Doctoral candidates recognized for presentations during #TWS2024 

The Wildlife Society granted Gilia Patterson and Sadie Roth the Best Oral Presentation and Best Poster Presentation awards, respectively, during the TWS Annual Conference in Baltimore. The Society will provide each winner with a complimentary registration for the 2025 TWS Annual Conference in Edmonton.  

Analyzing population sizes with genetics 

Patterson, a PhD candidate in the University of Oregon’s Institute of Ecology and Evolution, earned Best Oral Presentation for her work entitled, “A Spatially Explicit Close Kin Mark-Recapture Method for Estimating Population Size from Genetic Data.”  

“We developed a new method of looking at population size from genetic data,” Patterson said.  

Often, scientists use genetic samples taken from hair or scat at multiple time points to decipher what animal is passing through and to extrapolate population size.  

But these samples can provide genetic information about relatives, too, Patterson said. “It can tell you if you captured the same individual or its parent or sibling.” 

Patterson said that scientists haven’t broadly used these so-called “close kin mark-recapture methods” up to this point, primarily because they don’t often account for spatial information.  

“Most often, relatives are located close together, and when you’re sampling some parts of the landscape more than others, the estimate can be biased,” she said. “But we developed a spatial version of close kin mark-recapture that gives unbiased estimates, even when you sample some areas more intensely than others.” 

Patterson said biologists can use this method when they are conducting capture-recapture work but aren’t getting many recaptures. Genetic information from relatives can fill in some of the gaps. She also said agencies can use this method to manage harvested populations—they can input hunter harvest data from individuals and relatives into their model to learn more about population sizes.  

Patterson said this was her second TWS Annual Conference, and she appreciates the chance it provided to talk to so many different people, which in turn can help make her research better.  

“I really want the methods I’m working on to be useful, and I want them to advance conservation, which means it’s important for me to learn what type of data people have and what issues they’re running into,” she said.  

Patterson felt surprised upon learning that her presentation was recognized as Best Oral Presentation. 

“I went to a lot of good talks,” she said. “I spend a lot of time on my computer writing code, and to have my research be so well received felt amazing.”  

Tackling an amphibian pathogen 

Roth, a PhD candidate at Texas Tech University, was presented with Best Poster Presentation for her work entitled, “Dynamics of the Amphibian Pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) in the Sonoran Desert.” 

The poster presentation covered Roth’s research on the dynamics of Bd in the Sonoran Desert. “This pathogen can devastate amphibian populations, and understanding the conditions under which it most threatens species in this system can help us better predict the timing and location of outbreaks in the future,” she said. 

Roth found that Bd occupancy probability and prevalence were highest in years with lower rainfall, which indicates that the threats of Bd and drought could work synergistically to threaten amphibians in this system. 

This was also Roth’s second TWS Annual Conference. 

“I really enjoyed the presentations I attended, and I feel like I learned a lot that I can use to improve my own research,” Roth said. “On top of that, it is always great to meet other researchers and hear about their work.” 

Roth said she was honored to be recognized for her poster presentation and greatly enjoys the visual storytelling that goes into a poster. 

“I’m glad that others appreciated the way I chose to present this work,” she said. “I saw so many great posters at TWS, and I am very proud to be a part of this year’s excellent poster session.”