Adrienne Kovach
My research focuses on the population ecology and conservation of vertebrates, with a focus on species of concern in the Northeast. I use multidisciplinary approaches, often integrating genetic and genomic tools with population and landscape modeling and the collection of observational and ecological data. I seek to address fundamental and applied questions about animal dispersal, population structure and gene flow, ecological adaptation, and occupancy and abundance monitoring. To date, I have worked with a diversity of vertebrates, including black bears, New England cottontails, tidal marsh and shrubland birds, anadromous fish, and Atlantic cod. I encourage my students to incorporate field, laboratory, and quantitative approaches in their research.
Courses Taught
- GEN 795W: Investigations in Genetics
- INCO 590: Student Research Experience
- NR 640: Wildlife Population Ecology
- NR 750: Sustain Biological Diversity
- NR 795W: Inv/Wildlife Techniques
- NR 908: Landscape Genetics
Selected Publications
Ruskin, K. J., Clark, J. D., Hotopp, A., Kovach, A. I., Guido, N. A., Hernandez, D. L., . . . Shriver, W. G. (2023). New extralimital breeding records of saltmarsh sparrows (Ammospiza caudacuta) and Nelson's sparrows (Ammospiza nelsoni) and their implications.. Ecol Evol, 13(9), e10532. doi:10.1002/ece3.10532
Maxwell, L. M., Walsh, J., Olsen, B. J., & Kovach, A. I. (n.d.). Climate change outpaces adaptive potential via hybridization in nesting female Saltmarsh and Nelson’s Sparrows. Ornithology. doi:10.1093/ornithology/ukad037
Walsh, J., Fenderson, L. E., Elphick, C. S., Cohen, J. B., Field, C. R., Garey, L. K., . . . Kovach, A. I. (n.d.). Surrounding landscape, habitat and hybridization dynamics drive population structure and genetic diversity in the Saltmarsh Sparrow. Ornithological Applications. doi:10.1093/ornithapp/duad025
Wojtusik, K. J., Berlinsky, D. L., Kenter, L. W., & Kovach, A. I. (2023). River‐of‐origin assignment of migratory Striped Bass, with implications for mixed‐stock analysis. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, 152(1), 15-34. doi:10.1002/tafs.10387
Perlut, N., Maxwell, L. M., Kovach, A., Parker, P., & Renfrew, R. B. (2023). Breeding origins of a uniquely regular migrant songbird in the Galápagos Islands.. Ecol Evol, 13(1), e9697. doi:10.1002/ece3.9697
Fenderson, L. E., Kovach, A. I., & Llamas, B. (2020). Spatiotemporal landscape genetics: Investigating ecology and evolution through space and time. MOLECULAR ECOLOGY, 29(2), 218-246. doi:10.1111/mec.15315
Kerr, L. A., Cadrin, S. X., & Kovach, A. I. (2014). Consequences of a mismatch between biological and management units on our perception of Atlantic cod off New England. ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE, 71(6), 1366-1381. doi:10.1093/icesjms/fsu113
Kovach, A. I., Breton, T. S., Berlinsky, D. L., Maceda, L., & Wirgin, I. (2010). Fine-scale spatial and temporal genetic structure of Atlantic cod off the Atlantic coast of the USA. MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES, 410, 177-U195. doi:10.3354/meps08612
Wirgin, I., Kovach, A. I., Maceda, L., Roy, N. K., Waldman, J., & Berlinsky, D. L. (2007). Stock identification of Atlantic cod in US waters using microsatellite and single nucleotide polymorphism DNA analyses. TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY, 136(2), 375-391. doi:10.1577/T06-068.1
Kovach, A. I., & Powell, R. A. (2003). Effects of body size on male mating tactics and paternity in black bears, Ursus americanus. CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ZOOLOGY, 81(7), 1257-1268. doi:10.1139/Z03-111
Most Cited Publications