Allison Bidlack
Environmental Science, Policy & Management
University of California, Berkeley
510-643-1227
abidlack@nature.berkeley.edu
Research
My dissertation research concerns the invasion ecology of red fox in California. These animals were introduced into lowland California in the 1880s and have since spread throughout much of the state, impacting native ground-nesting birds and native carnivores such as the gray fox and San Joaquin kit fox. Red fox are generally associated with open or agricultural landscapes, but tend to avoid areas with high densities of coyotes. I am studying the invasive spread of non-native red fox in California and how that spread correlates with1) spatial patterns and levels of anthropogenic landscape change and 2) presence and relative abundance of sympatric gray fox and coyotes. In particular, I am most interested in how these factors may have limited the spread of red foxes into northern coastal California.
Scat-sniffing dogs will be used to survey for presence or absence of the three canid species, as well as relative abundance in different habitats. Scats will be identified to species by means of DNA extraction and analysis. Specific scat location information will be overlaid on a GIS database of landcover types, and logistic regression will be used to infer correlations between species distribution and landscape characteristics. Finally, habitat suitability models will be combined with existing spatial economic models for future landscape change to predict future patterns of red fox invasion. Using these combined models, I will identify areas of particular concern for management of red fox and affected native species. This examination of canid distributional patterns may give us insight into what makes an ecosystem like northern California resilient to invasion by red fox. This study will also provide managers needed information about red fox distributions in the Bay Area, habitat requirements, and interactions with other canids like gray fox and coyotes. Managers can use this knowledge to better monitor and eventually control red fox invasions and subsequent impacts to native species.
I am co-advised by Dr. Adina Merenlender, a cooperative extension specialist within Ecosystem Sciences.
My dissertation research concerns the invasion ecology of red fox in California. These animals were introduced into lowland California in the 1880s and have since spread throughout much of the state, impacting native ground-nesting birds and native carnivores such as the gray fox and San Joaquin kit fox. Red fox are generally associated with open or agricultural landscapes, but tend to avoid areas with high densities of coyotes. I am studying the invasive spread of non-native red fox in California and how that spread correlates with1) spatial patterns and levels of anthropogenic landscape change and 2) presence and relative abundance of sympatric gray fox and coyotes. In particular, I am most interested in how these factors may have limited the spread of red foxes into northern coastal California.
Scat-sniffing dogs will be used to survey for presence or absence of the three canid species, as well as relative abundance in different habitats. Scats will be identified to species by means of DNA extraction and analysis. Specific scat location information will be overlaid on a GIS database of landcover types, and logistic regression will be used to infer correlations between species distribution and landscape characteristics. Finally, habitat suitability models will be combined with existing spatial economic models for future landscape change to predict future patterns of red fox invasion. Using these combined models, I will identify areas of particular concern for management of red fox and affected native species. This examination of canid distributional patterns may give us insight into what makes an ecosystem like northern California resilient to invasion by red fox. This study will also provide managers needed information about red fox distributions in the Bay Area, habitat requirements, and interactions with other canids like gray fox and coyotes. Managers can use this knowledge to better monitor and eventually control red fox invasions and subsequent impacts to native species.
I am co-advised by Dr. Adina Merenlender, a cooperative extension specialist within Ecosystem Sciences.
