Project Highlights
October 8, 2025
Project Highlight: Pygmy Rabbits in Idaho – Using Genetic Analyses to Estimate Occupancy
By Kylie Baker Mapping the Hidden World of Pygmy Rabbits: Genetic Tools and Collaborative Surveys in Idaho’s Sagebrush Steppe In the arid expanses of the sagebrush steppe, an elusive burrower quietly reshapes the landscape in profound ways: the pygmy rabbit. As the smallest rabbit species in the world, pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) are sagebrush obligates,…
October 2, 2025
Project Highlight: Balancing Fuels Reduction and Wildlife Conservation – Monitoring of Fisher and NSO Response to Fuels Management in Northern California Forests
By Kylie Baker Fighting Fire with Science and Stewardship: Balancing Fuels Reduction and Wildlife Conservation in Northern California Forests In Northern California’s fire-prone forests, land managers face the complex challenge of reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire while conserving habitat for sensitive wildlife species. Pacific fishers (Pekania pennanti) and the federally threatened Northern Spotted Owls…
May 28, 2025
Project Highlight: Digital Asset Management and Community Engagement to Enhance Understanding of Park Resources
By Kylie Baker Enhancing Access and Understanding: Building a Digital Foundation for the Manhattan Project National Historical Park The Manhattan Project National Historical Park (MAPR), spanning Hanford, WA; Los Alamos, NM; and Oak Ridge, TN, shares the history and legacies of one of the most transformative events of the 20th century: the development of the…
May 15, 2025
Project Highlight: Underground Cultural Landscape Report and Monitoring Plan
By Kylie Baker Exploring the Cultural Landscape of Carlsbad Caverns: A Collaborative Research Effort Nestled within the rugged terrain of southeastern New Mexico, Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a subterranean wonder, boasting vast chambers, intricate cave formations, and a complex history of human interaction. A recent Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (PNW CESU) research…
May 13, 2025
Project Highlight: Comparison of Wolf Densities and Diets Across the Prince of Wales Island Complex
By Kylie Baker Marine Mammals, Genetics, and Scat: Innovative Science Uncovers the Complex Diet and Density of Southeast Alaska’s Wolves In the rugged forests of Southeast Alaska, a rare species thrives in the shadows, so elusive that even seasoned biologists struggle to find it. The Alexander Archipelago wolf, a small, dark subspecies of gray wolf,…
April 16, 2025
Project Highlight: Western Snowy Plover Nest Monitoring and Protection
By Kylie Baker A Conservation Success Story: Monitoring and Protecting Oregon’s Western Snowy Plover Along the dynamic and windswept beaches of Oregon’s coast, a rare and resilient bird has made a remarkable comeback. The western snowy plover (Anarhynchus nivosus nivosus), once nearly extirpated from the region, is now at the center of one of the…
December 12, 2024
Project Highlight: Collaborative Native Seeds and Plants Propagation Program through a National Parks and Protected Areas Cooperative Studies Program
By Kylie Baker Planting Seeds for Restoration: The East Cascades Native Plant Hub’s Mission to Revitalize Ecosystems Across the Western U.S. Through the Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (PNW CESU), the National Park Service (NPS) and Oregon State University-Cascades (OSU-C) joined forces to establish the East Cascades Native Plant Hub, a pioneering initiative in…
October 29, 2024
Project Highlight: Willamette Valley Prairie Pollinator Studies
By Kylie Baker Restoring Pollinator Communities to Save Endangered Species: The Willamette Valley Pollinator Project Since 2019, the Institute for Applied Ecology (IAE) has been collaborating with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to address a crucial conservation challenge: restoring pollinator communities in Oregon’s rapidly disappearing Willamette Valley prairies. IAE researchers Tom Kaye, J….
September 19, 2024
Project Highlight: Modeling Brown Treesnake Management Strategies
By Kylie Baker The Brown Treesnake Problem in Guam The accidental introduction of brown treesnakes to Guam after World War II, likely via U.S. military transport, has had devastating effects on the island’s ecosystem. These invasive, nocturnal, and arboreal predators have wiped out many native bird populations, leaving only a few forest species on the…
August 19, 2024
Project Highlight: Assessment of Pacific marten status in Olympic National Park: Are they headed to extirpation?
By Kylie Baker Olympic National Park, a vast wilderness of temperate rainforests, rugged mountains, and rich biodiversity, is home to many unique species. Among them is the Pacific marten (Martes caurina), a medium-sized member of the weasel family that has long inhabited the forested regions of the Pacific Northwest. However, the continued presence of the…
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