Theresa M. Laverty

New Mexico State University | NMSU · Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology

Integrating social and ecological knowledge is requisite for solutions to global conservation problems, including human–wildlife conflict, but gathering sufficient data to facilitate integration has proved difficult. Social–ecological systems models have also traditionally overlooked individual human thought and behavior that can affect the success...

A diverse and inclusive scientific community is more productive, innovative and impactful, yet ecology and evolutionary biology continues to be dominated by white male faculty. We quantify faculty engagement in activities related to diversity and inclusion and identify factors that either facilitate or hinder participation. Through a nationwide sur...

Water abundance, distribution, and quality are key elements affecting species distributions in arid environments, yet how their interactions structure specific animal communities is often unclear. To address this knowledge gap, we examined relationships between bodies of water and bat communities in the northern Namib Desert. We predicted that wate...

In extreme environments, temperature and precipitation are often the main forces responsible for structuring ecological communities and species distributions. The role of biotic interactions is typically thought to be minimal. By clustering around rare and isolated features, like surface water, however, effects of herbivory by desert‐dwelling wildl...

Accurate knowledge of species distributions is foundational for effective conservation efforts. Bats are a diverse group of mammals, with important roles in ecosystem functioning. However, our understanding of bats and their ecological importance is hindered by poorly defined ranges, mostly as a result of under-recording. This issue is exacerbated...

Understanding how systemic biases influence local ecological communities is essential for developing just and equitable environmental practices that prioritize both human and wildlife well-being. With over 270 million residents inhabiting urban areas in the United States, the socioecological consequences of racially targeted zoning, such as redlini...

Sexual harassment within academic institutions has profound impacts that may lead to the attrition of groups historically excluded from the biological sciences and related disciplines. To understand sexual harassment's effects on vulnerable communities within academia, we examined graduate student experiences with sexual harassment. In a survey of...

Understanding how systemic biases influence local ecological communities is essential for developing just and equitable environmental practices that center both human and wildlife wellbeing. With over 270 million United States residents inhabiting urban areas, understanding the socio-ecological consequences of racially-targeted zoning, such as redl...

The lesser long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae) is a partially migratory, nectarivorous species that exhibits reproductive asynchrony across its range. Both migratory and resident populations of sexually active males of L. yerbabuenae may form an odoriferous dorsal patch during their mating season. This is created by smearing saliva, urogenit...

Bat activity and species richness patterns are often used to assess bat population trends. Understanding how environmental conditions affect bat activity is thus important for bat conservation, but understudied across much of Africa. To address this information gap, we examined the effects of environmental factors (i.e. lunar phase and ambient temp...

While relatively little is known about bats across much of Africa, globally, many bat populations are in decline due to human activities. Successful bat conservation efforts, therefore, depend on both ecological studies and research on human-bat relationships. To address these knowledge gaps about African bats and their interactions with humans, we...

Argasid systematics remains controversial with widespread adherence to the Hoogstraal (1985) classification scheme, even though it does not reflect evolutionary relationships and results in paraphyly for the main genera of soft ticks (Argasidae), namely Argas and Ornithodoros. The alternative classification scheme, proposed by Klompen and Oliver (1...

We surveyed ecologists and evolutionary biologists in American universities to understand how they are coping with the COVID‐19 pandemic. Female respondents, assistant professors, and those who care for at least one child or teenager, were significantly more dissatisfied with their work–life balance during this pandemic than others, and further exp...

Steatonyssus afer is recorded for the first time from Namibia and for the first time from Cistugo seabrae (Chiroptera: Cistugidae). Our finding is the southernmost locality for S. afer, expanding the geographical distribution range of this ectoparasite. We give diagnostic illustrations and measurements of the species.

We report the first collections of Cyclopodia greeffi greeffi from Namibia expanding the range of the ectoparasite to a new country, as could be expected since its host the African straw-colored fruit bat, Eidolon helvum, has a wide distribution across Africa. While our collections are limited to parasites from a single bat, these parasitic insects...

Ectoparasites were collected from Eptesicus hottentotus, the long-tailed serotine bat, caught in Namibia as part of an ecological study. Larvae of Argas transgariepinus, a blood-feeding ectoparasite of bats in Africa, were removed from 3 of 18 bats. We present scanning electron microscope images of unengorged larvae. As with other ectoparasites, th...

While not typically thought of as having high biodiversity, deserts are home to many unique and endemic species adapted to arid environments. The Namib Desert, along the Atlantic Coast of southern Africa, is one of the world's oldest deserts and is unique in that it still harbors several megaherbivores. Often overlooked are the nocturnal, volant ma...

Sixty-four individuals of a macronyssid mite, Parasteatonyssus nyctinomi (Zumpt, Patterson 1951), were identified from Egyptian free-tailed bats Tadarida aegyptiaca (É. Geoffroy 1818) (Chiroptera: Molossidae) captured in the Kunene region of Namibia (southern Africa). This is the first report on P. nyctinomi in the country.

Three individuals of a spinturnicid mite resembling, Spinturnix kolenatii, are reported from the long-tailed serotine bat, Eptesicus hottentotus A. Smith, 1833 (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae), caught in the Kunene Region of Namibia (Southern Africa). This is the first report of S. kolenatii in Africa, significantly expanding the geographical distrib...

Caimans (Crocodilia: Alligatoridae) are top-level predators in aquatic ecosystems of the Neotropics. This paper presents data on the diet of caimans from the Peruvian Amazon (principally Paleosuchus spp., but also Caiman crocodilus and Melanosuchus niger), including feeding observations and stomach content examinations. A total of 58 stomach conten...

The Black Caiman (Melanosuchus niger) experienced a dramatic population decline in the mid-20th century, becoming extinct or locally rare over most of its range due to habitat destruction and the commercial value of its hide. As the success and re-establishment of the species is now dependent on conservation efforts throughout the Amazon basin, Bla...