Forestry and Natural Resources

Office Phone  (765) 494-3590 
Office Fax:    (765) 494-9461
Office Location:   PFEN 125 
E-mail Address:  rswihart@purdue.edu

Robert K. "Rob" Swihart
Head, Dept. of Forestry and Natural Resources

Purdue University
715 W State Street
West Lafayette, IN 47907-2033

Overview -

My research interests include effects of habitat fragmentation on wildlife, population and community ecology of mammals, spatial ecology, plant-herbivore interactions, and wildlife damage management. Details of this work have been published in various journals (see CV). I tend to rely on a combination of mathematical, experimental, and comparative approaches to address the importance of spatial structure for behavioral and ecological processes affecting the conservation and management of vertebrates. A goal of mine is to develop quantitative tools for informing policy makers and stakeholders of the consequences of land-use change for biodiversity and species conservation. I try to balance theoretical advances with applications to human-dominated systems. My research also spans levels of biological organization from individuals to communities and spatial scales ranging from microsites to continents. Many of my interests are inherently interdisciplinary, which has led to strong collaborative ties with mathematicians, statisticians, specialists in remote sensing, botanists, parasitologists, endocrinologists, chemists, hydrologists, economists, demographers, and social scientists.

I enjoy working with graduate students and have completed 4 M.S. and 6 Ph.D. students and served on advisory committees for an additional 30 students. I've also supervised 6 postdoctoral research associates and currently have 4 Ph.D. students in my research program. A more detailed description of my work can be found in Research Interests .