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FOREST AND WILDLIFE ECOLOGY NEWS A Newsletter for Dept. of Forest and Wildlife Ecology Staff, Students and Alumni Vol. 13, No. 2 October 2010

tain and improve programs that provide Chief of Operations for Milwaukee County News from excellent training and a continuing stream Department of Parks, Recreation, and the Chair of people, as capable as our alumni, to Culture. In addition, Guy will receive the carry on into the future the important work National Recreation Park Association’s of management and conservation of natu- Young Professional of the Year Award at its t is so gratifying to read another issue ral resources. conference in October in the Twin Cities. Iof Forest and Wildlife Ecology News. Email: [email protected] The many activities and impacts of our alumni, and current faculty members and Erin Kreutz (B.S. Forest Science 2001) their trainees (including undergraduate, plans to wrap up her Master’s degree in Natural and Cultural Resource Management graduate, postdoctoral) at the state, Alumni Update at Central University this win- national, and international level will ter. Her thesis focuses on the feasibility of inspire our dozen newest graduate stu- Washington State DNR selling carbon cred- dents, who are introduced in this issue. its during a down timber market to support You will be proud to learn of a late-break- The 2000s the State Trusts (primarily K-12 education). ing announcement that underscores these Congratulations to Margaret (Maggie) Erin also works for Natural Resources achievements. The National Research Milligan (formerly Margaret Grosenick) Conservation Service in Ellensburg, WA. Council just released its "Data-Based (B.S. Forest Management and Recreation She works with small land timber owners Assessment of Research- Resources Management 2005) and Brian and agricultural producers in Kittitas Programs in the " and our Milligan (B.S. Forest Management 2005) County, WA. In other big news Erin says forest ecology program ranked first in the who were married in April of 2008. Up until she got married last year to a UW-Madison nation among 34 forestry programs! (see: April of 2010 they both worked for the U.S. alumnus in Communication. And she nur- http://news.cals.wisc.edu/2010/09/30/cals- Forest Service on the Rogue River-Siskiyou tures her passion for playing the harp by ph-d-programs-near-top-of-doctoral- National Forest in Southern Oregon. In April teaching others to play, some of whom trav- class/). Although there was no analogous they moved to Salmon, Idaho, where they el 90 minutes to get to their lessons. Email: ranking of wildlife programs, it is possible both work on the Salmon-Challis National [email protected] to make some comparisons of research Forest. Brian works on the Salmon Heli- activity. For features such as publications Rappel Crew (rappelling out of helicopters Alumni Update continues on page 2 and awards per faculty member, our onto wildland fires) and Maggie is the forestry faculty ranked first and the Timber Management Assistant for the North wildlife faculty ranked second among Zone of the Salmon-Challis National Forest. FOREST AND WILDLIFE their peer programs around the nation. Maggie’s email is: [email protected] and ECOLOGY NEWS is published by the This recognition is very much based on Brian’s email is: [email protected] Department of Forest and Wildlife achievements of current and past faculty Ecology and our alumni. We continue to work James Turner (Ph.D. Forestry 2004) has hard in what are challenging times. taken a new position with AgResearch in Please send comments and news to: Despite University-wide budget cuts and a Hamilton, New Zealand, as a Resource Dept. of Forest and Wildlife Ecology state-mandated furlough program, our Economist. James says his new position will 1630 Linden Drive department in the last two years has actu- give him an opportunity to learn more about University of Wisconsin-Madison ally increased our number of undergradu- the New Zealand Agricultural sector and to Madison, WI 53706-1598 ate, graduate and postdoctoral trainees, work in the same city where he lives. Email: Tel. 608-262-9975 Fax 608-262-9922 [email protected] and we did it by increasing the revenue Email: [email protected] stream from extramural sources (e.g., Web site: http://fwe.wisc.edu/ competitive grants). With your help, Guy Smith (B.S. Recreation Resources Editor/design: Mary Miron everyone pulling together, we will main- Management 2003) has been promoted to Page 2 FOREST AND WILDLIFE ECOLOGY NEWS

Alumni Update continued from page 1

The Kemp Station Celebrates a Half Century Dave Lauten (M.S. Wildlife Ecology 1995) and his wife, Kathy of Research and Education Castelein, are working with Snowy Plovers through the Oregon Biodiversity Information Center based at Portland State University. They work out of their home on the south coast of Oregon trying to keep the plover population stable to increasing, a challenging task, reports Dave, due to habitat loss, predation pressure, limited funding, and the impact of global warming. Email: [email protected] The 1970s Terry Rich (B.S. Wildlife Ecology 1972) has coordinated the bird con- servation partnership Partners in Flight (www.PartnersInFlight.org) ver 140 friends, neighbors and since 2000. He co-authored the O“alums” gathered earlier this sum- organization’s latest publication, mer to celebrate 50 years of natural “Saving Our Shared Birds: Partners resources research and teaching at Kemp in Flight Tri-National Vision for Station. Folks toured station buildings, Landbird Conservation.” The publi- went on interpretive nature walks, took cation contains a vulnerability pontoon boat rides, and participated in assessment and conservation priori- fun and informative outreach programs. ties for all 882 native landbird species that regularly breed in the A highlight was having donors Susan U.S., Canada, and Mexico. The Small and Sally Greenleaf join the cele- publication can be viewed at the bration. It was their generous gift of land Partners in Flight website. Email: and buildings in 1960 that created Kemp [email protected] Station. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed hearing their childhood reminiscences Top photo: Participants enjoyed a boat about what it was like to grow up on tour of Tomahawk Lake with narration Alumni Update continues on page 3 Kemp’s Point in the 1920s. from Professor Scott Craven (far left). Lower photo: Benefactors Sally The day had the friendly feel of a family Greenleaf (left) and Susan Small sit on reunion and, in many ways, that’s exact- the steps of Kemp Lodge. It was their ly what it was. For some, this was their vision and generosity that created Kemp first visit in more than 30 years. For all, Station 50 years ago. the anniversary celebration was an opportunity to return to a place that was, and continues to be, a part of their life. FOREST AND WILDLIFE ECOLOGY NEWS Page 3

Alumni Update continued from page 2 Student News Tom Albright former Post doctoral fel- low in the department accepted an assis- tant professor position focusing on eco- Welcome New Graduate Students climatology in the Geography Department at the University of Nevada, he Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology has a number of new graduate stu- Reno. Tom will be teaching and continu- Tdents this fall. We welcome each of them to the department. Below is a brief bio ing to research biotic responses to sketch provided by each student as a means of introduction. extreme weather and climate change. Although Tom says he and his family Patricia Alexandre, Forestry Ph.D. will always be Badgers at heart, they are I am a Forest Engineer (Forester) with a Masters degree from Technical University of enjoying the friendly people and comfort- Lisbon, Portugal. I earned a Fulbright scholarship and will be doing my Ph.D. studies able climate of Reno. Email: here with Professor Volker Radeloff. I’m interested in observing the vegetation dynamics [email protected] after large fires as well as understanding the influence of natural and human disturbances at the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI). Alum Ronald Labisky Rachel Arango, Forestry Ph.D. receives the Aldo Leopold I currently work at the Forest Products Laboratory on the west end of the UW-Madison campus. After finishing my Masters degree in Entomology, I am beginning a Ph.D. pro- Award gram in the Forest and Wildlife Ecology Department studying antimicrobial properties in Ronald Labisky (M.S. Wildlife Ecology the eastern subterranean termite (Reticulitermes flavipes) with Professor Ken Raffa. 1956 and Ph.D. Wildlife Ecology 1968) Most of my free time is spent teaching or taking bellydance classes, which unfortunately was awarded The does not count for a minor! Wildlife Sarah Carter, Forestry Ph.D. Society’s highest I received a B.S. degree from Lewis & in Portland, Oregon and a M.S. honor, the Aldo degree from the School of Fisheries where I evaluated the Leopold Award. potential for sea otters and commercial urchin harvests to impact nearshore benthis com- The award hon- munities in the . This fall, I began a Conservation Planning Ph.D. proj- ors distinguished ect working with Professors Volker Radeloff and Anna Pidgeon. I am originally from the service to West Coast, but have lived in Madison since 1999. For much of that time I have worked wildlife conser- as a conservation biologist for the Wisconsin DNR in the Wildlife and Endangered vation and was Resources Programs. presented at the society’s 2009 annual conference in Monterey, California last Tera Galante, Forestry Ph.D. fall. Labisky is Professor Emeritus in the I just finished a Masters degree from SUNY ESF in Syracuse, New York, studying ecto- mycorrhizal ecology. Currently I am in the Mladenoff Lab working in the Flambeau Department of Wildlife Ecology and River State Forest assessing the of woody biofuel harvest and its impacts Conservation at the . on the local environment. I look forward to meeting everyone and learning about other He has had an illustrious career on many research going on in the department. Please feel free to stop by my office in AB9 and fronts, including teaching, wildlife say hello. research, natural resource conservation, policy formation, and administration. Dr. Andrew Norton, Wildlife Ecology Ph.D. Labisky's recognition adds to a long list I received a Wildlife and Fisheries Science B.S. from the -Twin of Leopold Award winners affiliated with Cities and a M.S. degree from Penn State University, where I evaluated methods used to the Department of Forest and Wildlife estimate white-tailed deer abundance. This Fall I will begin a deer population ecology Ecology. Ph.D. project working with Professor Tim Van Deelen and Dr. Chris Jacques from the

New Graduate Students continues on page 4 Page 4 FOREST AND WILDLIFE ECOLOGY NEWS

New Graduate Students, continued from page 3 Two Undergrads receive WI DNR. I am originally from South Africa but spent 10 years living in southwestern Minnesota. I look forward to once again Hilldale Fellowships living in the Upper Midwest where I can pursue my other inter- ongratulations to Yushi Oguchi and Krista Lessner, both ests, which include hunting, fishing, rugby, and football. Crecipients of a 2010-2011 Hilldale Undergraduate Marin Palmer, Forestry M.S. Research Fellowship. Each will receive a grant of $4,000 and My name is Marin and I am coming to Madison from Washington will work with Professor Bill Karasov on a research project. State via Peace Corps Paraguay. I am part of the Mladenoff Lab Professor Karasov will also receive $1,000 for each student to working on a woody biofuels projects. I enjoy biking around offset costs of their research projects. Krista is a senior major- Madison, running, gardening, and relaxing by the beautiful lakes. ing in Biology and a Certificate in Environmental Studies. Carlos Ramirez Reyes, Forestry Ph.D. She is in the process of finalizing her research project. Yushi I’m interested in landscape change patterns and their influence on Oguchi is a senior majoring in Wildlife Ecology. His research habitats and natural resources and working with Professor Volker will focus on the role of infectious diseases in the decline of Radeloff. My free time interests range from living room music Golden-winged Warblers. Notes Yushi, “I am very grateful to listening and reading sessions to hiking and biking when I have Dr. Karasov and the members of his laboratory for advice and the chance. I enjoy learning from other people. Coming from assistance in developing this project. Dr. Scott Lutz and his lower latitudes, I spent two years of studies at colder places to graduate student, Monica Fowlds, helped me in fieldwork, acclimate to Madison winters. and Dr. Rachel Vallender with the Canadian Museum of Autumn Sabo, Forestry Ph.D. Nature and Laura Stenzler with the Cornell Lab of I am a doctoral student researching how deer influence forest Ornithology agreed to carry out some of the molecular work ecosystems under the advisement of Professor Eric Kruger. I for me. It truly is a great privilege to be able to do this received my B.S. in Biology from Pennsylvania State University project!” and my M.S. in Natural Resources from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Since then I have worked as a botanist for on the pathology and nutritional relationships of Diploidia sp. Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Forestry, an educator with Wisconsin (pine blight) in Red Pine in Central Wisconsin. I’m happy to be DNR, and a vegetation specialist for the U.S. Forest Service. back at it and in the woods again. Sarah Traver, Forestry M.S. Camille Warbington, Wildlife Ecology M.S. I hold a B.A. in English and a M.S. in Creative Writing. I grew up I graduated Magna cum Laude with Honors from the University wandering the woods of northeastern Pennsylvania and exploring of Georgia in 2001 with a B.S. in Forest Resources. As part of the mountains of West Virginia, but I most recently hail from my academic experience I studied at the University of Alaska, Boston where I worked for the at . It Fairbanks and was an exchange student to Iceland. I recently was during this time that I experienced my first mid-life crisis. worked on a research project on white-tailed deer fawn mortality With the support (and raised eyebrows) of both loved ones and for the USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station in Aiken, strangers alike, I decided to pursue a long-time interest in the South Carolina. Here at the UW-Madison I will be working with field of forestry. Enter: UW-Madison’s Department of Forest and Professor Tim Van Deelen as my adviser. In my spare time I Wildlife Ecology where I am working with Professor Mark enjoy participating in sports and live entertainment. Rickenbach. Rebecca Zulueta, Wildlife Ecology and CBSD M.S. Tim Wilson, Forestry M.S. I was born and raised in Tehachapi, California, a small town in I am from Chicago and did my undergraduate work in Resource the southern Sierra Nevadas. In 2006 I completed my B.S. at the Management (A.A.) and Agroecology (B.A.) from Sterling , San Diego where I studied Ecology, College in northern Vermont. My research there was in Forest Behavior and Evolution. Since graduating I have performed ecology of invasive buckthorn (Rhamnus spp.) which was undoc- wildlife studies in the Sierra Nevadas, Thailand, and throughout umented and almost non-invasive at the time. I returned to Alaska. While at the UW-Madison I will be working towards a Chicago to marry my wife, Dana, and manage and develop City joint M.S. degree in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Biology Farm, a self-sustaining urban farming model that continues to and Sustainable Development under the guidance of Professor grow in Chicago. I will be working with Professor Glen Stanosz David Drake and Professor Adrian Treves. FOREST AND WILDLIFE ECOLOGY NEWS Page 5

Ruffed Grouse Society awards scholarships to two FWE graduate students

he John M. Keener Chapter of the TRuffed Grouse Society awarded $500 scholarships to Forest and Wildlife Ecology graduate students Sam Meier and Chris Pollentier. Both Sam and Chris are Jim Shurts (left), president of the John M. Keener Chapter of the Ruffed Grouse Society, working on their Masters degrees. With presents $500 scholarships to graduate students Sam Meier (center) and Chris Pollentier guidance from his advisor, Professor Bill (right) at the organization’s annual banquet in August. Photo by Brittany Pollentier Karasov, Sam is studying Attwater’s Prairie Chickens, currently one of the most endangered birds in the U.S. His turkey hen survival and productivity in related species of upland games birds to research focuses on two possible factors Wisconsin. Professor Scott Lutz is Chris’ sustain our sport hunting tradition and that may be impeding the bird’s success— advisor. The Ruffed Grouse Society sup- outdoor heritage. Their annual banquet immune response and digestive organ ports conservation and land management and awards ceremony was held at a development. Chris’ research focuses on projects that improve conditions for Fitchburg, Wis. hotel in August. how landscape features influence wild ruffed grouse, American woodcock, and

Rickenbach selected to serve on Faculty News CALS and state committees Professor Mark Rickenbach was elected to serve on the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Academic Planning Council (APC). This group of eight faculty and two academic staff advise The Wildlife Society honors Temple the dean on issues related to strategic planning and development of academic programs as well as other matters. Professor The Wildlife Society selected Stanley Temple, Beers-Bascom Rickenbach was also appointed to serve on the legislative com- Professor Emeritus in Conservation, to receive the Society’s mittee on Managed Forest Law where he can apply his expertise Honorary Membership award in recognition of his outstanding on Wisconsin forest policy and management to issues related to lifetime contributions to wildlife conservation in instruction, the state’s Managed Forest Land Program. research, and outreach. He is scheduled to receive the award at The Wildlife Society’s annual conference in October. FWE and WI DNR cooperate on study Mexico honors Adjunct Professor Castellon A multi-million dollar research grant will allow experts at the UW-Madison and WI DNR to investigate the best way to manage Adjunct Professor Eduardo Santana Castellon was awarded the Wisconsin’s white-tailed deer population. Professors Eric Kruger State of Jalisco Environmental Award and was elected Honorary and Tim Van Deelen will both be involved in the study. Prof. Van Fellow of CIPAMEX, Mexico’s largest and oldest ornithological Deelen will lead a three-year study on fawn survival to become organization. Professor Castellon also notified us that the part of the adult deer herd. He will also conduct a five-year study Intermunicipal Ayuquila Watershed Project, which was developed to more accurately assess buck mortality. Professor Kruger is jointly with UW-Madison, won the highest Federal Environmental undertaking a five-year study to understand the ecological impacts Award (Premio al Merito Ecologico) and the State of Jalisco of white-tailed deer populations on different types of ecosystems. Environmental Award. Page 6 FOREST AND WILDLIFE ECOLOGY NEWS

UW shares wildlife conservation strategy with China hen many of us think of China, images of high-rises and Wcrowded streets are the first things that come to mind. Several graduate students from F&WE have been fortunate to experience firsthand the other side of China—ruggedly beautiful and wild, with a spectacular array of biological diversity. These experiences are thanks, in part, to the Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program on the UW-Madison campus. The UW-Madison IGERT program is focused on biodiversity conserva- tion and sustainable development in southwest China. While traveling to China for his graduate research of Asiatic black bears in Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces, Ph.D. student Karl Malcolm spoke to diverse audiences about wildlife conservation in North America. Discussing sustainable use of wildlife resources with Chinese conservationists makes for interesting conversation because many of them consider consumptive uses like hunting to be incom- Argali sheep exist in sufficient numbers to support a limited, sus- patible with wildlife conservation. Once the topic is raised, there is tainable hunting program. After meetings in Urumqi, Karl great interest in how the two are crucially linked in North America. Malcolm was taken on a tour of argali sheep habitat in northern In 2008 Karl and his advisor, Professor Tim Van Deelen, hosted Xinjiang Province. Photo by Wang Wei Chinese guests at UW-Madison and the Aldo Leopold Foundation for a workshop on the role of hunting in the North American conserva- and support a sustainable hunting program. In contrast to the USA, tion model. F&WE graduate students Matt Lechmaier, Dan Storm, where hunting licenses are relatively inexpensive, licenses in China Mike Watt, and Professor Scott Craven also contributed substantially for a single male sheep would (based on prices in neighboring to the program. Due in part to these efforts, Karl was one of two Mongolia) sell for as much as $40,000 (USD). Selling a few, very Americans invited to Urumqi, China, from July 6-10, 2010, to partic- expensive licenses to international hunters and funneling (at least ipate in a forum focused on the future of regulated hunting in that some of) that money back to local communities could be an effective country. Karl was asked to give a presentation about the role of hunt- way of promoting wildlife protection and habitat conservation. ing in wildlife conservation in America. In western China, where human densities are relatively low and hunt- After two days of meetings in Urumqi, forum participants were taken ing programs more feasible, overgrazing of critical grassland habitats on a two-day, 1,000-mile field trip in northern Xinjiang Province that by domestic stock is the greatest threat to wildlife conservation. If had been open to limited hunting in the past. China contains suffi- local pastoralists are given the opportunity to benefit financially by cient populations of several species (for example, blue sheep and fostering healthier grassland habitats and protecting wildlife, properly argali sheep) that would be of great interest to international hunters managed hunting programs could be a valuable conservation tool.

Project maps forest lowing the collapse of Socialism in 1991. Even though widespread wildfires caused change in Russia by a severe drought and a series of heat waves limited accessibility to several ussia’s forests are under great human research sites, the fieldwork was a huge Rpressure and are rapidly changing fol- success. In his further research, Matthias lowing the breakdown of the . intends to estimate the effect of selectively With the help of a research grant from logged areas on ecosystem services and NASA, Professors Mutlu Ozdogan and plans to develop land management strate- Volker Radeloff, along with their graduate gies that will ultimately allow a more sus- students, are investigating the size and pat- tainable use of Russia’s forested land. tern of forest change in European Russia Another Ph.D. student, Kelly Wendland, is using satellite data and econometric mod- investigating the socioeconomic drivers of els. Ph.D. student Matthias Baumann spent forest change in Russia. three weeks in Russia this summer gather- ing validation data for the remote sensing Photo at right shows Matthias Baumann analysis, which reveals major changes fol- taking GPS coordinates in Russia. FOREST AND WILDLIFE ECOLOGY NEWS Page 7

likely set by native tribes rather than light- sustainability of tree populations under envi- Are there enough young ning. Fires and other disturbances were gen- ronmental stress using permanent plot data in redwoods to replace the erally of low intensity, leading to uneven- conjunction with the CANOPY forest model. aged stands in most areas. However, existing Sustainability of tree populations is likely to aging trees? evidence on redwood seedling establishment be a pressing issue in coming years due to is too meager to draw firm conclusions and multiple stressors. oast redwood is an ancient species once suggested further research Cwidely dispersed but now confined to a to resolve remaining Young redwoods are often sparse or absent in old-growth stands. narrow, foggy coastal strip in California. ambiguities. The team In this stand in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, few have While much of the remaining old-growth for- published its findings in become established in the past 400 years. est is preserved in parks, redwood saplings Forest Ecology and are uncommon in old-growth stands, and the Manage-ment 258: 1038- question of whether the populations are 1054. demographically stable has been debated for many years. In 2005, Save-the-Redwoods Professor Lorimer notes League asked Professor Craig Lorimer to that the research is likely lead a team of eight forest scientists to do a to have some indirect four-year comprehensive review of redwood payoff for forest manage- population dynamics. The group was able to ment in Wisconsin. He resolve some controversies. For example, and Ph.D. student Corey they report strong evidence that fires were Halpin are embarking on frequent in the presettlement era (every 6-26 a new project to develop criteria for evaluating the years on a given site) but most fires were Age class (yrs)

Forest and Wildlife Ecology Fund

We invite you to join us in our efforts to provide support for important department priorities. Donations to the Forest and Wildlife Ecology will be used to support student travel to professional meetings, help cover the costs of the summer field camp and the southern trip, and to renovate work space in Russell Labs.

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If paying by check, please make your gift payable to UW Foundation and mail to: University of Wisconsin Foundation, US Bank Lockbox, P.O. Box 78807, Milwaukee, WI 53278. Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology University of Wisconsin-Madison NONPROFIT ORG 1630 Linden Drive US POSTAGE Madison, WI 53706-1598 PAID MADISON WI PERMIT NO 658

We enjoy hearing from you! We’d like to hear what’s new with you, your career, family, etc. Drop us a note and include your name, degree and year, and any news you’d like to share with us. Please send your email to Mary Miron at: [email protected] or drop a hard copy in the mail to the return address above.

Inside this issue. . . Page 5 View our web video features

Take a moment to view the short video features listed Page 6 below. They highlight some of the Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology’s activities and achieve- ments.

Dr. Phil Townsend uses satellite remote sensing tech- nology to track the spread of bark beetle infestations: http://news.cals.wisc.edu/2010/09/09/wildfire-and- pine-beetles-2/ Page 2

Dr. Tim Van Deelen tracks the growing bear popula- tion in Wisconsin and adjacent states: http://www.kare11.com/news/investigative/extras/extra _article.aspx?storyid=872132&catid=26

Dr. Bruce Allison helps preserve historic trees: http://news.cals.wisc.edu/2010/09/24/tree-doctor- bruce-allison-helps-preserve-campus-historic-trees/