021
Summer Roost Site Suitability Analyses of Four North American Bat Species in the Eastern United States
Maps of multiple future threats and stable areas for Gunnison sage-grouse habitats across three scenarios (2016-2070)
Data and analytical code assessing eleven songbird species' responses to environmental change during summertime (2008 - 2020) in the InterMountain West, USA
Bibliography of hydrological and ecological research in the Great Basin terminal lakes, USA
Sagebrush structural connectivity yearly and temporal trends based on RCMAP sagebrush products, biome-wide from 1985 to 2020
Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) invasion of sagebrush habitats after a fire in northwestern Nevada, U.S.A.
Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) invasion of sagebrush habitats after a fire in northwestern Nevada, U.S.A.
A white-tailed ptarmigan on Mt. Evans, a fourteener in Northern Colorado.
A white-tailed ptarmigan on Mt. Evans, a fourteener in Northern Colorado.
A white-tailed ptarmigan sits on the side of Mt. Evans in northern Colorado.
A white-tailed ptarmigan sits on the side of Mt. Evans in northern Colorado.