Thomas D. Nudds
Population and Community Ecology
Tel: (519) 824-4120 ext. 56307
Zoology Annex 2

Space in the Nudds lab is shared with the Fryxell lab.

Current Students

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Sleep, Darren PhD

Owl assemblages and forestry management
My dissertation focuses on owl assemblages and populations in the boreal forest and the effects of forestry practices at multiple scales. Using a combination of GIS, LANDSAT imagery, theoretical modeling, volunteer data collection from
Bird Studies Canada, and fieldwork, I've been studying the relationship between forestry practices and the dynamics of owl assemblages and populations in northern Ontario. My work touches on single-species habitat selection and assemblage dynamics over space and time. I am also involved with collaborative projects on nest site selection among Boreal Owls, community assembly among passerines in Cape Breton, and modeling phase transitions among binary characteristics in organisms (e.g. fiddler crabs).

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Shuter, Jen PhD

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Surette, Heather MSc

Fish Species at Risk at Point Pelee National Park: Current Assessment, Historic Changes and Threats.
Point Pelee National Park is located at the most southerly mainland tip of Canada surrounded by Lake Erie. Point Pelee National Park holds one of the largest remaining marsh segments in Southern Ontario. The marsh has been classified as a wetland of international significance due to the immense diversity of life that it supports. Given its location within the highly altered landscapes of southern Ontario, it is no surprise that this park contains high numbers of fish species at risk.
The current status of Point Pelee National Park’s 11 fish species at risk is poorly known. It is suspected that many Species at Risk (SAR) have declined, or disappeared, with the increases in abundance of several predatory and exotic fishes. A detailed examination of historical fish community changes over time combined with an extensive survey of the current fish community and related habitat is critical to identifying the current status of, and threats to, the fish SAR at Point Pelee. This information will aid in developing a strategy to minimize these threats. This study will also provide important insights regarding threats to these fish SAR at other locations in Canada.
Heather is co-supervised by Dr. Nicholas Mandrak from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

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Wiersma, Yolanda PhD

Armchair Ecology and Protected Areas Design.
The effective and efficient design of a protected area network hinges on several key problems; How big should a protected area be? How much of an area should be set aside as protected? How do diversity patterns influence where protected areas should be located? Can focal species contribute to the design of reserves? These are some of the questions I am interested in addressing. Using principles from the field of Landscape Ecology and tools in spatial modelling and GIS, I am developing theoretical protected areas networks for disturbance sensitive mammals across Canada. I am testing whether patterns in beta-diversity can explain how many protected areas are required to achieve representative samples of mammals within protected areas, and whether mammals can act as an 'umbrella group' for the conservation of birds at finer resolutions (using the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas Data).

Yolanda completed a year of study on a Fulbright Scholarship at the Landscape Ecology lab of the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University in North Carolina.

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Recent Graduates
Drever, Mark PhD June 2005| Thesis Abstract
Simpson, John MSc May 2005 | Thesis Abstract
Wyshynski, Sarah MSc May 2004 | Thesis Abstract
Crewe, Tara MSc April 2004| Thesis Abstract
Bednarczuk, Ewa MSc May 2003 | Thesis Abstract
Benoy, Glenn PhD August 2002 | Thesis Abstract
Callaghan, Carolyn PhD April 2002| Thesis Abstract
Wiersma, Yolanda MSc August 2001| Thesis Abstract
Schmelzer, Isabelle PhD April 2001 | Thesis Abstract
Bezner-Kerr, Wayne MSc January 2001| Thesis Abstract
Gonzales, Emily MSc December 2000 | Thesis Abstract
Hager, Heather MSc Fall 1997 | Thesis Abstract
Henschel, Chris MSc Fall 1997 | Thesis Abstract
McCoy, Karen MSc Fall 1997 | Thesis Abstract
McLaughlin, Chris MSc Winter 1997 | Thesis Abstract
Grisley, Kerry MSc Winter 1997 | Thesis Abstract
Hamilton, Diana PhD 1997 | Thesis Abstract
Miller, Mark PhD Fall 1996
Gurd, Brent MSc Fall 1996
Adams, Ian MSc Spring 1995
Schubert, Claudia PhD Winter 1995