Robert P. Brooks, Ph.D

Professor of Geography and Ecology
Director - Penn State Cooperative Wetlands Center


Address/Education/Professional Activities/ Professional Employment/ Professional Organizations/Publications
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Address:

Penn State Cooperative Wetlands Center
302 Walker Building
Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16802
Phone: (814) 863-1596
FAX: (814) 863-7943
e-mail: rpb2@psu.edu

Education:
University of Massachusetts, Amherst: Wildlife Biology Ph.D. 1980
  Wildlife Biology M.S. 1977
Muhlenberg College, Allentown, PA: Biology B.S. 1974

Professional Activities:
As Director and Founder of the Penn State Cooperative Wetlands Center, and as an Professor of Wildlife and Wetlands in the School of Forest Resources at the Pennsylvania State University, Dr. Brooks has developed a widely recognized wetland research and education program. Current research projects include:
  • wetlands restoration and creation on altered and damaged landscapes
  • monitoring protocols for reference wetlands and mitigation projects
  • modeling cumulative impacts in wetland and riparian portions of landscapes
  • developing hydrogeomorphic models for riverine, depression, and slope wetlands
  • developing ecological indicator models using macroinvertebrates, amphibians and birds
  • treatment of mine drainage using constructed wetlands
  • habitat modeling for wetland-riparian wildlife.
He has taught 7 different undergraduate wildlife courses and graduate courses in the ecology and management of wetlands, restoration ecology, and habitat modeling. Since 1978, he has published over 120 technical papers, books, and book chapters, and presented over 110 technical presentations at conferences and meetings. Dr. Brooks has been the senior principal investigator on 71 of 100 grants funded between 1981-2000, totaling about $7 million.
Dr. Brooks has studied numerous wetland and river systems in the U.S. including emergent marshes, peatlands, shrub and forested wetlands, large rivers, and headwater streams. He attends 3-4 national and regional wetlands meetings per year, and is familiar with current federal and state regulations regarding the policy, protection, and mitigation of rivers and wetlands.

He has worked with agencies (e.g., U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Bureau of Mines, Office of Surface Mining, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Pennsylvania Game Commission, Pennsylvania Wild Resources Conservation Fund) and industries (e.g., coal mining, forestry, industrial development authorities, utilities). He spent 6 months studying wetland conservation in Australia in 1988 while on sabbatical at the Australian National University. He has been a consultant on wetlands to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency since 1987. He is Chair of Pennsylvania’s Wetlands Protection Advisory Committee.

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Professional Employment:
2003 - Present: Professor of Geography and Ecology
Department of Geography, Pennsylvania State University
1998 - 2003: Professor of Wildlife and Wetlands
School of Forest Resources, Pennsylvania State University
1993 - Present: Director, Penn State Cooperative Wetlands Center
1986 - 1997: Associate Professor of Wildlife Ecology - Wetlands and Wildlife
School of Forest Resources, Pennsylvania State University
1985 - 1988: Chairman, Wildlife and Fisheries Science Program
School of Forest Resources, Pennsylvania State University
1983 - 1985: Assistant Professor of Wildlife Ecology
School of Forest Resources, Pennsylvania State University

1980 - 1983

 

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 Assistant Professor of Wildlife Technology
DuBois Campus Wildlife Technology Program Leader (1982/83)
School of Forest Resources, Pennsylvania State University

Selected Professional Organizations:
Society of Wetland Scientists: Member
Certified Professional Wetland Scientist (1995)
Association of State Wetland Managers: Member
The Wildlife Society: Certified Wildlife Biologist (1983)
Associate Editor for Journal of Wildlife Management (1989-91)
Member: National, Section, and Pennsylvania Chapters
Advisor to Penn State Student Chapter (1991-present)
Board Member PA Chapter (1991-1994)
President PA Chapter (1993)

Society for Ecological Restoration:

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 Member

Selected Publications:

Cole, C. A., and R. P. Brooks. 2000. A comparison of the hydrologic characteristics of natural and created mainstem floodplain wetlands in Pennsylvania. Ecological Engineering 14(3):221-231.

Brooks, R. P., and K. Saacke Blunk. 2000. Riparia & Biodiversity. A teaching guide to the Riparia Biodiversity Poster., Penn State Cooperative Wetlands Center, University Park, PA. 8pp. Full color poster available.

O’Connell, T. J., L. E. Jackson, and R. P. Brooks. 2000. Bird guilds as indicators of ecological condition in the central Appalachians. Ecological Applications 10(6):1706-1721.

Gray, A., R. P. Brooks, D. H. Wardrop, and J. K. Perot. 1999. Pennsylvania’s Adopt-a-Wetland Program Wetland Education and Monitoring Module: Student Manual. Penn State Cooperative Wetlands Center, available at www.wetlands.cas.psu.edu. 100pp.

Brooks, R. P., T. J. O’Connell, D. H. Wardrop, and L. E. Jackson. 1998. Towards a regional index of biological integrity: the example of forested riparian ecosystems. Environ. Monit. Assmt.51:131-143.

Serfass, T. L., R. P. Brooks, J. M. Novak, P. E. Johns, and O. E. Rhodes, Jr. 1998. Genetic variation among river otter populations in North America: Considerations for reintroduction projects. J. Mammal. 79(3):736-746.

Wardrop, D. H., and R. P. Brooks. 1998. The occurrence and impact of sedimentation in central Pennsylvania wetlands. Environ. Monit. Assmt. 51(1-2):119-130.

Prosser, D. J., and R. P. Brooks. 1998. A verified habitat suitability index for the Louisiana Waterthrush. J. Field Ornith. 69(2):288-298.

Brooks, R. P. 1997. Improving habitat suitability models. Wildl. Soc. Bull. 25:163-167

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