EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
- Vollmar Natural Lands Consulting (VNLC), Staff Ecologist, 2023-present
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Research Assistant, 2022
- California Institute of Environmental Studies (CIES), Restoration Ecologist, 2022
- Marine Science Institute-UCSB, Salt Marsh Monitoring Technician, 2021
- Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, Student Worker & Researcher, 2020-2021
- Parasite Ecology Laboratory-UCSB, Student Researcher, 2018-2019
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Mr. Dobson specializes in a variety of ecological disciplines including herpetology, botany, parasitology, and restoration ecology. He began his career as a research assistant in Yosemite National Park studying the parasites of native and non-native amphibians. Ironically, the COVID-19 pandemic forced Alistair away from the disease-focused laboratory and towards fieldwork related to ecological restoration. Mr. Dobson worked at the Cheadle Center, where participated in day-to-day restoration activities and botanical monitoring. Independently, Alistair developed research projects including a long-term herpetological monitoring study that begun in 2020; this study continues to generate data about how reptiles and amphibians respond to restored habitats while providing paid research opportunities to undergraduates at UC Santa Barbara.
After graduating from UCSB in June 2021, Mr. Dobson pursued seasonal opportunities to explore pathways in professional ecology and travel to interesting ecosystems. Initially, Alistair worked as salt marsh monitoring technician and gained experience with intertidal taxa including fish, birds, mollusks, crustaceans, and polychaets. Afterwards, Alistair worked as a restoration ecologist in Channel Islands National Park, where he mapped populations of Brassica nigra, Foeniculum vulgare, and other non-native species, and lead teams to use herbicide and manual techniques to control their populations. Mr. Dobson left the islands in July of 2022 to pursue a short-term fellowship with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panamá. While there, he conducted fieldwork in the Panamá Canal to capture and identify a wide variety of marine fish that have invaded the freshwater ecosystems associated with the Canal. In the laboratory, Alistair dissected these fish and created collections of a wide variety of parasitic taxa, which has provided initial insights into the parasitic communities of the Panamá Canal fishery.
At Vollmar Natural Lands Consulting, Alistair has conducted rare plant surveys, monitoring at restoration projects, and protocol level surveys for special-status species including California Tiger Salamander, California Red-legged Frog, and Vernal Pool Fairy Shrimp.
EDUCATION
B.A. Biology (College of Creative Studies), University of California Santa Barbara, 2021.
REPRESENTATIVE PROJECT EXPERIENCE
Reptile and Amphibian Long-term Monitoring for NCOS Restoration Project (S.B. County)
Lead Researcher, Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, 2020-ongoing
Developed a weekly monitoring program to assess small vertebrate biodiversity two years after major dirt movement for the North Campus Open Space (NCOS) ecological restoration project. Conducted weekly surveys with coverboards to identify/monitor small rodent, reptile, and amphibian populations throughout the 2020-2021 academic year. Hired and trained a student intern to take over monitoring for the 2021-2022 academic year and the 2022-2023 academic year. Plans to continue hiring a new intern each year in May. Presented a poster with preliminary results at the 2023 Joint Meeting of Herpetologists and Ichthyologists.
Marine Invasions in the Panamá Canal (Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panamá)
Short-term Fellowship, Fall 2022
Collected fish using hand, seine, and gill nets in the mouths, locks, and central lake of the Panamá Canal. Identified Caribbean and Pacific fish species using taxonomic keys. Dissected the most common marine species to analyze their gut contents and parasite communities for this novel freshwater environment.
Burn Area Rehabilitation (Channel Islands National Park)
Restoration Ecologist for California Institute of Environmental Studies, 2022
Conducted invasive/non-native plant surveys and removals on Channel Islands National Park using ArcGIS and ESRI Fieldmaps. Directed small crews to locate, map, and eradicate remote populations of invasive plants. Mixed several variations of herbicide and maintained spraying equipment. Completed an offroad UTV driving certification course and navigated rough and rocky roads. Assisted in Ashy Storm Petrol and Cassin’s Auklet nest surveys and banding.
SONGS Mitigation Monitoring Program (Santa Barbara and Ventura County)
Salt Marsh Biological Monitoring Technician, Fall 2021
Conducted biological monitoring for environmental mitigation reference sites (Carpentaria Salt Marsh and Point Mugu Naval base). Field work included fish seine surveys and identification, epi- and in-faunal identification of crustaceans and gastropods, and collection of abiotic data and soil samples. Laboratory work included processing soil samples and microscopy to count and identify small in-faunal invertebrates-mainly polychaeta.
Camera Trap Survey of Hibernacula-use at NCOS Restoration Project (Santa Barbara County)
Independent Research for UCSB Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Grant, 2021
Deployed motion-triggered cameras at North Campus Open Space ecological restoration area on hibernacula (or constructed habitat refugia) at 35 sites throughout a 10-week study period. Managed two interns to review footage resulting in 5,500 observations of 23 vertebrate species. Presented findings about habitat-use patterns at the Ecological Society of America, 2021.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Dobson, A. L, Sullivan, K., & Stratton, L. (2022). Reptiles and Restoration: Coverboard Monitoring before and after Wetland
Reconstruction. UC Santa Barbara: Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/869559br
Dobson, A. L. (2021). Biodiversity associated with Constructed Hibernacula at a coastal Restoration Project.
UC Santa Barbara: Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4qb9s50f
Becker, D., Dobson, A., Klitgaard, K. 2019. Bark characteristics affect epiphytic bryophyte cover across tree species.
California Ecology and Conservation Research. Spring:1–8. https://doi.org/10.21973/N3H95Z