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
Blue-winged Teal and Cross Continental Avian Influenza Transmission
Tracking Data for Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata)
Tracking Data for Black Scoter (Melanitta americana)
Tracking Data for Pacific Loons (Gavia pacifica)
Tracking Data for Tundra Swans (Cygnus columbianus)
Tracking Data for Yellow-billed Loons (Gavia adamsii)
Tracking Data for Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors)
Tracking Data for Red-throated Loons (Gavia stellata)
Tracking Data for Northern Pintails (Anas acuta)
Tracking Data for Marbled Godwits (Limosa fedoa)
Ecosystem Shifts in Arctic Seas
Primary Production Sources and Bottom-up Limitations in Nearshore Ecosystems
Data for Continental-Scale Dispersal of Antimicrobial Resistant Bacteria by Alaska Landfill-Foraging Gulls
Tracking Data for Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis)
Tracking Data for Tufted Puffins (Fratercula cirrhata)
Tracking data for Thick-billed murres (Uria lomvia)
Tracking Data for Common Murres (Uria aalge)
Tracking Data for Red-Faced Cormorants (Phalacrocorax urile)
Tracking Data for Pelagic Cormorants (Phalacrocorax pelagicus)
Multistate Capture and Search Data from the Southern Beaufort Sea Polar Bear Subpopulation in Alaska, 2001-2016
Waterfowl occurrence and residence time as indicators of H5 and H7 avian in?uenza in North American Poultry
Tracking Data for Black Scoter (Melanitta americana)
Tracking Data for Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata)
Tracking data for Red-throated Loons (Gavia stellata)
Waterfowl occurrence and residence time as indicators of H5 and H7 avian influenza in North American Poultry
Catalogue of polar bear (Ursus maritimus) maternal den locations in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas and nearby areas, 1910–2018
The Aleutian Low – Beaufort Sea Anticyclone: A climate index for predicting the timing of springtime melt in the Pacific Arctic cryosphere
Are polar bear habitat resource selection functions developed from 1985-1996 data still useful?
Satellite tracking of gulls and genomic characterization of fecal bacteria reveals environmentally mediated acquisition and dispersal of antimicrobial resistant Escherichia coli on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Non‐linear effect of sea ice: Spectacled Eider survival declines at both extremes of the ice spectrum
Density‐dependent and phenological mismatch effects on growth and survival in lesser snow and Ross's goslings
Movements and dive patterns of pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata) released in the Gulf of Mexico following rehabilitation
Biogeography of pelagic food webs in the North Pacific
Avian predator buffers against variability in marine habitats with flexible foraging behavior
Den phenology and reproductive success of polar bears in a changing climate
Summary of wildlife-related research on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 2002–17
Science and Products
Blue-winged Teal and Cross Continental Avian Influenza Transmission
Tracking Data for Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata)
Tracking Data for Black Scoter (Melanitta americana)
Tracking Data for Pacific Loons (Gavia pacifica)
Tracking Data for Tundra Swans (Cygnus columbianus)
Tracking Data for Yellow-billed Loons (Gavia adamsii)
Tracking Data for Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors)
Tracking Data for Red-throated Loons (Gavia stellata)
Tracking Data for Northern Pintails (Anas acuta)
Tracking Data for Marbled Godwits (Limosa fedoa)
Ecosystem Shifts in Arctic Seas
Primary Production Sources and Bottom-up Limitations in Nearshore Ecosystems
Data for Continental-Scale Dispersal of Antimicrobial Resistant Bacteria by Alaska Landfill-Foraging Gulls
Tracking Data for Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis)
Tracking Data for Tufted Puffins (Fratercula cirrhata)
Tracking data for Thick-billed murres (Uria lomvia)
Tracking Data for Common Murres (Uria aalge)
Tracking Data for Red-Faced Cormorants (Phalacrocorax urile)
Tracking Data for Pelagic Cormorants (Phalacrocorax pelagicus)
Multistate Capture and Search Data from the Southern Beaufort Sea Polar Bear Subpopulation in Alaska, 2001-2016
Waterfowl occurrence and residence time as indicators of H5 and H7 avian in?uenza in North American Poultry
Tracking Data for Black Scoter (Melanitta americana)
Tracking Data for Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata)
Tracking data for Red-throated Loons (Gavia stellata)
Waterfowl occurrence and residence time as indicators of H5 and H7 avian influenza in North American Poultry
Catalogue of polar bear (Ursus maritimus) maternal den locations in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas and nearby areas, 1910–2018
The Aleutian Low – Beaufort Sea Anticyclone: A climate index for predicting the timing of springtime melt in the Pacific Arctic cryosphere
Are polar bear habitat resource selection functions developed from 1985-1996 data still useful?
Satellite tracking of gulls and genomic characterization of fecal bacteria reveals environmentally mediated acquisition and dispersal of antimicrobial resistant Escherichia coli on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Non‐linear effect of sea ice: Spectacled Eider survival declines at both extremes of the ice spectrum
Density‐dependent and phenological mismatch effects on growth and survival in lesser snow and Ross's goslings
Movements and dive patterns of pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata) released in the Gulf of Mexico following rehabilitation
Biogeography of pelagic food webs in the North Pacific
Avian predator buffers against variability in marine habitats with flexible foraging behavior
Den phenology and reproductive success of polar bears in a changing climate
Summary of wildlife-related research on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 2002–17
*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