David Douglas
Satellite remote sensing of landscape features that possess high-frequency dynamics, such as sea ice distribution and vegetation phenology, and spatial analyses of how wildlife migrations are influenced by habitat and weather dynamics.
My projects aim to pioneer new analytical avenues in applied wildlife research by combining remote sensing with traditional wildlife studies to answer questions about habitat use and animal movements at landscape scales. The studies I engage align with Department of Interior priorities in the Arctic by addressing a growing need to understand how changes in climate or land use practices affect wildlife migrations, habitat availability, habitat quality, and population dynamics. Climate is the overarching force that controls wildlife habitat resources in the Arctic, so understanding linkages between the physical and biological environment is critical for making informed management decisions in the face of accelerating warming and expanding human activities. My expertise includes tracking wildlife by satellite, monitoring sea ice and vegetation changes by satellite, and the implications of future climate change on Arctic wildlife in general.
Professional Experience
1986 - Present Research Wildlife Biologist USGS Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, Alaska
1985 - 1986 Biological Technician Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Fairbanks, Alaska
1980 - 1984 Biological Technician US Forest Service, Region 4, Ogden, Utah
Education and Certifications
M.S. 1986 Washington State University, Pullman, WA Wildlife Biology
B.A. 1982 Utah State University, Logan, UT Biology
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Science and Products
Moderating Argos location errors in animal tracking data
Effects of sea ice on winter site fidelity of Pacific common eiders (Somateria mollissima v-nigrum)
Polar bear and walrus response to the rapid decline in Arctic sea ice
First description of autumn migration of Sooty Falcon Falco concolor from the United Arab Emirates to Madagascar using satellite telemetry
Eco-virological approach for assessing the role of wild birds in the spread of avian influenza H5N1 along the central Asian flyway
The paradox of extreme high-altitude migration in bar-headed geese Anser indicus
Contrasting extreme long-distance migration patterns in bar-tailed godwits Limosa lapponica
Projected status of the Pacific walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) in the twenty-first century
Tracking the autumn migration of the bar-headed goose (Anser indicus) with satellite telemetry and relationship to environmental conditions
Wild bird migration across the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau: A transmission route for highly pathogenic H5N1
Arctic sea ice decline: Projected changes in timing and extent of sea ice in the Bering and Chukchi Seas
Potential spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 by wildfowl: dispersal ranges and rates determined from large-scale satellite telemetry
Science and Products
Moderating Argos location errors in animal tracking data
Effects of sea ice on winter site fidelity of Pacific common eiders (Somateria mollissima v-nigrum)
Polar bear and walrus response to the rapid decline in Arctic sea ice
First description of autumn migration of Sooty Falcon Falco concolor from the United Arab Emirates to Madagascar using satellite telemetry
Eco-virological approach for assessing the role of wild birds in the spread of avian influenza H5N1 along the central Asian flyway
The paradox of extreme high-altitude migration in bar-headed geese Anser indicus
Contrasting extreme long-distance migration patterns in bar-tailed godwits Limosa lapponica
Projected status of the Pacific walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) in the twenty-first century
Tracking the autumn migration of the bar-headed goose (Anser indicus) with satellite telemetry and relationship to environmental conditions
Wild bird migration across the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau: A transmission route for highly pathogenic H5N1
Arctic sea ice decline: Projected changes in timing and extent of sea ice in the Bering and Chukchi Seas
Potential spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 by wildfowl: dispersal ranges and rates determined from large-scale satellite telemetry
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government