Dr. Karen Hodges

Biography

Human activities are causing species extinctions, extensive habitat loss, and damage to existing wild areas. Global climate changes are altering the distribution, abundance, and persistence of species. Increases in fire frequency, severity, and size are structuring forest landscapes for decades to come. As a conservation ecologist, my research focuses on how habitat configuration affects species interactions and the endangerment of at-risk species. I am particularly interested in understanding population dynamics at the periphery of species’ ranges and how populations are vulnerable to the threats facing the world’s species, especially in response to rapid climate change. Most of my field-based research projects examine terrestrial vertebrates in western montane forests and sage-steppe habitats in British Columbia. I explore how fires and human activities enable imperiled species to persist in landscapes. My current projects focus on snowshoe hares, lynx, bobcats, owls, raptors, marten, caracal, small mammals, bats, and grassland insects. My students have worked on small mammals, plants, turtles, and snakes. Research projects in my lab group require demographic, behavioral, genetic, and GIS tools to examine how species respond to different habitat types and landscape patterns. These projects also address the scientific effectiveness of conservation laws and policies, particularly the critical habitat provisions of the U.S. Endangered Species Act and the Canadian Species Risk Act.

Research Interests

Courses