Capstone Speaker, Dr. James Estes
We are pleased to have Dr. Jim Estes as our Capstone Speaker for the 84th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Mammalogists. Dr. Estes is an international expert on sea otters and a world-renowned specialist in the critical role of apex (top level) predators in the marine environment. He has been a research biologist at the Western Ecological Research Center of the U.S. Geological Survey for more than 20 years. Estes also holds academic posts as research associate and adjunct professor with the Center for Marine Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
His interest in predation as an ecosystem-level process began in the early 1970s, shortly after Estes began working with sea otters. Using the otters' fragmented distribution across the Aleutian archipelago, which resulted from a history of near-extinction and recovery, he and his colleague, Dr. Palmisano, discovered the species' keystone role in kelp forests by contrasting islands where it was abundant or rare. Their work on sea otters provided one of the first and foremost spectacular examples of how apex predators influence ecosystem functions. These early findings led Estes to explore the spatial, temporal, and functional dimensions of sea otter-kelp forest interactions over the next 30 years. He has now published nearly 70 scientific articles and reports on wildlife ecology, predation, and conservation.
Estes's most recent research addresses the unanticipated collapse of sea otters and kelp forests in western Alaska and the consequences of whaling on ocean ecosystems. This work has received a great deal of attention worldwide and has been featured in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, (see below) and on NPR's "All Things Considered" Radio Program. His Capstone talk will focus on this exciting and timely research that has peaked debate on the cascading effects of whaling on food webs in the Pacific Ocean.
Listen to An Interview with Dr. Estes from NPR's All Things considered (Sept. 25, 2003). Requires RealPlayer.
Selected Publications
Springera, A. M., J. A. Estes, G. B. van Vliet, T. M. Williams, D. F. Doak, E. M. Danner, K. A. Forney, and B. Pfisterg. 2003. Sequential megafaunal collapse in the North Pacific Ocean: An ongoing legacy of industrial whaling? Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA 100: 12223-12228. (Download Abstract as PDF; Download abstract as rich text)
Estes, J. 2003. From Killer Whales to Kelp: Food Web Complexity in Kelp Forest Ecosystems. Wild Earth 12(4): 24-28.
Estes, J.A., M.L. Riedman, M.M. Staedler, M.T. Tinker and B.E. Lyon. 2003. Individual variation in prey selection by sea otters: patterns, causes and implications. Journal of Animal Ecology 72(1): 144-155.
Konar, B. and J.A. Estes. 2003. The stability of boundary regions between kelp beds and deforested areas. Ecology 84(1): 174-185.
Gelatt, T.S., D.B. Siniff and J.A. Estes. 2002. Activity patterns and time budgets of the declining sea otter population at Amchitka Island, Alaska. Journal of Wildlife Management 66(1): 29-39.
Jackson, J.B.C., M.X. Kirby, W.H. Berger, K.A. Bjorndal, L.W. Botsford, B.J. Bourque, R.H. Bradbury, R. Cooke, Erlandson, J. Estes, T.P. Hughes, S. Kidwell, C.B. Lange, H.S. Lenihan, J.M. Pandolfi, C.H. Peterson, R.S. Steneck, M.J. Tegner, R.R. Warner. 2001. Historical over fishing and the recent collapse of coastal ecosystems. Science 293:629-637.
J.M. Scott, F.W. Davis, R.G. McGhie, R.G. Wright, C. Groves and J. Estes. 2001. Nature reserves: do they capture the full range of America's biological diversity? Ecological Applications 11(4): 999-1007.
Monson D.H., J.A. Estes, J.L. Bodkin and D.B. Siniff. 2000. Life history plasticity and population regulation in sea otters. Oikos 90(3): 457-468.
Watt, J., D.B. Siniff, and J.A. Estes. 2000. Inter-decadal patterns of population and dietary change in sea otter at AMchitka Island, Alaska. Oecologia 124(2): 289.
Estes, J.A. and C.H. Peterson. 2000. Marine ecological research in seashore and seafloor systems: accomplishments and future directions. Marine Ecology - Progress Series 195:281.
Paddack, M.J. and J.A. Estes. 2000. Kelp forest fish populations in marine reserves and adjacent exploited areas of central California. Ecological Applications 1(3): 855.
Terborgh, J., J.A. Estes and R. Noss. 1999. The role of top carnivores in regulating terrestrial ecosystems. Wild Earth 9(2): 42.
Estes, J.A., M.T. Tinker, T.M Williams, and D.F. Doak. 1998. Killer whale predation on sea otters linking coastal with oceanic ecosystems. Science 282:473-476.
Estes, J.A. 1998. Concerns about the rehabilitation of oiled wildlife. Conservation Biology 12:1156-1157.
Steinberg, P.D., J.A. Estes, and F.C. Winter. 1995. Evolutionary consequences of food chain length in kelp forest communities. Proceedings of the National. Academy of Sciences 92:8145-8148.
Estes, J.A., and D.O. Duggins. 1995. Sea otters and kelp forests in Alaska: generality and variation in a community ecological paradigm. Ecological Monographs 65:75-100.
Estes, J.A. 1990. Growth and equilibrium in sea otter populations. J. Animal Ecol. 59:385-400.
Estes, J.A., D.O. Duggins, and G. Rathbun. 1989. The ecology of extinctions in kelp forest communities. Conservation Biology 3:252-264.
Duggins, D.O., C.A. Simenstad, and J.A. Estes. 1989. Magnification of secondary production by kelp detritus in coastal marine ecosystems. Science 245:170-173.
Estes, J.A., and P.D. Steinberg. 1988. Predation, herbivory, and kelp evolution. Paleobiology 14:19-36.
Iorns, D.B., R.G. Anthony, and J.A. Estes. 1986. Foraging strategies of Galucous-winged Gulls in rocky intertiday communities. Ecology 67:1460-1474.
Estes, J.A., R.J. Jameson, and E.B. Rhode. 1982. Activity and prey selection in the sea otter: influence of population status on community structure. Am. Nat. 120:242.
Estes, J.A., N.S. Smith, and J.F. Palmisano. 1978. Sea otter predation and community organization in the western Aleutian Island, Alaska. Ecology 59:822-833.