About
My teaching interests focus on community ecology and wildlife management. I teach
many of the -ology classes with focus on taxonomy, natural history, and use/development
of our natural history collection. I also developed a course in Fire Ecology, which
includes a prescribed burn of a restored native grassland at Radford University's
Selu Conservancy.
I am the faculty advisor for the Radford University Student Chapter of The Wildlife
Society (follow us on Facebook!) and for students with an interest in veterinary medicine. I also curate the natural history collection in the Biology Department.
My research interests are broad, encompassing many aspects of vertebrate ecology and
habitat management. Recent projects and publications have focused on the effects of
White-nose Syndrome on bat communities in the eastern United States and the status
of Allegheny woodrats in Virginia. We have taken a turn to examining ectoparasites
(bot flies and fleas) in woodrats in recent years. This summer work with bats and
woodrats welcomes a small crew of 3-5, completing research across western Virginia.
On campus, we have been documenting bird-window collisions since 2018, and just published
our 4th article with student authors. The bird-window collision research continues
to welcome 8-10 students a semester, each student collaboratively collecting data
and developing independent research questions based on our growing dataset.
Publications from 2019 to present are listed below, many with student co-authors (indicated
by *).
- Thorne, E.D., K.E. Powers, R.J. Reynolds. M.E. Beckner*, K.A. Ellis*, and W.M. Ford. Accepted for publication. Comparison of survey methods to maximize detection of a declining rodent, the Allegheny
woodrat (Neotoma magister), in Virginia. Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management.
- Lancaster, S.L.*, R.E.Salen*, E.H. Olsen-Hodges*, S.R. Simon*, and K.E. Powers. 2022.
Techniques and trends in aging carcasses of bird-wind collisions in the New River
Valley. Banisteria 56:18-24.
- Powers, K.E., D.M. Clore*, G.M. Davidson*, and R.C. Harris. 2022. A bird's-eye view:
Novel use of drone images to quantify differences in altitudinal reflections in bird-window
collision studies. American Midland Naturalist 187(1):51-61.
- Powers, K.E., R. Sheehy, M. Close, and B. Crawford*. 2022. Field note: Plestiodon fasciatus (Five-lined skink). Catesbeiana 42(1):33-34.
- Powers, K.E., L.A. Burroughs*, N.I. Harris III*, and R.C. Harris. 2021. Biases in
bird-window collisions: A focus on scavengers and observer detection rates. Southeastern Naturalist 20(2):293-307.
- Powers, K.E., T.H.D. Marshall*, L.M. Van Meter*, R.R. Sheehy, and S. Garvin. 2020.
Parasite loads and aging techniques assess the condition of a bobcat (Lynx rufus) kitten in Virginia. Banisteria 54:N14-N22.
- Powers, K.E., M.T. Mengak, R.R. Sheehy, W.M. Ford, and R.J. Reynolds. 2020. Bot fly
parasitism of Allegheny woodrats (Neotoma magister) in Virginia. American Midland Naturalist 184: 62-72.
- Powers, K.E., J.E. Raymond, K.L. Titus*, H.N. Custer*, S. Brandes*, and J.S. Lucas.
2020. Assessment of small Indian mongoose diet on St. John, USVI, using stable isotope analyses. Caribbean Naturalist 73:1-14.
- Powers, K.E., M.S. Dimas*, A.I. Leon*, and L.M. Vanmeter*. 2020. Observed predation of Neotoma magister (Allegheny woodrat) by Strix varia (barred owl) in Virginia. Northeastern Naturalist 27(1):N1-N5.
- Allen, E.T.*, K.E. Powers, C.J. Small, and T.F. Wielboldt. 2020. County additions
to the Virginia flora vouchered at the Radford University Herbarium. Castanea 85(1):14-22
- Powers, K.E., L.A. Burroughs*, B.M. Mullen*, H.C. Reed*, and Z.Q. Krajcirovic*. 2019. Investigating campus features that influence bird-window collisions at Radford University,
Virginia. Banisteria 53:11-21.
- Paniagua-Ugarte, C.Y.*, K.E. Powers, and R.R. Sheehy. 2019. Using DNA barcoding to
identify carcasses from bird-window collisions at Radford University. Banisteria 53:22-26.
- Muthersbaugh, M., A. Silvis, K.E. Powers, W.M. Ford. 2019. Activity patterns of cave-dwelling
bat species during pre-hibernation swarming and post-hibernation emergence in the
central Appalachians. Diversity 11:159.
- Muthersbaugh, M., W.M. Ford, K.E. Powers, and A. Silvis. 2019. Activity patterns in
regional and long-distance migrant bat species during the fall and spring along ridgelines
in the central Appalachians. Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management 10(1):180-195.
- Austin, L., A. Silvis, W.M. Ford, and K.E. Powers. 2019. Effects of historic wildfire and prescribed fire on site occupancy of bats in Shenandoah
National Park, Virginia, USA. Journal of Forestry Research. DOI 10.1007/s11676-019-00923-y
Students interested in independent research (BIOL 488/491) or internship (BIOL 495)
credits throughout the year (including summer months) are welcome to contact me to
participate in on-going projects. **Special consideration will be given to those
active in the Radford University Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society.
Inquiries from regional researchers interested in developing field projects with vertebrate
communities also are encouraged.