Biographical Information about Dave Busch

Dave Busch serves as Senior Biologist for the Western Region of the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS), headquartered in Seattle, Washington. From his office in Portland, Oregon, Dave has helped represent the USGS since 1997 on teams implementing Northwest Forest Plan monitoring and research. Dave is also affiliated with the Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, the principal USGS institution with a Plan-related science mission.

His professional interests cluster in two areas: the development and implementation of scientificallybased monitoring programs, and the functional and community ecology of riparian and wetland ecosystems. Prior to his current position, he worked on both topics as the Inventory and Monitoring Program Manager for the National Park Service at Everglades National Park (1994-1997), and as Senior Terrestrial Biologist for the Bureau of Reclamation’s Lower Colorado Region (1981-1994).

Key principles drawn from monitoring programs in these three systems are highlighted in “Monitoring Ecosystems: Interdisciplinary Approaches for Evaluating Ecoregional Initiatives,” a 2003 book Dave co-edited. Academic work for his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Nebraska was concentrated in wildlife ecology. Research for his Ph.D. in Environmental Biology from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas focused on the ecology of woody plants in southwestern riparian ecosystems.