Maria João Santos
Ph.D., University of California Davis, Ecology
M.Sc., Northern Arizona University, Environmental Sciences and Policy
B.Sc., Universidade de Lisboa Portugal, Animal Resources Applied Biology
Maria J. Santos received a Ph.D. in ecology from the University of California Davis in 2010. She came to the Lane Center in 2012, after a year as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at the University of California Berkeley where she researched how climate and vegetation changes over the last century may explain the range dynamics of small mammals in the Sierra Nevada. Her current project focuses on reconstructing conservation history in California. More broadly, she is interested in applied conservation and ecology, especially questions of spatial and temporal dynamics.
Awards
Coupled Human and Natural Systems Fellowship
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Fellowship
NASA-MSU Professional Enhancement Award
Fulbright Fellowship
Luso-American Foundation Fellowship
Fundação Para a Ciência e Tecnologia Fellowship
Affiliations
Bill Lane Center for the American West
Center for Spatial and Textual Analysis
Spatial History Project
Courses
Publications
Selected Articles
Smith, A.B., M.J. Santos, M. Koo, K.M.C. Rowe, K.C. Rowe, J.L. Patton, J. Perrine, S. Beissinger & C. Moritz. 2013. Effect of data quality on validation of species distribution models projected across a century of climate change. Ecography.
Schwartz, M.W., K. Deiner, T. Forrester, P. Grof-Tisza, M. Muir, M.J. Santos, L. Souza, M. Wilkerson & M. Zylberberg. 2012.Perspectives on the Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation. Biological Conservation. 155:169-177.
Santos, M.J., E.L. Hestir, S. Khanna & S.L. Ustin. 2012. Image spectroscopy and stable isotopes elucidate functional dissimilarity between native and non-native plant species in the aquatic environment. New Phytologist 193(3)
Khanna, S., M.J. Santos, E.L. Hestir & S. L. Ustin. 2011. Plant community dynamics relative to the changing distribution of a highly invasive species, Eichhornia crassipes: a remote sensing perspective. Biological Invasions (online first)
Elbroch, L.M., T.H. Mwampamba, M.J. Santos, M. Zylberberg, L. Liebenberg, J. Minye, C. Mosser & E. Reddy. 2011. The value, limitations and challenges of employing local experts in conservation research. Conservation Biology 25(6):1195-1202.
Santos, M.J., H.M. Matos, F. Palomares & M. Santos-Reis. 2011. Factors affecting mammalian carnivore use of riparian ecosystems in Mediterranean climates: plant composition and structure or water availability? Journal of Mammalogy 92(5):1060-1069.
Khanna, S., M.J. Santos, S.L. Ustin & P. Haverkamp. 2011. An integrated approach to a biophysiologically based classification of floating aquatic macrophytes. International Journal of Remote Sensing 32(4):1067-1094.
Rosalino, L.M., M.J. Santos, C. Fernandes & M. Santos-Reis. 2011. Biogeographical region and host trophic level determine carnivore endoparasite richness in the Iberian Peninsula. Parasitology 138:1-8.
Greenberg, J.A., C. Rueda, E.L. Hestir, M.J. Santos & S.L. Ustin. 2011. Least cost distance analysis for spatial interpolation. Computers & Geosciences 37:272-276.
Rodriguez-Refojos C., I. Zuberogoitia, L.M. Rosalino, J. Zabala, D. Camps, M.J. Santos & M. Santos-Reis. 2011. Body size variation of common genets (Genetta genetta) in south-western Europe (Iberian Peninsula): geographical and sexual differences. Folia Zoologica 60(1):53-61.
Santos, M.J., L.W. Anderson & S.L. Ustin. 2011. Effects of invasive species on plant communities: an example using submersed aquatic plants at the regional scale. Biological Invasions 13(2):443-457.
Ustin, S.L. & M.J. Santos. 2010. Spectral identification of native and non-native plant species. Art, Science and Applications of Reflectance Spectroscopy Symposium Proceedings. (http://www.asdi.com/forest-products/articles/spectral-identification-plant-species)
Rosalino, L.M., M. Sousa, N. Pedroso, M. Basto, J. Rosário, M. J. Santos & F. Loureiro. 2010. Food resources influence on red fox local distribution in a mountain area of the western Mediterranean. Vie et Millieu 60(1):1-8.
Santos, M.J. 2010. Encroachment of upland Mediterranean plant species in riparian ecosystems of southern Portugal. Biodiversity and Conservation 19: 2667-2684.
Santos, M.J. & J.H. Thorne. 2010. Comparing culture and ecology: conservation planning of oak woodlands in Mediterranean landscapes of Portugal and California. Environmental Conservation 37(2): 155-168.
Santos, M.J., J.A. Greenberg & S.L. Ustin. 2010. Using hyperspectral remote sensing to detect and quantify southeastern pine senescence effects in Red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis) habitat. Remote Sensing of Environment 114(6):1242-1250.
Ustin, S.L., M.J. Santos, S.C. Kefauver & M.L. Whiting. 2010. Remote sensing of biological soil crust under simulated climate change. EARSeL Proceedings. (http://www.earsel6th.tau.ac.il/~earsel6/CD/PDF/earsel-PROCEEDINGS/3056%20Ustin.pdf)
Santos, M.J. & T.G. Whitham. 2010. Predictors of Ips confusus Outbreaks During a Record Drought in Southwestern USA: Implications for Monitoring and Management. Environmental Management 45:239-249.
Santos, M.J., H.M. Matos, C. Baltazar, C. Grilo & M. Santos-Reis. 2009. Is Polecat (Mustela putorius) diet affected by “mediterraneity”? Mammalian Biology 74: 448-455.
Santos, M.J. & M. Santos-Reis. 2009. Stone marten (Martes foina) habitat selection in a Mediterranean ecosystem: effects of scale, sex, and interspecific interactions. European Journal of Wildlife Research 56(3): 275-286.
Santos, M.J., S. Khanna, E.L. Hestir, M.E. Andrew, S.S. Rajapakse, J.A. Greenberg, L.W.J. Anderson & S.L. Ustin. 2009. Use of Hyperspectral Remote Sensing to Evaluate Efficacy of Aquatic Plant Management in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, California. Invasive Plant Science and Management 2(3): 216-229. (Featured cover photo article)
Pinto, B., M.J. Santos & F. Rosell. 2009. Habitat selection of the Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) near its carrying capacity: an example from Norway. Canadian Journal of Zoology 87:317-325.
Khanna, S., M.J. Santos, E. Hestir, J.A. Greenberg & S.L. Ustin. 2009. Patterns of change in water hyacinth distribution in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Proceedings of the California Invasive Plant Council Symposium 102-106.
Santos, M.J., L.W. Anderson & S.L. Ustin. 2009. Spatial patterns in native and exotic submersed aquatic plant species in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Proceedings of the California Invasive Plant Council Symposium. 96-99.
Rosalino, L.M., M.J. Santos, I. Pereira & M. Santos-Reis. 2009. Sex-driven differences in Egyptian mongoose’s (Herpestes ichneumon) diet in its northwestern European Range. European Journal of Wildlife Research 55:293-299.
Ustin, S.L., P.G. Valko, S.C. Kefauver, M.J. Santos, J.F. Zimpfer & S.D. Smith. 2009. Remote Sensing of Biological Soil Crust Under Simulated Climate Change Manipulations in the Mojave Desert. Remote Sensing of Environment 113(2): 317-328.
Matos, H.M., M.J. Santos, F. Palomares & M. Santos-Reis. 2009. Does riparian habitat condition influence mammalian carnivore abundance in Mediterranean ecosystems? Biodiversity and Conservation 18(2): 373-386.
Santos, M.J. & P. Beier. 2008. Habitat selection by European badgers at multiple spatial scales in Portuguese Mediterranean ecosystems. Wildlife Research 35(8): 835-843.
Hestir, E.L., S. Khanna, M.E. Andrew, M.J. Santos, J.H. Viers, J.A. Greenberg, S.S. Rajapakse & S.L. Ustin. 2008. Identification of invasive vegetation using hyperspectral remote sensing in the California Delta ecosystem. Remote Sensing of Environment 112(11): 4034-4047.
Rosalino, L.M., M.J. Santos, P. Beier & M. Santos-Reis. 2008. Eurasian badger habitat selection in Mediterranean environments: does scale really matter? Mammalian Biology 73(3): 189-198.
Santos, M.J., S. Khanna, S. Rajapakse, E.L. Hestir, M.E. Andrew, J.A. Greenberg & S.L. Ustin. 2007. Bringing hyperspectral methods to applied science: active management of invasive species in the California Delta. Proceedings of the AVIRIS Earth Science and Applications workshop. Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA.
Santos, M.J., N.M. Pedroso, J.P. Ferreira, H.M. Matos, T. Sales-Luís, I. Pereira, C. Baltazar, C.B. Grilo, A.-T. Cândido & M. Santos-Reis. 2007. Assessing dam implementation impact on threatened carnivores: the case of Alqueva in SE Portugal. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 142(1-3): 47-64.
Santos, M.J., B.M. Pinto & M. Santos-Reis. 2007. Is trophic niche partitioning the solution for the coexistence of carnivores in a Mediterranean landscape of SW Portugal? WebEcology 7: 53-62.
Rosalino, L.M., M.J. Santos, S. Domingos, M. Rodrigues & M. Santos-Reis. 2005. Body size and population structure of sympatric carnivores in a Mediterranean landscape of SW Portugal. Revista Biologia (Lisboa) 23:135-146.
Book Chapters
Santos-Reis, M., L.M. Rosalino, F. Loureiro & M.J. Santos. 2005. Badgers in Portugal: distribution, status and conservation. In E. Virgós, J.G. Mangas, E. Revilla & X.-D. Roura, eds. Ecología, distribución y estatus de conservación del tejón ibérico. Sociedad Española de Conservación y Estudio de Mamíferos. Madrid. España. Pp: 241-250.
Santos-Reis, M., M.J. Santos, S. Lourenço, T. Marques, I. Pereira & B. Pinto. 2004. Relationships between stone martens, genets and cork oak woodlands in Portugal. In D. J. Harrison, A. K. Fuller, and G. Proulx, eds. Marten and fishers (Martes) in human-altered environments: An international perspective. Springer Science + Business Media, NY, USA. Pp: 147-172.
