Kathryn A Thomas, Ph.D.
Dr. Kathryn Thomas is the Acting Deputy Director of the Southwest Biological Science Center, currently stationed in Tucson, Arizona.
Kathryn Thomas has worked the Southwestern deserts since 1989 and for the USGS since 1995. Her areas of expertise are in biodiversity studies during the Anthropocene, including studies of vegetation ecology, plant-insect interactions (pollinators), and invasive species (Russian thistle, introduced tree-feeding insects) on species, community, and landscape scales.
Professional Experience
Research Ecologist, 1995-2010, 2012-present: Southwest Biological Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Tucson & Flagstaff, Arizona
Adjunct professor, 2014-present: University of Arizona School of Natural Resources and the Environment
Information Management Liaison, 2010 - 2012: Pacific Northwest Aquatic Monitoring Program, Portland, Oregon
Plant Phenology Program Coordinator, 2007-2010: USA National Phenology Network, Tucson, Arizona
Adjunct professor, 1997-2005: Northern Arizona University, Geography Department
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Geography: University of California at Santa Barbara, CA. "Vegetation and floristic diversity in the Mojave Desert of California: A regional conservation evaluation"
M.S., Environmental Horticulture: University of California at Davis, CA. "Vegetative propagation and Actinorhizal nodulation of Ceanothus spp."
B.S., Biology: University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
Graduate Certificate in Medical Entomology, University of Florida
The Lepidoptera Course, American Museum of Natural History, Portal, Arizona
The Bee Course, American Museum of Natural History, Portal, Arizona
Certificate of Emergency Management Planning, University of Washington
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 14
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Filter Total Items: 32
Modeling habitat of the desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) in the Mojave and parts of the Sonoran Deserts of California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona
Habitat modeling is an important tool used to simulate the potential distribution of a species for a variety of basic and applied questions. The desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) is a federally listed threatened species in the Mojave Desert and parts of the Sonoran Desert of California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona. Land managers in this region require reliable information about the...
Authors
Kenneth E. Nussear, Todd Esque, Richard D. Inman, Leila Gass, Kathryn A. Thomas, Cynthia S. Wallace, Joan B. Blainey, David M. Miller, Robert Webb
An annual plant growth proxy in the Mojave Desert using MODIS-EVI data
In the arid Mojave Desert, the phenological response of vegetation is largely dependent upon the timing and amount of rainfall, and maps of annual plant cover at any one point in time can vary widely. Our study developed relative annual plant growth models as proxies for annual plant cover using metrics that captured phenological variability in Moderate-Resolution Imaging...
Authors
C.S.A. Wallace, K.A. Thomas
Estimation of perennial vegetation cover distribution in the Mojave Desert using MODIS-EVI data
This paper details a method to create regional models of perennial vegetation cover using pre-existing field data and satellite imagery. Total cover of perennial vegetation is an important ecological attribute of desert ecosystems, including the Mojave Desert, USA, an area of 125,000 km2. Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer Enhanced Vegetation Index (MODIS-EVI) data were...
Authors
C.S.A. Wallace, R. S. Webb, K.A. Thomas
Southwest Exotic Mapping Program 2007: Occurrence summary and maps of select invasive, non-native plants in Arizona
An important aspect of management of invasive, non-native plants (invasive plants) is information on the type, location, and magnitude of infestations. Regional development of this information requires an integrated program of data collection, management, and delivery. The Southwest Exotic Plant Mapping Program (SWEMP), coordinated through the U.S. Geological Survey’s Southwest...
Authors
Kathryn A. Thomas, Patricia P. Guertin
Mapping moderate-scale land-cover over very large geographic areas within a collaborative framework: A case study of the Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project (SWReGAP)
Land-cover mapping efforts within the USGS Gap Analysis Program have traditionally been state-centered; each state having the responsibility of implementing a project design for the geographic area within their state boundaries. The Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project (SWReGAP) was the first formal GAP project designed at a regional, multi-state scale. The project area comprises the...
Authors
J. Lowry, R.D. Ramsey, K. Thomas, D. Schrupp, T. Sajwaj, J. R. Kirby, E. Waller, S. Schrader, S. Falzarano, L. Langs, G. Manis, C.A. Wallace, K. J. Schulz, P. Comer, K. Pohs, W. Rieth, C. Velasquez, B. Wolk, William G. Kepner, K. Boykin, L. O'Brien, D. Bradford, B. W. Thompson, Julie S. Prior-Magee
Central Mojave Vegetation Database
No abstract available.
Authors
Kathryn A. Thomas, Janet Franklin, Todd Keeler-Wolf, Peter Stine
Mojave Desert Ecosystem Program: Central Mojave vegetation database
Department of Defense (DOD) and the other desert managers are developing and organizing scientific information needed to better manage the natural resources of the Mojave Desert. Scientific, natural, and cultural resource professionals in the Mojave have agreed upon the importance of developing mechanisms by which land management decisions can be made to maintain the Mojave Desert...
Authors
Kathryn A. Thomas, Todd Keeler-Wolf, Janet Franklin, Peter Stine
Perennial vegetation data from permanent plots on the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada
Perennial vegetation data from 68 permanent plots on the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada, are given for the period of 1963 through 2002. Dr. Janice C. Beatley established the plots in 1962 and then remeasured them periodically from 1963 through 1975. We remeasured 67 of these plots between 2000 and 2003; the remaining plot was destroyed at some time between 1975 and 1993. The plots...
Authors
Robert Webb, Marilyn B. Murov, Todd Esque, Diane E. Boyer, Lesley A. DeFalco, Dustin F. Haines, Dominic Oldershaw, Sara J. Scoles, Kathryn A. Thomas, Joan B. Blainey, Philip A. Medica
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 14
No Result Found
Filter Total Items: 32
Modeling habitat of the desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) in the Mojave and parts of the Sonoran Deserts of California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona
Habitat modeling is an important tool used to simulate the potential distribution of a species for a variety of basic and applied questions. The desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) is a federally listed threatened species in the Mojave Desert and parts of the Sonoran Desert of California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona. Land managers in this region require reliable information about the...
Authors
Kenneth E. Nussear, Todd Esque, Richard D. Inman, Leila Gass, Kathryn A. Thomas, Cynthia S. Wallace, Joan B. Blainey, David M. Miller, Robert Webb
An annual plant growth proxy in the Mojave Desert using MODIS-EVI data
In the arid Mojave Desert, the phenological response of vegetation is largely dependent upon the timing and amount of rainfall, and maps of annual plant cover at any one point in time can vary widely. Our study developed relative annual plant growth models as proxies for annual plant cover using metrics that captured phenological variability in Moderate-Resolution Imaging...
Authors
C.S.A. Wallace, K.A. Thomas
Estimation of perennial vegetation cover distribution in the Mojave Desert using MODIS-EVI data
This paper details a method to create regional models of perennial vegetation cover using pre-existing field data and satellite imagery. Total cover of perennial vegetation is an important ecological attribute of desert ecosystems, including the Mojave Desert, USA, an area of 125,000 km2. Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer Enhanced Vegetation Index (MODIS-EVI) data were...
Authors
C.S.A. Wallace, R. S. Webb, K.A. Thomas
Southwest Exotic Mapping Program 2007: Occurrence summary and maps of select invasive, non-native plants in Arizona
An important aspect of management of invasive, non-native plants (invasive plants) is information on the type, location, and magnitude of infestations. Regional development of this information requires an integrated program of data collection, management, and delivery. The Southwest Exotic Plant Mapping Program (SWEMP), coordinated through the U.S. Geological Survey’s Southwest...
Authors
Kathryn A. Thomas, Patricia P. Guertin
Mapping moderate-scale land-cover over very large geographic areas within a collaborative framework: A case study of the Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project (SWReGAP)
Land-cover mapping efforts within the USGS Gap Analysis Program have traditionally been state-centered; each state having the responsibility of implementing a project design for the geographic area within their state boundaries. The Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project (SWReGAP) was the first formal GAP project designed at a regional, multi-state scale. The project area comprises the...
Authors
J. Lowry, R.D. Ramsey, K. Thomas, D. Schrupp, T. Sajwaj, J. R. Kirby, E. Waller, S. Schrader, S. Falzarano, L. Langs, G. Manis, C.A. Wallace, K. J. Schulz, P. Comer, K. Pohs, W. Rieth, C. Velasquez, B. Wolk, William G. Kepner, K. Boykin, L. O'Brien, D. Bradford, B. W. Thompson, Julie S. Prior-Magee
Central Mojave Vegetation Database
No abstract available.
Authors
Kathryn A. Thomas, Janet Franklin, Todd Keeler-Wolf, Peter Stine
Mojave Desert Ecosystem Program: Central Mojave vegetation database
Department of Defense (DOD) and the other desert managers are developing and organizing scientific information needed to better manage the natural resources of the Mojave Desert. Scientific, natural, and cultural resource professionals in the Mojave have agreed upon the importance of developing mechanisms by which land management decisions can be made to maintain the Mojave Desert...
Authors
Kathryn A. Thomas, Todd Keeler-Wolf, Janet Franklin, Peter Stine
Perennial vegetation data from permanent plots on the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada
Perennial vegetation data from 68 permanent plots on the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada, are given for the period of 1963 through 2002. Dr. Janice C. Beatley established the plots in 1962 and then remeasured them periodically from 1963 through 1975. We remeasured 67 of these plots between 2000 and 2003; the remaining plot was destroyed at some time between 1975 and 1993. The plots...
Authors
Robert Webb, Marilyn B. Murov, Todd Esque, Diane E. Boyer, Lesley A. DeFalco, Dustin F. Haines, Dominic Oldershaw, Sara J. Scoles, Kathryn A. Thomas, Joan B. Blainey, Philip A. Medica