Scott Anthony Martin

University Hospitals | uhhospitals · Clinical Research Center

Sea-level rise due to climate change is a major threat to coastal ecosystems worldwide. Current management to reduce beach erosion often focuses on protecting human structures and research on effects on wildlife is lacking. Using a combination of hierarchical models and generalized linear models, we evaluated how the gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyp...

The use of game cameras by wildlife biologists and managers to survey wildlife, particularly medium-and large-bodied mammals, has increased dramatically. Previous attempts to survey small mammals and ectotherms have had limited detection success or were focused solely on a single species. We describe the Adapted-Hunt Drift Fence Technique (AHDriFT)...

Endangered species that exist in small isolated populations are at elevated risk of losing adaptive variation due to genetic drift. Analyses that estimate short‐term effective population sizes, characterize historical demographic processes, and project the trajectory of genetic variation into the future are useful for predicting how levels of genet...

Assessing the environmental factors that influence the ability of a threatened species to move through the landscape can be used to identify conservation actions that connect isolated populations. However, direct observations of species’ movement are often limited making the development of alternate approaches necessary. Here we use landscape genet...

Managing endangered species in fragmented landscapes requires estimating dispersal rates between populations over contemporary timescales. Here we develop a new method for quantifying recent dispersal using genetic pedigree data for close and distant kin. Specifically, we describe an approach that infers missing shared ancestors between pairs of ki...

Managing endangered species in fragmented landscapes requires estimating dispersal rates between populations over contemporary timescales. Here we develop a new method for quantifying recent dispersal using genetic pedigree data for close and distant kin. Specifically, we describe an approach that infers missing shared ancestors between pairs of ki...

Effective management of rare species relies on knowing the spatial structuring and connectivity between populations. For example, the ability of individuals to move between populations increases the likelihood of long-term persistence of a species by promoting gene flow and buffering populations against stochastic demographic events, whereas a lack...

Small populations resulting from the impacts of habitat fragmentation are prone to increased risks of extinction because of a lack of population connectivity. Roads increase habitat fragmentation, but properly managed roadsides may be able to function as wildlife corridors. Here we use radiotelemetry to observe movement patterns of Gopher Tortoises...

Coastal ecosystems worldwide are being impacted by sea-level rise caused by climate change. As mitigation efforts increase to protect these threatened ecosystems, a deeper understanding of how wildlife adapt to coastal management techniques is needed. We monitored three constructed sand dunes (built in 2010 and 2014) and two natural dunes in centra...

Habitat fragmentation is one of the leading causes of biodiversity decline and most commonly results from urbanization and construction of transportation infrastructure. Roads are known to negatively impact species, but railways can often cause similar effects. Certain taxa, such as turtles and tortoises, are more vulnerable to railways than others...

Recently, advances have been made to use game cameras to survey small mammals. These techniques use a camera contained in a 26.5 L bucket to photograph small mammals drawn to a bait station inside. By extending this technique through the inclusion of a drift fence and wooden guidance panels, we demonstrate the potential as a new method for surveyin...