Thomas Daniel Sisk
CURRICULUM VITAE
 
Office Address:
Environmental Sciences
P.O. Box 5694
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
Tel: (928)523-7183
Fax: (928)523-7423
email: Thomas.Sisk@nau.edu 		   Home Address:
616 W. Havasupai Rd.
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
Tel: (928) 773-1812
 
Personal Data
Born 1961 in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Married to Helen Roelker Sparrow; 2 daughters

Current Position (since August, 2001)
Associate Professor, Ecology (with tenure)
Center for Environmental Sciences and Education
Northern Arizona University

 
Education
1979-1983 The Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO
B.A., with distinction (1983), biology
Advisor: Richard Storey
Thesis: Biology and agricultural impacts of the Central American pocket gopher, Orthogeomys spp.
 
1987-92 Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Ph.D. (1992), biological sciences.
Specialization:  ecology/conservation biology.
Advisor: Paul R. Ehrlich
Dissertation: Distributions of birds and butterflies in heterogeneous landscapes.
 
1992-93 Post-doctoral scholar, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Supervisor: Paul R. Ehrlich. 
 
1994 Visiting post-doctoral scholar, Institute of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA
Supervisor: H. Ronald Pulliam.
Area: Spatially explicit population modeling.
 
Teaching Experience
  Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff AZ
Environmental Ecology: Synthesis and Applications
Conservation Biology
Landscape Ecology
Metapopulation Biology
The Environmental Science/Policy Interface
Web of Life: Culture and Environment on the Colorado Plateau
 

Stanford University, Stanford, CA
The Biology of Birds
Research in Bird Biology
Academic Awards
2001      Fellow, Aldo Leopold Leadership Program
1992      NAS Young Investigator in Biodiversity, Russia-America Program
1991      Nature Conservancy Fellowship in Conservation Biology
1990      Cooper Ornithological Society Membership Award
1983      Hamilton Award in Biology - Colorado College
 
Grants and Contracts Received as PI or Co-PI (last 5 yrs.)
2001-03   ForestERA Project: Landscape and regional analyses for ecological restoration of Southwestern ponderosa pine forests. BLM, via Ecological restoration Institute. $709K, 2 yrs.
2001-03   Fire and grazing effects on semi-arid grasslands associated with Southwestern ponderosa pine forests. Ecological Restoration Institute. $200K, 2 yrs.
2000-04 Effects of fire and fire surrogates on wildlife populations and habitats. USDA Forest Service. $40K/yr, 4 yrs.
2000-01  Increasing the scope and availability of tools for managing invasive plants on public lands: Alien Plant Ranking System (APRS) and Southwest Exotic Plants Mapping Project (SWEMP). National Park Service. $70K, 1 yr (Co-PI).
1999-01 1999-01 Effects of forest restoration treatments on the relationship between habitat selection and fitness in forest butterflies (Lepidoptera) and passerine birds (Passeriformes). USDA Forest Service. $25K, 2 yrs.
1999-01 Measuring livestock impacts on arthropod communities: methods for comparing and monitoring different grazing strategies. Organized Research Program, NAU. $17K, 2 yrs.
1998-01 Land Use History of the Colorado Plateau. USGS, Biological Resources Division. $160K, 3 yrs.
1997-03 Predicting the effects of ecosystem fragmentation and restoration: management models for animal populations. Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program. $790K, 5 yrs.
1997 Effects of livestock grazing on plant and arthropod communities in southwestern rangelands. Organized Research Program, NAU. $16K, 1 yr.
1994-98 Remote sensing of habitat edges and their effects on biodiversity (Co-PI). NASA. $71K, 4 yrs.
 
Languages 
Fluent in English and Spanish
 
Professional Service
Associate Editor, Ecological Applications, 2002-present
Board of Directors, The Forest Trust, Santa Fe, NM. 2001-present
Scientific Advisory Council, Grand Canyon Trust, Flagstaff, AZ. 2000-present
President, Colorado Plateau Chapter of the Society for Conservation Biology. 2000-2002
Bioregional Advisory Council, Southwest Community Forestry Research Center, Santa Fe, NM. 2000-present
Chair, Task Force on Peer Review, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C.  Revised national policy for
  scientific peer review with the Department. 1995-96
Peer Reviewer for the journals BioScience, Conservation Biology, Ecography, Ecological Applications, Ecology,
  J. Wildlife Management, Restoration Ecology, and others. 1990-present
Program reviewer for National Gap Analysis Program, USGS, BRD. 1998
Program reviewer for biodiversity conservation research programs in India, Wildlife Institute of India and USFWS. 1998
Employment History
1996-present Associate Professor, Ecology, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ
   
1994-96 Special Assistant to the Director (Science), National Biological Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington D.C.
Worked on a broad range of science and policy issues, reporting to the director of the Interior Department's integrated natural resources research agency. Responsibilities included research program planning and review, policy development, supervision of a national project on land use history, chairing a committee charged with revising the scientific peer review policy for the Department of the Interior, and a personal research program in avian and invertebrate ecology and conservation.
   
1992-94 Tropical Program Coordinator, Center for Conservation Biology, Stanford University
Managed all aspects of an international program for applying science to the design and management of conservation areas in the tropics. Responsibilities included design and implementation of large-scale, multitaxonomic research efforts, initiation of collaborative efforts with international scientists and organizations, advising and supervision of North and Central American students and research associates, fund raising, program planning, and personnel management. Program included networked projects in four countries: Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Malagasy Republic. (50% program administration, 50% research).
   
1987-92 Research Associate, Center for Conservation Biology, Stanford University
Conducted research on the population biology, ecology, and conservation of birds and butterflies, the biological effects of human land use, restoration ecology, and the causes and consequences of extinctions.
   
1984-87 Assistant Director and Wildlife Specialist, Forest Trust, Santa Fe, NM
Responsibilities included program development and project implementation for a regional, non-profit forest conservation organization and land trust. Worked with landowners, community groups, and federal, state and local governments on forestry and wildlife planning and management
   
1985-86 Research Assistant & Field Supervisor, Hawk Watch International, Salt Lake City, UT
Contributed to studies of 15 species of migrating raptors and supervised 4-8 assistants at a banding station in the Goshute mountains, Nevada.
   
1984-86 Wildlife Technician, State of Colorado, Division of Wildlife
Monitored reproduction in wild peregrine falcons and conducted cross-fostering procedures in conjunction with the regional peregrine falcon recovery project.

Selected Invited Lectures and Contributed Papers (last 5 yrs.)
November 2001 Colorado State University, Land Use Change, Landscape pattern, and the Conservation of Biological Diversity.
August 2000 Ecological Society of America, Assessing the Impacts of Landscape Change on Mobile Animals (contributed paper, with B.R. Noon and H. Hampton).
June 2000 Society for Conservation Biology, Use Of Multichannel Synthetic Aperture Radar In Measuring Vegetation Structure And Mapping Animal Habitats (invited presentation, with H. Hampton and M. Imhoff).
April 2000 Prescott College, Land Use, Habitat Fragmentation, and Models for Conservation Planning.
October 1999 Symposium on Predicting species occurrences, Estimating the effective area of habitat patches in variable landscapes (plenary address, with B.R. Noon).
March 1999 Cooper Ornithological Society, Symposium on habitat fragmentation, The influence of habitat edges on avian ecology: Geographic patterns and insights for Western landscapes (invited paper, with W.J. Battin).
March 1998 International Association for Landscape Ecology, Assessing Impacts of Alternative Livestock Management Practices: Raging Debates and a Role for Science (poster).
August 1997 Ecological Society of America, Modeling Effects Of Habitat Edges On Tropical Animal Distributions: Empirical Tests And Management Applications (poster).

Publications

Sisk, T.D. and W.J. Battin. In press. Edge effects in Western landscapes: shifting paradigms and
  a framework for interpretation. Studies in Avian Biology.
Sisk, T.D. and N.M. Haddad. 2002. Incorporating the effects of habitat edges into landscape models:
  Effective Area Models for cross-boundary management. Pages 208-240 in J. Liu and W. Taylor (eds.) Integrating Landscape Ecology into Natural Resource Management. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Sisk, T.D., B.R. Noon, and H. Hampton. 2002. Estimating the effective area of habitat patches
  in variable landscapes. Pages 713-725 in J.M. Scott, et al. (eds.) Predicting Species Occurrences: Issues of Scale and Accuracy. Island Press, Washington.
Meyers, C. and T.D. Sisk. 2001. Butterfly response to microclimatic changes following ponderosa pine
  restoration. Restoration Ecology 9:453-461.
Meyers, C., T.D. Sisk, and W.W. Covington. 2001. Microclimatic changes induced by ecological
  restoration of ponderosa pine forest in northern Arizona. Restoration Ecology 9:443-452.
Loeser, M.R., T.D. Sisk and T.E. Crews. 2001. Plant community responses to livestock grazing: an
  assessment of alternative management practices in a semi-arid grassland. Proceedings, Steps Toward Stewardship Conference.
Loeser, M.R., T.D. Sisk, T.E. Crews, K. Olsen, C. Moran, and C. Hudenko. 2001. Reframing the
  grazing debate: evaluating ecological sustainability and bioregional food production. Proceedings, Fourth Biennial Conference on Research on the Colorado Plateau. Submitted Jan. 2000.
Sisk, T.D. and D. Ostergren. Contested politics, threatened landscapes: the political history of
  Utah wilderness. (book review) Human Ecology Review 7:73-74.
Grahame, J.D., T.D. Sisk, and collaborators. 2000. Canyons, cultures, and environmental change:
  an introduction to the land use history of the Colorado Plateau. CD-ROM and web site (URL: www.cpluhna.nau.edu). Northern Arizona University. 350+ pp.
Schlosberg, D. and T.D. Sisk. 2000. The environmental science/policy interface: crossing disciplinary
  boundaries with a team-teaching experiment. PS: Political Science and Politics 33:75-79.
Sisk. T.D., T.E. Crews, R.T. Eisfeldt, M. King and E. Stanley. 1999. Assessing impacts of alternative
  livestock management practices: raging debates and a role for science. Pp. 89-103 in van Riper and Stuart (eds.) Proceedings, Third Biennial Conference on Research on the Colorado Plateau.
Sisk, T.D. 1998. Toward a land use history of North America. Pp. 1-5 in T.D. Sisk (ed.) Perspectives on
  the landuse history of North America: A context for understanding our changing environment. U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources Division, Biological Science Report USGS/BRD/BSR-1998-0003. 104 pp.
Sisk, T.D., editor. 1998. Perspectives on the land use history of North America: A context for
  understanding our changing environment. U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources Division, Biological Science Report USGS/BRD/BSR-1998-0003. 104 pp.
Sisk, T.D., N. Haddad, and P.R. Ehrlich. 1997. Bird assemblages in patchy woodlands:
  modeling the effects of edge and matrix habitats. Ecological Applications 7:1170-1180.
Imhoff, M.L and T.D. Sisk. 1997. Remotely sensed indicators of habitat heterogeneity: Use of
  synthetic aperture radar in mapping vegetation structure and bird habitat. Remote Sensing of the Environment 60:217-227.
Sisk, T.D. and J. Zook. 1996. La influencia de la composición del paisaje en la distribución de
  Catharus ustulatus en migración por Costa Rica (Influence of landscape composition on the distribution of Swainson's thrush, Catharus ustulatus, migrating through Costa Rica). Vida Silvestre Neotropical 5:120-125 (pub. Oct. 1997).
Austin, G., N. Haddad, C. Méndez, T. Sisk, and D. Murphy, A.E. Launer and P.R. Ehrlich.
  1996. Annotated checklist of the butterflies of Tikal National Park and vicinity, Guatemala (LEPIDOPTERA). Tropical Lepidoptera 7:21-37.
Sisk, T.D., A.E. Launer, K.R. Switky, and P.R. Ehrlich. 1996. Evaluating extinctions threats:
  the distribution of global biodiversity and the expansion of the human enterprise (republished). Pp. 53-68 in F. Samson and F. Knopf (eds.) Readings in ecosystem management. Springer-Verlag, New York, USA.
Sisk, T.D. 1996. Land Use History of North America - the need for a continental synthesis. In
  Proceedings, Third International Conference/Workshop on Integrating GIS and Environmental Modeling, Santa Fe, NM. Santa Barbara, CA: National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis. CD.
Sisk, T.D. 1996. When it's gone, it's gone (letter). 1996. Forum for applied Research and
  Public Policy, Spring: 138-139.
Méndez, C., T.D. Sisk, and N. Haddad. 1995. Beyond birds: multitaxonomic monitoring
  provides broad measure of tropical biodiversity. Pp. 451-456 in J.A. Bissonette and P.R. Krausman (eds.) Integrating people and wildlife for a sustainable future. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Imhoff, M.L. and T.D. Sisk. 1995. Remotely sensed indicators of habitat heterogeneity and
  effects on biological diversity. Pp. 17-20 in J. van Zyl (ed.) Fifth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, USA.
Sparrow, H.R., T.D. Sisk, P.R. Ehrlich, and D.D. Murphy. 1994. Techniques and guidelines for
  for monitoring neotropical butterflies. Conservation Biology 8:800-809.
Sisk, T.D., A.E. Launer, K.R. Switky, and P.R. Ehrlich. 1994. Evaluating extinctions threats
  the distribution of global biodiversity and the expansion of the human enterprise. BioScience 44:592-604. Reprinted, 1996, pp. 53-68 in F. Samson and F. Knopf (eds.).) Readings in Ecosystem Management. Springer-Verlag, New York, USA.
Sisk, T. 1994. Reaching outward to define a discipline: Principles of conservation biology
  (book review). Vida Silvestre Neotropical 3:119-120.
Ehrlich, P.R., H.R. Sparrow, T.D. Sisk, and G.C. Daily. 1994. Notes on butterfly distributions
  in southern Costa Rica. Tropical Lepidoptera 5:21-24.
Sisk, T.D. and C.R. Margules. 1992. Habitat edges and restoration: methods for quantifying
  edge effects and predicting the results of restoration efforts. Pp. 57-69 in D.A. Saunders, R.J. Hobbs, and P.R. Ehrlich (eds.) Nature conservation III: the restoration of degraded ecosystems. Surrey Beatty & Sons, Sydney, Australia.
Sisk, T.D., G.C. Daily, and P.R. Ehrlich. 1989. Waterfowl, wetlands and global warming:
  hunters must rediscover their roots in conservation. California Waterfowl XV(3):28-29.
Sisk, T. 1988. Identifying threatened and endangered species: a global analysis. Endangered
  Species Update 5(11):6.
Carey, H. and T. Sisk. 1985. Multiemployment: A Strategy for Economic Survival in Forested
  Rural Areas. Forest Trust Paper No. 1. Forest Trust, Santa Fe, NM.
Sisk, T. and C. Vaughan. 1984. Notes on some aspects of the natural history of the giant pocket
  gopher (Orthogeomys MERRIAM) in Costa Rica. Brenesia 22:233?247.