Assistant Professor

The Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources

347 Aiken Center

The University of Vermont

Burlington, VT  05405

(802) 656-2910

allan.strong@uvm.edu

EDUCATION:

Ph.D. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Tulane University, 1999.

Dissertation: Effects of prey abundance on winter habitat quality for two species of ground-foraging Neotropical migrant warblers

Advisor: Dr. Thomas Sherry

M.S. Fisheries and Wildlife, University of Missouri, Columbia, 1986.

Thesis: Foraging decisions of captive Mallards

Advisor: Dr. Leigh Fredrickson

B.S. Fisheries and Wildlife Biology, University of Vermont, 1983, cum laude.

RESEARCH INTERESTS:

My research focuses on the factors that influence habitat quality for birds.  Much of this work involves quantifying the factors that influence food availability; although, some of my recent research looks at the effects of anthropogenic habitat (e.g., ski resorts, urbanization, and agricultural habitats) modification on bird populations.  My current research emphasis is on grassland bird populations in the Champlain Valley.  However, my research can better be described as question-driven, as I am also involved with projects investigating the ecology of high elevation bird species and contributions of birds to trophic level interactions.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

The University of Vermont – Assistant Professor: 2003 to present

The University of Vermont - Visiting Assistant Professor: 1999 to 2003.

Tulane University – Teaching assistant: 1997-1998.

Tulane University – Research assistant: 1993-1997.

National Audubon Society - Research Biologist:  1988-1993.

TEACHING:

WFB 074: Wildlife Conservation

WFB 130: Ornithology (http://uvm.edu/snr/wfb130)

WFB 174: Principles of Wildlife Management (http://uvm.edu/snr/wfb174)

WFB 387: Habitat Fragmentation

WFB 387: Matrix Dynamics

NR 6: Race and Culture in Natural Resources

NR 224: Conservation Biology

RECENT GRANTS:

2003 - USDA/CSREES NRI: Hayfields as sustainable habitat for grassland bird populations: ecological and economic impacts of “bird-friendly” hay

2002 - USDA/CSREES NRI: Structural complexity enhancement in Northern Hardwood-Hemolock forests and effects on avian and invertebrate diversity

2001 – SuGR/FaMe – Potential dietary threats to urban Sharp-shinned Hawks

2001 – USDA/CSREES IFAFS: Evaluating management practices for grassland birds in forage crops

2000, 2001 – Vermont Monitoring Cooperative: Long-term monitoring of high elevation arthropod populations.

PUBLICATIONS:

Sherry, T. W., M. D. Johnson, and A. M. Strong.  In press.  Does winter food limit populations of migratory birds?  In R. Greenberg and P. Marra, Eds., Birds of two worlds: Ecology and Evolution of migratory birds. Johns Hopkins University Press.

Chandler, R. B., A.M. Strong, and C. C. Kaufman.  In press.  Elevated lead levels in urban House Sparrows: a threat to urban Sharp-shinned Hawks and Merlins? Journal of Raptor Research.

Donovan, T. M., and A. M. Strong.  2003.  Linkages between landscape theory and population dynamics:  a review of the empirical evidence.  Pages 35-54 in J. Bissonette and I. Stroch, eds.  Landscape theory and resource management: linking theory with practice. Island Press, Covelo, CA.

Strong, A. M., C. T. Dickert, and R. T. Bell.  2002.  Effects of a ski trail on a ground beetle (Carabidae, Elateridae) community in northern Vermont.  Journal of Insect Conservation 6:149-159.

Strong, A. M., C. C. Rimmer. K. P. McFarland, and K. Hagen.  2002.  Effects of mountain resorts on wildlife.  Vermont Law Review 26:689-716.

Donovan, T. M. and A. M. Strong.  2002.  Effective population size.  Pages 337-346 in Spreadsheet exercises in conservation biology and landscape ecology (T. M. Donovan and C. W. Weldon).  Sinauer Associates, Inc., Sunderland, MA. 

Strong, A. M., and T. W. Sherry.  2001.  Body condition of Swainson’s Warblers wintering in Jamaica, with emphasis on the conservation value of Caribbean dry forests.  Wilson Bulletin 113:410-418.

Strong, A. M., and M. D. Johnson.  2001.  Exploitation of a seasonal resource by Plain and White-crowned pigeons in southern Jamaica: Implications for conservation of tropical dry forests. Wilson Bulletin 113:73-77.

Keeton, W. S., A. M. Strong, D. R. Tobi, and S. Wilmot.  2001.  Experimental test of structural complexity enhancement in northern hardwood-hemlock forests.  Pages 33-40 in J.M. Hagan (ed.).  Forest Structure: A Multi-Layered Conversation.  Proceedings of the Forest Information Exchange, October 25, 2001, Orono, Maine.  Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, Brunswick, ME.

Strong, A. M., and T. W. Sherry.  2000.  Habitat-specific effects of food abundance on the condition of Ovenbirds wintering in Jamaica.  Journal of Animal Ecology 69:883-895.

Strong, A. M.  2000.  Divergent foraging strategies of two Neotropical migrant warblers: implications for winter habitat use.  Auk 117: 381-392.

Johnson, M. D., and A. M. Strong.  2000.  Length-weight relationships of Jamaican arthropods.  Entomological News 111:270-281. 

Strong, A. M., T. W. Sherry, and R. T. Holmes.  2000.  Bird predation on herbivorous insects: indirect effects on sugar maple saplings.  Oecologia 125:370-379.

Strong, A. M., G. T. Bancroft, and S. D. Jewell.  1997.  Hydrological constraints on Tricolored Heron and Snowy Egret resource use.  Condor 99:894-905.

Bancroft, G. T. and A. M. Strong.  1996.  The Yellow-crowned Night-Heron.  Pages 450-456 in J. A. Rodgers, Jr., H. W. Kale II, and H. T. Smith (Eds.).  Rare and endangered Biota of Florida, Volume V, Birds.  University Presses of Florida, Gainesville.

Bancroft, G. T., A. M. Strong, and M. E. Carrington.  1995.  Deforestation and its effects on forest nesting birds in the Florida Keys.  Conservation Biology 9:835-844.

Strong, A. M., and G. T. Bancroft.  1994.  Postfledging dispersal of White-crowned Pigeons: implications for conservation of deciduous seasonal forests in the Florida Keys.  Conservation Biology 8:770-779.

Strong, A. M., and G. T. Bancroft.  1994.  Patterns of deforestation and fragmentation of mangrove and deciduous seasonal forests in the upper Florida Keys.  Bulletin of Marine Science 54:795-804.

Strong, A. M., R. J. Sawicki, and G. T. Bancroft.  1994.  A population estimate of White-crowned Pigeons based on flight-line counts.  Journal of Wildlife Management 58:156-162.

Bancroft, G. T., A. M. Strong, R. J. Sawicki, W. Hoffman, and S. D. Jewell.  1994.  Relationships among wading bird foraging patterns, colony locations, and hydrology in the Everglades.  Pages 615-657 in S. M. Davis and J. C. Ogden (eds.). Everglades: The ecosystem and its restoration.  St. Lucie Press, Delray Beach, FL.

Strong, A. M., R. J. Sawicki, and G. T. Bancroft.  1991.  Effects of predator presence on the nesting distribution of White-crowned Pigeons in Florida Bay.  Wilson Bulletin 103:415-425.