H. Scott Butterfield, PhD

I recently accepted a position with The Nature Conservancy in California! I will be an ecoregional ecologist with responsibilities throughout the Central Coast Ecoregion.

My broad interests are in rangeland ecology, conservation biology, and remote sensing/GIS. In California, the spread of invasive weeds has reduced rangeland productivity, and made it more difficult for ranching operations to be profitable. At the same time, ranches face increasing pressure from urbanization. As an applied ecologist, I am interested in understanding how we can fuse innovative technologies (e.g., remote sensing/GIS) with the on-the-ground expertise of land managers to manage invasive weeds and increase rangeland sustainability. I believe that by collaborating with managers, scientists can develop management technologies and strategies that are both more likely to be incorporated and result in sustainable management practices.