The Streby Lab
Actionable Science for Evolutionarily Rational Conservation and Management
Gunnar R. Kramer
MS University of Minnesota, 2017
BS University of Wyoming, 2011
gunnarrkramer@gmail.com
I earned a B.S. in Zoology and the Honors Program from the University of Wyoming in 2011. While at Wyoming, I designed and conducted an independent research project documenting poorly known breeding behaviors of common nighthawks under the direction of Dr. Anna Chalfoun. In addition to my independent research, I have been fortunate to work on projects in diverse systems including exploring golden-winged warbler demography in both Minnesota and Manitoba, studying the impacts of energy development on sagebrush-obligate songbirds in Wyoming, studying migratory behaviors of northern saw-whet owls in Pennsylvania, monitoring spring migration along the Gulf Coast of Texas, and studying cooperative breeding behaviors and responses of habitat destruction on the endangered white-breasted thrasher in St. Lucia.
My research interests generally lie within the field of population ecology and management. I am especially interested in uncovering factors influencing the long term population trends in bird species and using a full understanding of a species' life-cycle ecology to develop efficient and effective management strategies. In 2013, I joined Dr. David Andersen's lab at the University of Minnesota as a M.S. student where I contributed to the investigation of migratory connectivity among golden-winged warbler populations under the co-advisory of Dr. Henry Streby. As a Ph.D. student at the University of Toledo, I will be working with a range-wide dataset from the hybridizing Vermivora species complex, including data on migration ecology and connectivity, plumage color and pattern, song variation, immune function, telomere length, and genetic variability in hundreds of birds we and our collaborators sampled in recent years. I will also be working closely with the Black Swamp Bird Observatory and helping Dr. Streby establish his research lab in the northwest Ohio warbler migration mecca.
Publications
Kramer, G.R., K.O. Daly, H.M. Streby, and D.E. Andersen. 2018. Association between American Woodcock seasonal productivity and landscape composition and configuration in Minnesota. Proceedings of 11th American Woodcock Symposium. In press.
Kramer, G.R., D.E. Andersen, D.A. Buehler, P.B. Wood, S.M. Peterson, J.A. Lehman, K.R. Aldinger, L.P. Bulluck, S. Harding, J.A. Jones, J.P. Loegering, C. Smalling, R. Vallender, and H.M. Streby. 2018. Population trends in Vermivora warblers are linked to strong migratory connectivity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1718985115.
-Featured in a Commentary by Thomas Sherry in the same issue-
Streby, H.M., G.R. Kramer, S.M. Peterson, and D.E. Andersen. 2018. Evaluating outcomes of management targeting the recovery of a migratory songbird of conservation concern. PeerJ DOI 10.7717/peerj.4319.
Streby, H.M., G.R. Kramer, S.M. Peterson, J.A. Lehman, D.A. Buehler, and D.E. Andersen. 2018. Carefully interpreted light-level geolocator data can lead to the discovery of interesting animal behavior (Response to Lisovski et al.). Current Biology 28:101-102.
Streby, H.M. and G.R. Kramer. 2017. Comment on "Mixed effects of geolocators on reproduction and survival of Cerulean Warblers, a canopy-dwelling, long-distance migrant". The Condor: Ornithological Applications 119:848-851.
Kramer, G.R., H.M. Streby, S.M. Peterson, J.A. Lehman, D.A. Buehler, P.B. Wood, D.J. McNeil, J.L. Larkin, and D.E. Andersen. 2017. Nonbreeding isolation and population-specific migration patterns in three populations of golden-winged warblers. The Condor: Ornithological Applications 119:108-121.
Peterson, S.M., G.R. Kramer, H.M. Streby, J.A. Lehman, D.A. Buehler, and D.E. Andersen. 2015. Geolocators on golden-winged warblers do not affect migratory ecology. Condor: Ornithological Applications 117:256-261.
Streby, H.M., T.L. McAllister, G.R. Kramer, S.M. Peterson, J.A. Lehman, and D.E. Andersen. 2015. Minimizing marker mass and handling time when attaching radio transmitters and geolocators to small songbirds. Condor: Ornithological Applications 117:249-255.
Streby H.M., G.R. Kramer, S.M. Peterson, J.A. Lehman, D.A. Buehler, and D.E. Andersen. 2015. Tornadic storm avoidance behavior in breeding songbirds. Current Biology 25:98-102.
-reached 99th percentile of all papers ever tracked by Altmetric within 48 hours of publication-
Peterson, S.M., H.M. Streby, G.R. Kramer, A.C. Fish, and D.E. Andersen. 2015. High tech or field techs: radio telemetry is a cost-effective method for reducing bias in songbird nest searching. Condor: Ornithological Applications 117:386-395.
Streby, H.M., S.M. Peterson, G.R. Kramer, and D.E. Andersen. 2015. Post-independence fledgling ecology in a migratory songbird: implications for breeding-grounds conservation. Animal Conservation 18:228-235.
Streby, H.M., S.M. Peterson, J.A. Lehman, G.R. Kramer, B.J. Vernasco, and D.E. Andersen. 2014. Do digestive contents confound body mass as a measure of relative condition in nestling songbirds? Wildlife Society Bulletin 38:305-310.
Streby, H.M., S.M. Peterson, J.A. Lehman, G.R. Kramer, K.J. Iknayan, and D.E. Andersen. 2013. The effects of force-fledging and premature fledging on the survival of nestling songbirds. Ibis 155:616-620.
Kramer, G.R. and A.D. Chalfoun. 2012. Growth rate and relocation movements of common nighthawk (Chordeiles minor) nestings in relation to age. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 124:793-797.