Photo of Kevin Shoemaker, Extension

Kevin Shoemaker

Associate Professor
he/him/his

Summary

Kevin Shoemaker is the director of the Applied Population Ecology lab at the University of Nevada, Reno. Broadly, his research couples ecological data (e.g., census records, mark-recapture data, remote sensing data) with simulation models, statistics and machine learning to support wildlife conservation and management.

Current projects include developing more transparent and reproducable methods for Population Viability Analysis (PVA), investigating the movement ecology of Great Basin Rattlesnakes (Crotalus lutosus) in eastern Nevada, assessing the regional population structure and conservation status of pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) and American pika (Ochotona princeps) in Nevada and California, assessing habitat breadth and climate resilience of desert and gopher tortoises, and developing quantitative approaches to forecast the impact of climate change on species distribution and abundance.

Education

B.S., Haverford College, 2000
M.S., State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 2007
Ph.D., State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 2011

Courses

News & Journal Articles, Fact Sheets, Reports...

Book Chapter(s)
Habitat manipulation as a viable conservation strategy. Shoemaker, K.T., G. Johnson and K.A. Prior. 2009, Pp. 221–243 in (S.J. Mullin and R.J. Seigel, eds.) Snakes: Applied Ecology and Conservation. Cornell Univ. Press.
Journals
Recovery of a Blanding's Turtle Population through Nest Protection and Headstarting
Our population estimates and trapping data support the conclusion that headstarting has greatly augmented the regionally significant population of the Emydoidea blandingii (Blanding's Turtle) at Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Massachusetts.
 McElroy, C.L., Windmiller, B., Berkholtz, J., Wilder, E.R., Welch, J.F., Shoemaker, K.T., and Kamm, M.D. 2024, Northeastern Naturalist, 31(sp12):E25-E42 (2024)
Selection of den sites and chronology of denning by black bears in the eastern Sierra Nevada and western Great Basin Morgan E. Long, Kelley M. Stewart, Kevin T. Shoemaker, Heather Reich, Carl W. Lackey, Jon P. Beckmann 2024, Ecology and Evolution, Volume 14, Issue 7, July 2024, e11689
A big data–model integration approach for predicting epizootics and population recovery in a keystone species Barrile, G. M., Augustine, D. J., Porensky, L. M., Duchardt, C. J., Shoemaker, K. T., Hartway, C. R., Derner, J. D., Hunter, E. A., & Davidson, A. D. 2023, Ecological Applications, 33(4), e2827
Variation in diet of desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis nelsoni): Tradeoffs associated with parturition Blum, M. E., Stewart, K. M., Cox, M., Shoemaker, K. T., Bennett, J. R., Sullivan, B. W., Wakeling, B. F., & Bleich, V. C. 2023, Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 10, 1071771
Changes in selection of resources with reproductive state in a montane ungulate. Blum, M.E., Stewart, K.M., Shoemaker, K.T. et al. 2023, Movement Ecology 11, 20
Detection of Rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus 2 in the Pygmy Rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) in Nevada, USA. Crowell, M., LaHue, N., Heath, E., Shoemaker, K., & Matocq, M. 2023, Journal of wildlife diseases, 59(2), 342–346
Improved topographic ruggedness indices more accurately model fine-scale ecological patterns. Dilts, T.E., Blum, M.E., Shoemaker, K.T. et al. 2023, Landscape Ecology, 38, 1395–1410
Pygmy rabbit habitat network reveals threats and opportunities for management and conservation. Dilts, Thomas E.; Zeller, Katherine A.; Cushman, Samuel A.; Larrucea, Eveline S.; Crowell, Miranda M.; Byer, Nathan W.; Shoemaker, Kevin T.; Matocq, Marjorie D. 2023, Landscape Ecology, Volume 38, pages 1971–1989
Simulated effects of roadkill and harvest on the viability of a recovering bobcat population Dyck, M. A., Shoemaker, K. T., Dennison, C. C., & Popescu, V. D. 2023, The Journal of Wildlife Management, 87(7), e22460
Integrating multiple sign types to improve occupancy estimation for inconspicuous species. Goldman, M. R., Shinderman, M., Jeffress, M. R., Rodhouse, T. J., & Shoemaker, K. T. 2023, Ecology and Evolution, 13(5), e10019
Determining sources of reactive mercury compounds in Reno, Nevada, United States. Gustin, M. S., M., S., Choma, N., Shoemaker, K. T., & Allen, N. 2023, Frontiers in Environmental Chemistry, 4, 1202957
Testosterone identifies hatchling sex for Mojave desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii) Walden, M. A., Loope, K. J., Hunter, E. A., Divers, S. J., Comolli, J. R., Esque, T. C., & Shoemaker, K. T. 2023, Scientific Reports, 13(1), 1-13
A comparison of non-surgical methods for sexing young gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus), PeerJ. 10 (2022) e13599. K.J. Loope, D.C. Rostal, M.A. Walden, K.T. Shoemaker, E.A. Hunter 2022, PeerJ . 2022 Jun 14;10:e13599
Variation in diet of desert bighorn sheep: tradeoffs associated with parturition M.E. Blum, K.M. Stewart, M. Cox, K.T. Shoemaker, J.R. Bennett, B.W. Sullivan, B.F. Wakeling, V.C. Bleich 2022, Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. 10 (2023) 14
Inferring Movements and Staging Locations for Canvasbacks Using Light-Level Geolocators. Cook, N. A., Nicolai, C. A., & Shoemaker, K. T. 2021, Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management (2021) 12 (2): 308–321
Distinct White Facial-Fur Patterns Of Deer Mouse (Peromyscus Maniculatus) Populations In Northern Nevada. Miles, D. C., Burrus, K. R., & Shoemaker, K. T. 2021, Northwestern Naturalist, 102(3), 254–257
Integrating telemetry data at several scales with spatial capture-recapture to improve density estimates. Mitchell, C. I., Shoemaker, K. T., Esque, T. C., Vandergast, A. G., Hromada, S. J., Dutcher, K. E., … Nussear, K. E. 2021, ECOSPHERE, 12(8)
Integrating Multiple Survey Techniques to Document a Shifting Bat Community in the Wake of White-Nose Syndrome. Reynolds, D. S., Shoemaker, K., von, O., Susi, Najjar, S., Veilleux, J. P., & Moosman, P. R. 2021, Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management (2021) 12 (2): 395–411
Resource selection by female mule deer: tradeoffs associated with reproduction Heffelfinger, L.J., Stewart, K.M., Shoemaker, K.T., Darby, N.W., Bleich, V.C. 2020, Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution (Invited)
First Records of California Kangaroo Rats, Dipodomys californicus, in Nevada. Miles, D. C., Burrus, K., Shoemaker, K. T. 2020, Northwestern Naturalist 101(1):61-63
Ideal conditions for increased trapping success of pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) across the Great Basin MM Crowell, KT Shoemaker, MD Matocq 2020, Journal of Mammalogy, Volume 101, Issue 6, December 2020, Pages 1736–1749
Western red-tailed skink (Plestiodon gilberti rubricaudatus) distribution and habitat use in southern Nevada, USA. Hall, D. B., Shoemaker, K. T., Gregor, P. D. 2019, Herpetological Conservation and Biology
Seeking compromise across competing goals in conservation translocations: The case of the “extinct” Floreana Island Galapagos giant tortoise. Hunter, E. A., Gibbs, J. P., Cayot, L. J., Tapia, W., Quinzin, M. C., Caccone, A., Shoemaker, K. T. 2019, Journal of Applied Ecology
The sensitivity of snow ephemerality to warming climate across an arid to montane vegetation gradient Petersky R,, Shoemaker K.T., Weisberg P.J., Harpold A. 2018, Ecohydrology
A machine-learning approach for extending classical wildlife resource selection analyses Shoemaker KT, Heffelfinger LJ, Jackson NJ, Blum ME, Wasley T, Stewart KM 2018, Ecol Evol. 2018;00:1–14.
Geography of current and future global mammal extinction risk. Davidson, A. D., Shoemaker, K. T., Weinstein, B., Costa, G., Brooks, T., Ceballos, G., Rondinini, C., Graham, C. 2017, PLOS-ONE
High Rates of Winter Activity and Arousals in Two New England Bat Species: Implications for a Reduced White-nose Syndrome Impact? Reynolds, D. S., Shoemaker, K. T., Von Oettingen, S., Najjar, S. 2017, Northeastern Naturalist 24(sp7):B188-B208.
Manipulation of basking sites for endangered eastern massasauga rattlesnakes. Johnson, B. D., Gibbs, J. P., Bell, T. A., Shoemaker, K. T. 2016, The Journal of Wildlife Management(80), 803-811.
Demography of a Small and Isolated Population of Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnakes (Sistrurus catenatus) Threatened by Vegetative Succession. Johnson, B. D., Gibbs, J. P., Shoemaker, K. T., Cohen, J. B. 2016, Journal of Herpetology, 50, 534-540
Developing population models with data from marked individuals. Ryu, H.-Y., Shoemaker, K. T., Kneip, E., Pidgeon, A. M., Heglund, P. J., Bateman, B. L., Akcakaya, H. R. 2016, Biological Conservation(197), 190-199
Inferring the nature of anthropogenic threats from long-term abundance records. Shoemaker, K.T. & Akçakaya, H.R. 2015, Conservation Biology 29:238–249.
Warning Times For Species Extinctions Due To Climate Change. Stanton, J.C., Shoemaker, K.T., Pearson, R.G., & Akçakaya, H.R. 2015, Global Change Biology [doi: 10.1111/gcb.12721]
Giant Tortoise Reintroduction to Española Island, Galapagos: Demographic Outcomes and Ecosystem Implications. Gibbs, J.P, Shoemaker, K.T., Hunter, E.A., Cayot, L., & Tapia, W. 2014, PLoS ONE. [DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0110742]
Disambiguating the Minimum Viable Population Concept: Response to Reed and McCoy. Shoemaker, K.T., Breisch, A.R., Jaycox, J.W., & Gibbs, J.P. 2014, Conservation Biology 28:871-873.
Effects of prey metapopulation structure on the viability of black-footed ferrets in plague-impacted landscapes: a metamodelling approach. Shoemaker, K.T., Lacy, R.C., Verant, M.L., Brook, B.W., Livieri, T.M., Miller, P.S., Fordham, D.A., & Akçakaya, H.R. 2014, Journal of Applied Ecology 51: 735-745.
Genetic Connectivity Among Populations of the Threatened Bog Turtle (Glyptemys muhlenbergii) and the Need for a Regional Approach to Turtle Conservation. Shoemaker, K.T., and J.P. Gibbs. 2013, Copeia 2013:324-331.
Evaluating basking-habitat deficiency in the threatened eastern massasauga rattlesnake. Shoemaker, K.T., and J.P. Gibbs. 2010, Journal of Wildlife Management 74:504-513.
Presentations
Landscape Genetics of the Pygmy Rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) across the Sagebrush Sea of the Great Basin. M Matocq, TE Dilts, E Larrucea, P Weisberg, M Crowell, KT Shoemaker 2019, American Fisheries Society & The Wildlife Society
Professional Papers
Common-garden experiment reveals outbreeding depression and region-of-origin effects on reproductive success in a frequently translocated tortoise
We used a ‘common-garden’ population of gopher tortoises translocated from numerous sites across Florida to test if this at-risk keystone species is able to thrive in novel environments. Our results suggest that translocated or admixed populations may suffer reproductive costs that could hamper conservation efforts.
 Kevin J. Loope, J. Nicole DeSha, Matthew J. Aresco, Kevin T. Shoemaker, Elizabeth A. Hunter 2024, Animal Conservation
Inflated predictions from a flawed model influenced the decision to deny federal protection for the gopher tortoise
We identified serious errors in a population viability analysis (PVA) model that was used by the US Fish and Wildlife Service as evidence that this species was secure in the eastern part of its range and that this segment of the population was not warranted for protection under the Endangered Species Act.
 Loope, K.J., Akcakaya, H.R., Shoemaker, K.T. 2024, Global Ecology and Conservation
Technical Publication
The Nature of Diversity: diversity builds resiliency – in the wild and in the workplace – but it isn’t easy. Wakeling, B. F., VanDellen, A., Shoemaker, K. T., Gritts, M., Tull, J. C., Stewart, K. 2019, The Wildlife Professional.