Arkansas Staff Member
Dr. Caleb Roberts
Assistant Unit Leader
Email: cproberts@usgs.gov
Faculty Email: cr065@uark.edu
Faculty Website
Links:
Education
- Ph D University of Nebraska-Lincoln 2019
- MS Texas Tech University 2015
- BS Murray State University 2011
Biography
Dr. Roberts received graduate degrees from Texas Tech University and University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and he joined the Arkansas Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit in 2021. Dr. Roberts’ research centers on how ecological resilience across populations, communities, landscapes, and continents manifests or erodes and how resilience can be maintained through management. Geographically, Dr. Roberts research covers Arkansas, the Great Plains, and the North American continent. Taxonomically, Dr. Roberts primarily uses birds, insects, mammals, and plants in his research. Topically, his research covers invasive species management in terms of early detection and rapid response, landscape ecology, community ecology, fire ecology, examining logic behind natural resources policies, effects of climate change, and quantifying outcomes of management and restoration actions. To conduct his research, Dr. Roberts uses a variety of spatial analyses, data integration approaches, multivariate statistics, nonlinear modeling, and both Bayesian and frequentist statistical approaches. Dr. Roberts teaches two courses—Invasion Ecology and Ecosystem Monitoring and Assessment. Dr. Roberts works closely with cooperators (Arkansas Game & Fish Commission, US Fish & Wildlife Service) as well as other state and national partners (Natural Resources Conservation Service, Sage Grouse Initiative, Quail Forever, Working Lands for Wildlife).
Areas of Expertise
Biodiversity, Botany, Climate Change, Fire Ecology, Forest Ecology, GIS/Spatial Analysis, Grassland Ecology, Habitat Management, Invasive Species, Landscape Ecology, Population and Community Ecology, Remote Sensing, Resilience, Species Distribution Modeling, Species Management, Statistics and Modelling, T&E Species Management, Wetland Ecology, Wildlife Management
Taxon Groups Studied
Carnivores, Gamebirds, Invertebrates/Insects, Nongame Fish/Wildlife, Small Mammals, Songbirds, Species of Greatest Conservation Need, Ungulates, Waterfowl
| Research Publications | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| Twidwell, D., Wonkka, C. L., Bielski, C. H., Allen, C. R., Angeler, D. G., Drozda, J., ... & Roberts, C. P. (2018). The perpetual state of emergency that sacrifices protected areas in a changing climate. Conservation Biology, 32(4), 905-915. | Download | August 2018 |
| Scott L. Morford, Brady W. Allred, Dirac Twidwell, Matthew O. Jones, Jeremy D. Maestas, Caleb P. Roberts, David E. Naugle. Herbaceous production lost to woody encroachment in U.S. rangelands. Journal of Applied Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.14288 | Abstract | October 2023 |
| Roberts, C.P., Naugle, D., Allred, B.W., Donovan, V.M., Fogarty, D.T., Jones, M.O., Maestas, J.D., Olsen, A.C., Twidwell, D. New possibilities to track rangeland productivity at multiple scales and quantify conservation outcomes. Journal of Environmental Management. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.116359. | Abstract | December 2022 |
| Roberts, C.P., J.W. Cain III, and R.D. Cox. 2017. Identifying ecologically-relevant scales of habitat selection: diel habitat selection in elk. Ecosphere 8: art e02013. | Download | November 2017 |
| Roberts, C.P., Allen, C.R., Angeler, D.G., Twidwell, D. Shifting avian spatial regimes in a changing climate. Nat. Clim. Chang. 9, 562–566 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-019-0517-6 | Abstract | Download | June 2019 |
| Roberts, C. P., Scholtz, R., Fogarty, D. T., Twidwell, D., & Walker Jr, T. L. (2022). Large‐scale fire management restores grassland bird richness for a private lands ecoregion. Ecological Solutions and Evidence, 3(1), e12119. | Abstract | Download | January 2022 |
| Roberts, C. P., Donovan, V. M., Wonkka, C. L., Powell, L. A., Allen, C. R., Angeler, D. G., Wedin, D. A., & Twidwell, D. (2019). Fire legacies in eastern ponderosa pine forests. Ecology and evolution, 9(4), 1869-1879. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.4879 | Abstract | Download | December 2019 |
| Roberts, C. P., Allen, C. R., Angeler, D. G., & Twidwell, D. (2019). Shifting avian spatial regimes in a changing climate. Nature Climate Change, 9(7), 562-566. | December 2019 |
| Roberts CP, Uden DR, Allen CR, Angeler DG, Powell LA, Allred BW, Jones MO, Maestas JD, Twidwell D. 2022. Tracking spatial regimes in animal communities: implications for resilience-based management. Ecological Indicators. doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2022.108567 | Abstract | Download | January 2022 |
| Roberts CP, Grant WE, Horton ML, LaBrie LAP, Peterson MR, Rogosch JS, Wang H. 2024. Balancing ecology and practicality to rank waterbodies for preventative invasive species management. Ecological Solutions and Evidence. | Abstract | August 2024 |
| Roberts CP, Doser JW, Berry LL, Fowler A, Marshall PM, Middaugh C, Rowe K, Schmit JM, Shaw M, Wilson K. Scenario planning and multi-species occupancy models reveal positive avian responses to restoration of afforested woodlands. Restoration Ecology. 32(1), e13998. | Abstract | April 2023 |
| Jackson RT, Marshall PM, Burkhart C, Schneck J, Kelly G, Roberts CP. Risk of invasive waterfowl interaction with poultry production: understanding potential for avian pathogen transmission via species distribution models. Ecology and Evolution. | Abstract | July 2024 |
| Donovan, V. M., Roberts, C. P., Wonkka, C. L., Beck, J. L., Popp, J. N., Allen, C. R., & Twidwell, D. (2020). Range-wide monitoring of population trends for Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep. Biological Conservation, 248, 108639. | Abstract | Download | August 2020 |
| Donovan VM, Beck J, Wonkka CL, Roberts CP, Allen CR, Twidwell D. Declining pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) population productivity caused by woody encroachment and oil and gas development. Global Ecology and Conservation. e02848 . | Abstract | February 2024 |
| DeGregorio, B.A., C. Gale, E. Lassiter, A. Massey, C. Roberts, and J. Veon. 2021. Nine-banded Armadillo (Dasyrus novemcinctus) Activity Patterns are Influenced by Human Activity. Ecology and Evolution: 0-8. | Abstract | Download | November 2021 |
| Chuang, W.C., A. Garmestani, T.N. Eason, T.L. Spanbauer, H.B. Fried-Petersen, C.P. Roberts, S.M. Sundstrom, J.L. Burnett, D.G. Angeler, B.C. Chaffin, L. Gunderson, D. Twidwell and C.R. Allen. Quantitative approaches for assessing ecological and community resilience. Journal of Environmental Management 213: 353-362. | July 2018 |
|
Caleb P. Roberts, Daniel R. Uden, Craig R. Allen, Dirac Twidwell. 2018. Doublethink & double standards: mismatch between policy and ecology of a native invader. PLoS ONE 13(3):eo189733. | Download |
July 2018 |
|
Caleb P Roberts. Using large-scale fire management to restore grassland bird richness on private lands. Great Plains Fire Science Exchange. Science Brief. | Abstract | Download |
January 2022 |
| Burnett, J.L., C.P. Roberts, C.R. Allen, M.B. Brown, and M.P. Moulton. 2017. Dynamics of range expansion by Passer montanus in North America. Biological Invasions 19: 5-9. | August 2017 |
| Allen CR, Roberts CP. 2024. Futures of the Sandhills. Book chapter in The Nebraska Sandhills. | Abstract | March 2024 |
| Presentations | Presentation Date |
|---|---|
| Wilson, K., C. Roberts, and B.A. DeGregorio. Effects of relative hog abundance on the occupancy and community composition of breeding birds. The Wildlife Society Annual Conference. | November 2023 |
| Wilson K, DeGregorio BA, Roberts CP, Chiavacci S. 2024. Effects of relative hog abundance on the occupancy and community composition of birds. Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society. Mount Magazine State Park, Arkansas.<b><br></b> | March 2024 |
| Victoria M. Donovan; Caleb P. Roberts; Emma Keele; Dillon T. Fogarty; David A. Wedin; Dirac Twidwell. 2022. Enhancing forest stand resilience using targeted grazing and mechanical thinning in eastern ponderosa pine forest. North American Forest Ecology Workshop. Virtual meeting. | June 2022 |
| Victoria M. Donovan, Jeffrey L. Beck, Carissa L. Wonkka, Caleb P. Roberts, Craig R. Allen, Dirac Twidwell. 2022. Divergent population parameters signal losses in resilience driven by global change drivers in pronghorn, an iconic rangeland species. Society for Range Management Conference. Albuquerque, NM. | February 2022 |
| Shaw, M.S., Roberts, C., and B.A. DeGregorio. 2022. A Habitat Suitability Model for the Plains Spotted Skunk. The Wildlife Society Annual Conference, Spokane, WA. | November 2022 |
| Shaw, M., C. Roberts, B. Sasse, and B.A. DeGregorio. Habitat Associations of Two Very Different Skunk Species. Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Furbearer Working Group. | May 2023 |
| Shaw, M., B.A. DeGregorio, and C.R. Roberts. Plains Spotted Skunk Distribution and Habitat Associations in the Great Plains. Oral Presentation. | November 2023 |
| Shaw, M., B.A. DeGregorio, and C. Roberts. Eastern spotted skunk species distribution model across the Great Plains region. 33rd Annual Colloquium on the Conservation of Mammals in the Southeastern U.S. | March 2023 |
| Schmit, Jessica, Fournier, Auriel M.V., Roberts, Caleb P., Rowe, Karen. Understanding Migration Ecology and Strategies of Arkansas King Rails. 2023<b>. </b>Waterbird Society Annual Meeting. Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA.<b><br></b> | October 2023 |
| Schmit JM, Fournier AMV, Roberts CP, Rowe K. Breeding and Migration Ecology and Distribution and Abundance of Arkansas King Rails. Waterbirds Society Annual Meeting. Corpus Christi, TX. 2022. | November 2022 |
| Schmit JM, Fournier AMV, Roberts CP, Rowe K. 2024. Breeding and Migration Ecology of Arkansas King Rails. Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society. Mount Magazine State Park, AR.<b><br></b> | March 2024 |
| Schmit JM, Fournier AMV, Roberts CP, Rowe K. 2023. Breeding and Migration Ecology of Arkansas King Rails. Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society. Morrilton, AR. | March 2023 |
| Schmit J, Fournier AMV, Roberts CP, Rowe K. 2024. Factors Influencing Nest Site Selection in Arkansas King Rails on Different Spatial Scales. International Association of Landscape Ecology-North America annual conference. Oklahoma City, OK, USA.<b><br></b> | April 2024 |
| Sarah Nodskov, Caleb Roberts, Victoria Donovan, Emma Keele, Dirac Twidwell, Craig Allen, Larkin Powell, Dave Wedin, David Angeler. Influences of Mixed Severity and Time since Fire on Diversity in Ponderosa Habitats. Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference, Lincoln, NE. | February 2017 |
| Roberts, CP, CR Allen, DG Angeler, JL Burnett, and D Twidwell. Quantifying long-term, continental-scale changes in ecological resilience. Resilience 2017, Stockholm, Sweden, August 20-23, 2017. | August 2017 |
| Roberts, CP, CR Allen, DG Angeler, JL Burnett, and D Twidwell. Metrics for quantifying ecological resilience. Ecological Society of America 2017, Portland, OR, August, 6-11, 2017. | August 2017 |
| Roberts CP, Donovan VM, Scasta JD, Twidwell D, Thacker E, Wilbur RW, Fuhlendorf S. 2024. A light in the darkness: rangeland wildlife responses to fire and ecoregion-scale fire-based restoration. The Wildlife Society Annual Conference. Baltimore, MD, USA. | October 2024 |
| Roberts CP, Cady SM, Donovan VM, Fogarty DT, Scholtz R, Twidwell D, Uden DR. 2024. Successes, challenges, and scientific advances gleaned from ecoregion-scale grassland restoration in the Loess Canyons, Nebraska. Society for Range Management 2024 Annual Meeting. Sparks, NV. | January 2024 |
| Percival Marshall, Caleb P. Roberts. 2023. A global-scale test of stationarity in habitat associations: the case of invasive Egyptian Geese (<i>Alopochen aegyptiaca</i>) across three continents. International Association of Landscape Ecology-North America Annual Conference. Riverside, CA. | March 2023 |
| Percival Marshall, Caleb P. Roberts. 2023. A global-scale test of stationarity in habitat associations: the case of invasive Egyptian Geese (<i>Alopochen aegyptiaca</i>) across three continents. Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society. Morrilton, AR. | March 2023 |
| Marshall PM, Roberts CP, Willson JD, Mortense J. 2022. A Systematic Review of the Impacts and Influences of Invasive Waterfowl on North America. Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society. | March 2022 |
| Marshall P, Willson JD, Mortensen J, Roberts CP. 2022. <b>A Systematic Review of the Impacts and Influences of Invasive Waterfowl on North America</b>. The Wildlife Society National Conference. Spokane, WA. | November 2022 |
| LaBrie L, Roberts CP. 2025. Enhancing proactive aquatic nuisance species management by developing a standardized risk screening workflow. Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference. St. Louis, MO, USA. | January 2025 |
| Jessica M Schmit, Caleb P Roberts, Auriel MV Fournier, Karen L Rowe. 2023. King Rail Migration Ecology in Arkansas. Wilson Ornithological Society 2023 Meeting. Allentown, PA. | June 2023 |
| Jessica Burnett, Caleb Roberts, Craig Allen, David Angeler, Tarsha Eason, Dirac Twidwell. Detecting Broad-scale Spatial Regime Shifts Using Information Theory. Resilience 2017, Stockholm, Sweden, Aug 20-23 2017. | August 2017 |
| Ivory II A, Donovan VM, Wonkka CL, Roberts CP. Cogongrass (<i>Imperata cylindrica</i>) impacts on ecosystem services in Southeastern US forests. University of Florida Graduate Student Symposium 2024. Gainesville, FL. | March 2024 |
| Ferrara M, Willson JD, Roberts CP. 2024. <b>Solar Powered Conservation: Do Solar Arrays Create Habitat for Avian Grassland Species. </b>Arkansas Audubon Society Convention. Little Rock, AR.<b><br></b> | October 2024 |
| Dawson A, Roberts CP. 2022. King Rail habitat selection in Southeast Arkansas. Arkansas Water Resources Center Annual Meeting 2022. Fayetteville, AR. | July 2022 |
| Caleb P. Roberts, Lauren L. Berry, Percival Marshall, Jessica Schmit, Michael Shaw, Kenneth Wilson. 2023. Using multi-species occupancy modeling and scenario planning to assess multi-scale conservation outcomes: avian responses to afforestation versus savanna restoration. Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society. Morrilton, AR. | March 2023 |
| Caleb P. Roberts, Dirac Twidwell,<sup> </sup>Brady W. Allred, Victoria M. Donovan, Dillon T. Fogarty, Matthew O. Jones, Jeremy Maestas, David Naugle, Andrew C. Olsen. 2021. New possibilities for large-scale tracking of management outcomes in rangelands. Society for Range Management Annual Conference [Virtual Meeting]. | February 2021 |
| Caleb P. Roberts, Dirac Twidwell, Jessica L. Burnett, Craig R. Allen, David G. Angeler. Monitoring for future uncertainty. NE Legacy Conference, Nebraska City. | October 2017 |
| Caleb P. Roberts, Craig R. Allen, Brady Allred, David G. Angeler, Victoria M. Donovan, Brandon Edwards, David Naugle, Rheinhardt Scholtz, Jason Tack, Dirac Twidwell, Daniel R. Uden. 2022. What happens when biomes collapse, move, or contract? The Wildlife Society Conference. Spokane, WA, USA. | November 2022 |
| Caleb P. Roberts, Craig R. Allen, Brady Allred, David G. Angeler, Victoria M. Donovan, Brandon Edwards, David E. Naugle, Rheinhardt Scholtz, Jason Tack, Dirac Twidwell, Daniel R. Uden. 2023. Biome collapse, boundary detection, and birds. International Association of Landscape Ecology-North America Annual Conference. Riverside, CA. | March 2023 |
| Cady, S.M., Twidwell, D., Roberts C.P., Uden, D.R., Fogarty, D.T., Morford, S., Scholtz, R., and Naugle, D.E. (2024) "Using Science and Technology to Drive Conservation Action that Addresses Great Plain Biome Collapse." AOS Annual Meeting, Oct 1-5. Estes Park, CO. | October 2024 |
| Burnett, J.L., C.R. Allen, D.G. Angler, C. Roberts, D. Tidwell, and A Tyre. 2016. Detecting regime shifts in space and time using the Breeding Bird Survey. The North American Ornithological Congress Vi, Washington, D.C. | August 2016 |
| Berry LL, DeGregorio BA, Uden DR, Roberts CP. 2024. Grassland bird occupancy responses to two new spatial early warning signals of state transitions: testing spatial variance and spatial covariance. Arkansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society. Mount Magazine State Park, Arkansas. | March 2024 |
| Berry LL, DeGregorio BA, Uden DR, Roberts CP. 2024. Grassland bird occupancy responses to two new spatial early warning signals of state transitions: testing spatial variance and spatial covariance. Annual Meeting of the Society for Range Management. Sparks, NV, USA. | January 2024 |
| <b>Schmit J</b>, Fournier AMV, Roberts CP, Rowe K. 2024. Breeding and Migration Ecology of Arkansas King Rails. Wilson Ornithological Society Annual Conference. Peoria, IL. | July 2024 |
| Technical Publications | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| Cain, J.W. III, T. Roerick, and C. Roberts. 2015. Southwest Jemez Mountains Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project: Summary of work 2012-2015 for the Large Mammal Monitoring Program. Progress report to the U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service. | September 2015 |
| Role and Organization | Individual | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Wildlife Society - member | Roberts | July 2022 | Present |
| Society for Range Management - Member | Roberts | January 2024 | Present |