The Lloyd-Smith Laboratory at UCLA

My research examines how wildlife movement influences disease risk. Wildlife move farther and more frequently than once thought, and their movement patterns are shifting with globalization and climate change. With emergences of novel pathogens on the rise, more complete characterization of wildlife movement and its impact on disease risk can address outstanding threats to biodiversity and global health.

My primary project at UCLA is using ecology of movement and disease to protect endangered species. Populations of Yosemite toads (Anaxyrus canorus), endemic to the Sierra Nevada range in California, plummeted in the late 1970s. Evidence is accumulating that disease played a role. In partnership with the National Park Service, I am investigating the movement patterns and infection risk of Yosemite toads, with the goal of developing data-driven re-introduction strategies to bolster their vulnerable populations.

A complete list can be found on my Google Scholar page

Daversa, DR, AM Manica, H Bintanel Cenis, P Lopez, TWJ Garner, J Bosch. 2021. Alpine newts (Ichthyosaura alpestris) avoid habitats previously used by parasite-exposed conspecifics. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. doi:10.3389/fevo.2021.636099

Daversa, DR, R Hechinger, A Fenton, E Madin, J Rohr, A Dell, V Rudolph, K Lafferty. 2021. Broadening the ecology of fear: non-lethal effects arise from diverse responses to predation and parasitism. Proceedings of the Royal Society: B 288: 20202966. doi:10.1098/rspb.2020.2966

Farthing, H, J Jiang, AJ Henwood, A Fenton, MC Fisher, DR Daversa, TWJ Garner, DJS Montagnes. 2021. Microbial grazers may aid in controlling infections caused by aquatic zoosporic fungi. Frontiers in Microbiology 11: 592286. doi:10.1101/2020.02.03.931857

Cooke, J, Y Araya, K Bacon, J Bagniewska, L Batty, T Bishop, M Burns, C Moya, M Charalambous, DR Daversa, et al. 2020. Teaching and learning in ecology: a horizon scan of emerging challenges and solutions. Oikos. doi:10.1111/oik.07847

Greischar, M, H Alexander, F Bashey, A Bento, A Bhattacharya, M Bushman, L Childs, DR Daversa, …N Mideo. 2020. Evolutionary consequences of feedbacks between within-host competition and disease control. Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health 10: 30–34. doi:10.1093/emph/eoaa004

Canessa, S, A Spitzen-van der Sluijs, T Stark, P Bishop, M Bletz, C Briggs, DR Daversa, M Gray, RA Griffiths, RN Harris, XA Harrison, JT Hoverman, P Jervis, EL Muths, DH Olsen, CL Richards-Zawacki, J Robert, GM Rosa, BC Scheele, BR Schmidt, TWJ Garner. 2019. Conservation decisions under pressure: Lessons from an exercise in rapid response to wildlife disease. Conservation Science and Practice e141. doi:10.1111/ csp2.141

Pauwels, O, P Carlino, L Chirio, DR Daversa, J Lips, R Oslisly and O Testa. 2019. Amphibians and reptiles found in caves in Gabon, western Equatorial Africa. Cave and Karst Science 46 (1): 3-12.

Daversa, DR, A Manica, J Bosch, TWJ Garner. 2018. Routine habitat switching alters the likelihood and persistence of infection with a pathogenic parasite. Functional Ecology. doi:10.1111/1365-2435.13038

Daversa, DR, C Monsalve-Carcaño, LM Carrascal, J Bosch. 2018. Seasonal migrations, body temperature fluctuations, and infection dynamics in adult amphibians. PeerJ 6:e4698. doi:10.7717/peerj.4698

Daversa, DR, A Fenton, TWJ Garner, A Dell, A Manica. 2017. Infections on the move: How transient phases of host movement influence disease spread. Proceedings of the Royal Society: B 284: 20171807. doi:10.1098/rspb.2017.1807

Daversa, DR, E Muths and J Bosch. 2012. Terrestrial movement patterns of the Common Toad (Bufo bufo) in Central Spain reveal habitat of conservation importance. Journal of Herpetology 46: 658-664. doi:10.1670/11-012

Daversa, DR, J Bosch and K Jeffrey. 2011. First survey of the disease-causing fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, in amphibian populations of Gabon, Africa. Herpetology Review 42 (1): 67-69.

Dave Daversa

Dave Daversa

Research Interests

Publications