Research Statement:

My research focuses on describing how the composition of faunal communities varies in space and time, and elucidating the mechanisms driving observed distribution patterns.  Amphibians and reptiles in species-rich tropical habitats are the primary focus of his research efforts.  I am particularly interested in how structural and functional connectivity influence the distribution of biodiversity in both naturally- and anthropogenically-fragmented landscapes.  I complement field observations with database-driven reviews to define broad ecological patterns that provide a foundation for his field studies.  I received a Ph.D from Florida International University in 2005, based on research exploring patterns of faunal assembly on natural forest islands in northeastern Bolivia.  I have worked throughout the New World tropics and subtropics, most recently overseeing the implementation of a biodiversity monitoring project in Suriname.

Watling, J. I. and J. L. Orrock. In press. Measuring edge contrast using biotic criteria helps define edge effects on the density of an invasive plant. Landscape Ecology.

Watling, J. I., K. Gerow, and M. A. Donnelly. In Press. Isolation and nested species subsets of amphibians and reptiles on Neotropical forest islands. Animal Conservation.

Watling, J. I. and M. A. Donnelly. 2008. Amphibian and reptile species richness and composition in a fragmented forest landscape in northeastern Bolivia. Basic and Applied Ecology 9:523-532. [Reprint]

Savage, J. M. and J. I. Watling. 2008. Not so rare snakes: a revision of the Geophis sieboldi group (Colubridae: Dipsadinae) in lower Central America and Colombia. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 153:561-599. [Reprint]

Watling, J.I. and M. A. Donnelly. 2007. Multivariate correlates of extinction proneness in a naturally fragmented landscape. Diversity and Distributions 13:372-378. [Reprint]

Watling, J. I. and M. A. Donnelly. 2006. Fragments as islands: a synthesis of faunal responses to habitat patchiness. Conservation Biology 20:1016-1025. [Reprint]

Watling, J. I., J. H. Waddle, D. A. Kizirian, and M. A. Donnelly. 2005. Reproductive phenology of three lizard species in Costa Rica, with comments on seasonal reproduction of Neotropical lizards. Journal of Herpetology 39:341-348. [Reprint]

Watling, J. I. 2005. Edaphically-biased distributions of amphibians and reptiles in a lowland tropical rainforest. Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment 40:15-21. [Reprint]

Watling, J. I. And M. A. Donnelly. 2002. Seasonal patterns of reproduction and abundance of leaf litter frogs in a Central American rainforest. Journal of Zoology (London) 258:269-276. [Reprint]

Boback, S. M., E. Burroughs, C. Ugarte, and J. Watling. 2000. Boa constrictor Diet. Herpetological Review 31:244-245.