Lisabeth Willey, PhD

I’m interested in a range of varied ecological questions with a particular emphasis on characterizing landscape patterns and evaluating how changes in landscape composition and structure affects long-lived systems. I explore these questions through two disparate systems: freshwater turtles and alpine tundra. I work with students and colleagues to design ecological studies and develop empirically-derived models at multiple spatial and temporal scales to inform broad-scale, collaborative conservation planning initiatives, while simultaneously working with collaborators and stakeholders to implements those plans.

Ongoing Projects

Conservation Planning for Blanding’s Turtles in the Northeast U.S.

Northeast Blanding’s Turtle Working Group. The Blanding’s turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) is a long-lived, semi-terrestrial turtle species of conservation concern throughout its range. Several isolated, disjunct populations occur in the northeastern U.S. These populations are limited in extent and occur in some of the most heavily developed parts of the region. Blanding’s turtles are listed as “Endangered” by the IUCN and a Species of Greatest Conservation Need in all five Northeast states in which they occur. Because they require diverse, interconnected wetland and terrestrial habitats across large areas, they are an important umbrella species, and conservation actions targeting Blanding’s turtle likely result in the protection of many other species. As part of a regional conservation planning effort (sponsored by the USFWS Competitive SWG program), the Northeast Blanding’s Turtle Working Group developed and implemented a 5-state standardized monitoring protocol and used results to rank sites across the region, develop a “conservation network” of high priority Blanding’s turtle sites, and make management recommendations at the regional and site level. We are currently working to implement that plan. Learn more at www.blandingsturtle.org

Collaborators: Michael Jones and Paul Sievert, Massachusetts Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA; Michael Marchand, New Hampshire Fish and Game Department; Jonathan Regosin and Lori Erb, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife; Derek Yorks, Phillip deMaynadier, and Jonathan Mays, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Department; Angelena M. Ross, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; Kathy Gipe and Chris Urban, Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission; Glenn Johnson, State University of New York Potsdam; Bryan Windmiller, Hyla Ecological Services; Mark Grgurovic, Swampwalkers Wetland Ecosystem Specialists; Stephanie Koch, Alison Whitlock, and Anthony Tur, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Conservation Planning and Implementation for the Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) and Associated Riparian Species of Greatest Conservation Need from Maine to Virginia

Wood Turtle Council. The wood turtle (Glyptemys insculpta LeConte) occurs in riverine, riparian, and terrestrial habitats from Nova Scotia to Virginia and west to Minnesota. Recent studies in the northeast region and adjacent Canada have reported population declines as well as elevated adult mortality caused by roadkill and agricultural machinery. Wood turtles have been identified by the Northeast Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (NEPARC) as a species of regional conservation concern because it is listed in >75% of northeast Wildlife Action Plans, and it is listed as Endangered by the IUCN. Scientists, conservationists, and agency representatives from 13 northeastern states are partnering to identify, protect, manage, and enhance functional riparian and riverine habitats for wildlife throughout the region. Learn more at www.woodturtlecouncil.org

Partners: Mike Jones (UMass Amherst), Thomas Akre (SCBI), Paul Sievert (UMass Amherst), Phillip deMaynadier, Derek Yorks, and Jonathan Mays (Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife); Nancy Sferra (Nature Conservancy of Maine); Michael Marchand (New Hampshire Fish and Game Department); Steve Parren, (Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife); Angelena Ross (New York State Department of Environmental Conservation); Lori Erb, Jon Regosin and Jake Kubel (Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife); Dave Golden and Brian Zarate (New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife); Ed Thompson and Scott Smith (Maryland Department of Natural Resources); J.D. Kleopfer (Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries); Leighlan Prout (US Forest Service, White Mountain National Forest); Dr. Raymond Saumure (Springs Preserve); Dr. Barry Wicklow (St. Anselm College); Jim Andrews (Vermont Amphibian and Reptile Atlas); Mark Powell (VT River Conservancy); Dr. Glenn Johnson (SUNY Potsdam); Dr. Russell Burke (Hofstra University); Dr. Kurt Buhlmann (Savannah River Ecology Laboratory); Steve Krichbaum (Wild Virginia); and Bradley W. Compton (UMass Amherst)

Community-based ecological research and conservation of the Yucatán box turtle in Yucatán, Campeche, and Quintana Roo

The Yucatán box turtle (Terrapene carolina yucatana) is one of the southernmost, disjunct, and isolated representatives of the wide-ranging North American genus Terrapene (New World box turtles). The status of the Yucatán box turtle is believed to be more precarious than most other taxa in the T. carolina complex, because it is heavily collected as a pet, food source, and medicinal item (for the treatment of asthma) across much of its native range. Prescribed burns, deforestation, and habitat loss are additional pressures facing the subspecies, but little is known about its distribution, status, habitat preferences, or behavior. We have been developing long-term partnerships with scientists, land managers, local business owners, residents, teachers, and ranchers across Yucatán to 1) assess the distribution and relative abundance of Yucatán box turtles through surveys and interviews, 2) evaluate movement and behavioral patterns using radio-telemetry, 3) develop methods of population assessment and prioritization, and 4) gradually develop a realistic and collaborative conservation strategy with conservation partners and small villages in the center of the range.

Collaborators: Michael T. Jones, Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Thomas S.B. Akre and Erika Gonzalez Smithsonian Mason School of Conservation, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA; Rodrigo Macip-Rios, University of Puebla, Puebla, Mexico

Ecology and Management of the Gulf Coast Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina major)

The Gulf Coast box turtle (Terrapene carolina major Agassiz, 1857) is a medium-sized, semi-terrestrial emydid turtle native to portions of the north shore of the Gulf of Mexico from the Panhandle region of Florida to eastern Texas. The T. c. major lineage is considered to be a modern form of the Pleistocene T. c. putnami, which ranged the Gulf Coastal Plain and reached a carapace length of 300 mm, and most researchers conclude that the major lineage is an evolutionarily significant one because of the retained putnami traits (such as the plesiomorphic axillary scute and large body size) and semi-aquatic habitat preference. The typical form of the Gulf Coast box turtle is restricted to outlying coastal areas and islands between Gulf County, Florida, and Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, and relatively little is known of rangewide abundance, local population densities, and individual responses to disturbances such as prescribed burns, which are conducted in slash pine plantation at intervals as frequent as every three years. We have initiated a long-term study of box turtle populations along the Apalachicola River in Gulf, Franklin, and Liberty Counties, Florida, and on offshore islands near the mouth of the Apalachicola River to evaluate the effects of landcover and disturbance frequency on the population structure of Gulf Coast box turtles.

Collaborators: Michael T. Jones, Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA; Dale R. Jackson, Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee, FL 32303 USA; Ross Kiester, Turtle Conservancy. Evaluating Recovery of the Northern Red-bellied Cooter The Massachusetts population of the Northern Red-bellied Cooter (Pseudemys rubriventris), formerly Plymouth Red-bellied Cooter, was listed as an endangered species on April 2, 1980. At the time of listing, cooters in Massachusetts were known from only 12 ponds in Plymouth County, MA, with an estimated population of approximately 200 individuals. To increase survival and recruitment by reducing predation rates, the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MADFW), in partnership with the USFWS, began a headstarting program (raising wild hatchlings in captivity for 9 months) that continues today. With UMass Amherst, MADFW, and the USFWS, we are assessing the effectiveness of the head start program, estimating current distribution and population status of the species, and identifying management actions necessary to promote species recovery. Collaborators: Jon Regosin and Thomas French, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife; Stephanie Koch and Anthony Tur, US Fish and Wildlife Service; Michael T. Jones and Paul R. Sievert, Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA

Conservation of Alpine Biodiversity in Eastern North America

With Beyond Ktaadn (www.beyondktaadn.org), a non-profit organization that is committed to the conservation of alpine biodiversity in eastern North America through applied research, educational programs, and strong regional partnerships, I am collaborating with scientists throughout New England, Quebec, and Newfoundland and Labrador, to develop and institute studies and monitoring programs for plants and wildlife species on high elevation, treeless mountain systems across the region. Our work in the region led to a collaborative book, the Eastern Alpine Guide, published in 2012, and we are currently involved in a number of collaborative projects throughout the eastern alpine region which include botanical surveys, mammal community sampling via camera traps, amphibian and avian sampling using acoustic recorders, invertebrate sampling, phylogenetic analyses of plant species, rare plant species recovery efforts, and multi-scale habitat modeling on mountains in New Hampshire, Maine, Québec, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Beyond Ktaadn assisted with a GLORIA installation in the Gaspé region of Québec in 2011, a second installation in the White Mountain National Forest in 2014, and began an installation in the Monts Groulx (Uapishka) in 2010, which we plan to complete in 2015 or 2016. Beyond Ktaadn has a long-term commitment to alpine research and conservation, and as part of that plans to continue to collaborate with partner organizations to institute a network of long-term, low impact alpine biodiversity monitoring studies throughout the region in order to assess the effects of climate and landscape change on these rare and sensitive ecosystem types.

Partners and supporters in these efforts include: Bob Capers, University of Connecticut; Guillaume Fortin, Université de Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada; Mike Jones, Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit at UMass Amherst, Dan Sperduto, USFS; Doug Weihrauch, Appalachian Mountain Club; Daniel Germain is a Université of Québec in Montréal; Paul Wylezol, International Appalachian Trail Newfoundland; Québec Ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environnement et des Parcs, Québec Ministère des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune, the U.S. Forest Service White Mountain National Forest; the Global Observation Research in Alpine Environments (GLORIA) Network; the Walden Woods Project; and the Waterman Fund.

Related Links

Beyond Ktaadn, a 501(c)3 organization devoted to the conservation of alpine biodiversity in eastern North America. 

Northeast Blanding’s Turtle Working Group, a regional partnership of state wildlife agencies, universities, non-profit organizations, and independent scientists focused on the conservation of Blanding’s turtles in the Northeast. 

http://www.northeastturtles.org/  A clearinghouse for regional conservation projects for Blanding’s, Spotted, Wood, and Box turtles

http://www.americanturtles.org/  American Turtle Observatory, a 501(c)3 focused on the conservation of North America’s freshwater turtles and the landscapes upon which they rely.