Breadcrumb
Bio
Chris Ray studies and models the dynamics of plant and animal populations, focusing especially on threatened species with fragmented populations. Recent projects include hierarchical modeling of point count data on birds in western national parks, analyzing the role of metacommunity dynamics in the assembly of vernal pool plant communities, and modeling the spatial and temporal dynamics of plague in prairie ecosystems. Her long-term project involves research on the American pika, aimed at understanding climatic influences on pre-historic and recent local extinctions of this species throughout western North America.
Awards
- Denver Zoological Conservation Award, Denver Zoo, 2018
Research
My work centers on population biology, with applications in conservation. I like data analysis and modeling but I also like fieldwork, especially at high elevations. In support of long-term research and student mentoring, I have maintained an annual study of pika demography since 1988.
Publications
For additional publications, see Chris's Google Scholar profile.
PLAGUE IN URBAN PRAIRIE DOG COLONIES
Publication Date: 2010-02-01
Type: Journal Article
Rodent and Flea Abundance Fail to Predict a Plague Epizootic in Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs
Publication Date: 2010-02-01
Type: Journal Article
Sin Nombre Virus Infection in Field Workers, Colorado, USA
Publication Date: 2010-02-01
Type: Journal Article
Disease Limits Populations: Plague and Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs
Publication Date: 2010-02-01
Type: Journal Article
Testing alternative models of climate-mediated extirpations
Publication Date: 2010-01-01
Type: Journal Article
Transient patterns in the assembly of vernal pool plant communities
Publication Date: 2009-12-01
Type: Journal Article
Are Carnivores Universally Good Sentinels of Plague?
Publication Date: 2009-10-01
Type: Journal Article
Prairie dog presence affects occurrence patterns of disease vectors on small mammals
Publication Date: 2008-10-01
Type: Journal Article
Temporal and spatial patterns of Bartonella infection in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus)
Publication Date: 2008-08-01
Type: Journal Article
Characterization of Bartonella strains isolated from black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus)
Publication Date: 2008-02-01
Type: Journal Article
Climate-driven spatial dynamics of plague among prairie dog colonies
Publication Date: 2008-02-01
Type: Journal Article
Acquisition of nonspecific Bartonella strains by the northern grasshopper mouse (Onychomys leucogaster)
Publication Date: 2007-09-01
Type: Journal Article
Trophic cascades and disease ecology
Publication Date: 2007-06-01
Type: Journal Article
Introducing the trophic vortex: Response to Stapp
Publication Date: 2007-06-01
Type: Journal Article
Community epidemiology
Type: Chapter
Potential effects of a keystone species on the dynamics of sylvatic plague
Type: Chapter
Disease Ecology
Type: Book
Disease Ecology Community Structure and Pathogen Dynamics
Type: Book
Landscape structure and plague occurrence in black-tailed prairie dogs on grasslands of the western USA
Collinge SK; Johnson WC; Ray C; Matchett R; Grensten J; Cully JF; Gage KL; Kosoy MY; Loye JE; Martin AP...
- Collinge SK
- Johnson WC
- Ray C
- Matchett R
- Grensten J
- Cully JF
- Gage KL
- Kosoy MY
- Loye JE
- Martin AP
Publication Date: 2005-12-01
Type: Journal Article
Testing the Generality of a Trophic-cascade Model for Plague
Collinge SK; Johnson WC; Ray C; Matchett R; Grensten J; Cully JF; Gage KL; Kosoy MY; Loye JE; Martin AP...
- Collinge SK
- Johnson WC
- Ray C
- Matchett R
- Grensten J
- Cully JF
- Gage KL
- Kosoy MY
- Loye JE
- Martin AP
Publication Date: 2005-06-01
Type: Journal Article
Characterization of 14 polymorphic microsatellite markers for the black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)
Publication Date: 2005-03-01
Type: Journal Article
Assessing the roles of patch quality, area, and isolation in predicting metapopulation dynamics
Publication Date: 2002-06-01
Type: Journal Article
Plant population viability and metapopulation-level processes
Type: Chapter
Maintaining genetic diversity despite local extinctions: effects of population scale
Publication Date: 2001-07-01
Type: Journal Article
Species diversity and the scale of the landscape mosaic: do scales of movement and patch size affect diversity?
Publication Date: 2001-04-01
Type: Journal Article
Pages
Teaching
Current course
- EBIO 3990: Introduction to EBIO Honors
- Course for undergraduates in independent studies moving toward the goal of graduating with Honors in EBIO. Projects focus on collection and analysis of data on the ecology of a microhabitat specialist, the American pika, including field studies and a literature review complimented by statistical analyses.
Outreach
Citizen science
I am involved in two citizen science projects observing pika in Colorado:
The Front Range Pika Project is a citizen science effort in conservation research on the American pika. You can find more information about the project on the CU Outreach & Engagement web site.
PikaNet monitors pikas in the San Juan Mountains through citizen involvement.
Field courses for local nonprofits
I teach courses to benefit local conservation efforts. Examples include courses for the Rocky Mountain Conservancy, the Boulder County Nature Association, and Rocky Mountain Wild.