Thomas D. Sisk

Olajos-Goslow Professor of Environmental Science and Policy

Education

Ph.D. Stanford University, 1992
B.A. Colorado College, 1983

Contact

Office:  Physical Sciences (bldg #19), room 118
Phone: 928-523-7183
Email: Thomas.Sisk@nau.edu
Personal Web Site
Lab Web Site

Research Interests

Most conservation challenges involve multiple species whose fates are influenced by multiple factors that play out at the landscape level. My research addresses these challenges through basic research in ecology, and through synthesis and application of research results to land and resource management, education, and public outreach. I work with a large and diverse team in the Lab of Landscape Ecology and Conservation Biology and the Landscape Conservation Initiative. All our research is linked to applications in environmental management, for which we develop and test novel approaches for integrating rigorous science into planning and policy, particularly as it relates to the restoration, conservation, and sustainable management of public lands.

We are interested in understanding how nature works at the broad spatial scales that are relevant to conservation planning, land management, and the maintenance of essential ecological processes. The nature and number of research projects shifts over time, but we consistently focus on four themes: the restoration of ecological integrity in western forests and grasslands; the ecology and conservation of arid riparian ecosystems; wildlife conservation; and habitat fragmentation and edge effects. These projects draw on intensive field research and innovative techniques drawing on remote sensing, geographic information systems, and advanced spatial and statistical modeling.

Publications

Schultz, C.A., T.D. Sisk, B.R. Noon and M.A. Nie. 2013. Wildlife conservation planning under the U.S. Forest Service’s 2012 planning rule. Journal of Wildlife Management DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.513.

Noon, B.R., L.L. Bailey, T.D. Sisk, and K. McKelvey. 2012. Efficient species-level monitoring at broad spatial scales. Conservation Biology 26:432-441.

Battin, J. and T.D. Sisk. 2011. One-sided edge responses in forest birds following restoration treatments. Condor 113:501-510.

Sisk, T.D. 2011. Seeding sustainability in the West. Journal of Land, Resources and Environmental Law 31:79-100.

Sisk, T.D., G. Singh, J. Tam, K.M.A. Chan, S. Klain, M. Mach, and R. Martone. 2011. Barriers and incentives to engagement in public policy and science-based advocacy. Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America 92:276-280.

Sisk, T.D. and 13 Co-authors. 2010. Integrating restoration and conservation objectives at the landscape scale: The Kane and Two-mile Ranch Project. Pp. 44-66 in C. Van Riper III, B. Wakeling, and T. Sisk (eds.) The Colorado Plateau IV. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ. 347 pp.

Ries, L. and T.D. Sisk. 2010. What is an edge species? The implications of sensitivity to habitat edges. Oikos 119:1636-1642.

For a complete list of publications and additional information, please download Thomas Sisk's CV.