Dominic D. LaRoche

I graduated from the University of Maryland in 2000 with a degree in ecology, evolution, and animal behavior. I started my natural resources career at Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge where I participated in a number of studies including rocket netting and banding tundra swans, fish surveys, black bear hair snares, GIS work and general refuge management.

I first joined the Conway lab in 2002 as a research intern to work on a project banding and tracking band-tailed pigeons, conducting avian point counts, as well as nest searching and monitoring of ground nesting passerines in the Santa Catalina Mountains. I am currently a Wildlife Biologist working on several different projects. I enjoy living in Tucson and working in the diverse habitats that span from the Sonoran desert to the Sky Islands.

Some of the research projects I assist with include:

• influence of perennial pools on the abundance, diversity and reproductive success of breeding birds in riparian woodlands in southeastern Arizona,
• effects of possible surface water contamination on breeding birds within Tumacacori National Historic Park
• population status, distribution, and effects of fire on buff-breasted flycatchers,

• effects of catastrophic wildfires on abundance and distribution of montane birds in southeastern Arizona and,

• effects of clutch size on the cost of reproduction in birds.