image: The 2026 Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America will take place in Salt Lake City, Utah, July 26-31. Members of the press are invited to apply for complimentary press registration.
Credit: Ecological Society of America
Featured presentations at the 111th Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America in Salt Lake City, Utah
The Intermountain West is home to some of North America’s most distinctive landscapes and ecosystems, from the Great Salt Lake and Great Basin to mountain watersheds and sagebrush rangelands. As scientists gather in Salt Lake City for this year’s Ecological Society of America (ESA) Annual Meeting (July 26–31), many presentations will focus on the ecological challenges and opportunities facing the region. Home to diverse ecosystems and rich biodiversity, the region also faces mounting challenges related to water scarcity, climate change, wildfire and rapid human development.
Some presentations at the meeting will examine efforts to restore and steward landscapes through Indigenous-led solutions, how communities are working together to conserve wildlife in rapidly changing environments and how rangeland ecosystems are adapting to hotter, drier conditions. Others will explore the ecological future of the Great Salt Lake, a globally important ecosystem facing unprecedented threats from declining water levels. Collectively, these presentations examine how people and ecosystems are responding to environmental change across the Intermountain West.
ESA invites staff journalists, freelance journalists, student journalists and press officers to register for free as media attendees up to and throughout the week of the Annual Meeting. For eligibility information, please visit ESA’s press registration credential policy page.
Members of the media will have access to all scientific sessions at the conference and to a press room where they can enjoy refreshments, internet access, a printer and an interview area.
Monday, July 27
| 11:45 AM – 1:15 PM MT | Longterm Studies Section- Special Session: The Ecology and Natural History of the Region around Salt Lake City, Utah Presenter: Alexis Heinz, University of Michigan; Bryant Dossman, Georgetown University; Eric Munscher Special Session |
| 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM MT | Out of Sight, Out of Mind? Psychological Distance and Public Perceptions of Great Salt Lake Presenter: Nathan Thompson, Utah State University Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM MT | Recent seasonal climate change drives coupled epigenetic and physiological responses in a hibernating marmot Presenter: Stavi Tennenbaum, Princeton University Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM MT | Persistent landscape-scale aspen decline following large carnivore restoration in northern Yellowstone National Park Presenters: Dan MacNulty, Utah State University; Nicholas Bergeron,Utah State University; James A. Lutz, Utah State University; Douglas Ramsey, Utah State University; Eric Larsen, University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM MT | Counting mountain goats in the age of uncertainty: Genetics, citizen science, and spatial capture–recapture Presenters: Will Janousek, U.S. Geological Survey, Tabitha Graves, U.S. Geological Survey; Clinton Epps, Oregon State University; Jami Belt, National Park Service; Mark Biel, National Park Service; Rachel Crowhurst, Oregon State University; Rob Found, Parks CanadaContributed Oral Presentation |
| 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM MT | When Paleontology Meets Wildlife Science: Mammalian Censuses Through Time in the Bear River Range Presenters: Auriana Dunn, University of Utah, Kasey E. Cole, Weber State University; Austin M. Green, University of Utah, J. Tyler Faith, University of Utah; Randall Irmis, Natural History Museum of Utah; Emilie C. Bailey, University of Utah Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM MT | Endangered suckers nearing extirpation in Upper Klamath Lake Presenters: Jacob Krause, U.S. Geological Survey, Brian Hayes, U.S. Geological Survey; Rachael Paul-Wilson, Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission; Maria Dzul, U.S. Geological Survey Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM MT | Managing Fine Fuels in Western Rangelands with Virtual Fence Presenters: Rory C. O’Connor, USDA-ARS Range and Meadow Forage Management Research Unit, Chad Boyd, USDA-ARS; Peter Olsoy, USDA-ARS; Kirk Davies, USDA-ARS; Cameron Duquette, The Nature Conservancy; David Bohnert, Oregon State University; Katherine Wollstein, Oregon State University; Juliana Ranches, Oregon State University; Dustin Johnson,Oregon State University Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM | Nest survivability: Identifying bird behavioral changes to increase nest survivability in wildfires Presenter: Tyler S. Keller, University of Utah Contributed Poster Presentation |
Tuesday, July 28
| 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM MT | Can reducing irrigation improve water temperatures for coldwater fish in the Klamath River Basin? Presenters: Eli Asarian, Riverbend Sciences; Jacob Kann, Aquatic Ecosystem Sciences LLC; Kate Perkins Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM MT | Climate Adaptation in Great Basin Rangelands Presenter: Landon Neumann, Oklahoma State University; Madelon Case, U.S. Geological Survey; Justin Wied, Texas A&M University; Kay Strain, University of Nevada, Reno; Robert Shriver, University of Nevada, Reno; Kari Veblen, Utah State University; Corey Gucker, Great Basin Fire Science Exchange, University of Nevada, Reno; Elizabeth Leger, University of Nevada, Reno Organized Oral Session |
| 11:45 AM – 1:15 PM MT | Conservation or Collapse: The Great Salt Lake at an Ecological Crossroads Presenter: Joe Roberts, Utah Rivers Council / Great Salt Lake Waterkeeper; Zach Frankel Special Session |
| 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM MT | Using “Dark Diversity”’ to investigate nutrient drivers in a large, arid reservoir Presenters: Deena Hannoun, Southern Nevada Water Authority; Todd Tietjen, Southern Nevada Water Authority; Carissa Wilkerson, Southern Nevada Water Authority; Charlotte van der Nagel, Southern Nevada Water Authority Contributed Poster Presentation |
Wednesday, July 29
| 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM MT | Sense of place, community connection, and climate resilience across the Intermountain West Presenter: Karen Bailey, University of Colorado Boulder Inspire Presentation |
| 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM MT | Centering Community Priorities and Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Nature Based Climate Solutions Presenters: Danielle D. Ignace, University of Minnesota; Laura A. Laumatia, Coeur d’Alene Tribe; Kristina Bartowitz, University of Idaho; Eric Walsh, University of Idaho; Brantley Reade, Coeur d’Alene Tribe Symposium |
| 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM MT | Climate Awareness and Adaptation with the Utah Climate Access Portal Presenters: Matthew D. Pena; Ahamed Zakaria, Utah State University; Anna Miller, Utah State University; Kyra D. Clark-Wolf, University of Colorado-Boulder; David Pineda, Utah State University; Sajad Khoshnoodmotlagh, Utah State University; Sherly Sherlton, Utah State University Organized Oral Session |
| 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM MT | Partnerships supporting nimble conservation and restoration science on public lands Presenter: Sarah Hinners, Red Butte Garden and Arboretum, University of Utah Organized Oral Presentation |
| 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM MT | From the Ground Up: Community-Powered Wildlife Conservation in Utah and Abroad Presenters: Austin Green, University of Utah; Emmanuel Santa Martinez, Salt Lake Community College; Julie Young, Utah State University; Frances Ngo, Sageland Collaborative; Gaby Karakcheyeva, University of Utah, Kaylee Meyers, University of Utah; Ilina Mocuta, University of Utah Symposium |
| 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM MT | Biogeochemical and Microbial Consequences of Glyphosate-Based Phragmites Management in Great Salt Lake Wetlands Presenters: Tanner G. Thompson, Brigham Young University; Rachel L. Wood, Brigham Young University; Madison Brown, Brigham Young University; Mei Chen, Brigham Young University; Bryant Manwaring, Brigham Young University Poster Presentation |
Thursday, July 30
| 11:45 AM – 1:15 PM MT | Think Globally, Act Locally along what remains of the Great Salt Lake Presenters: Sarah Anderson, USDA Forest Service; Richard Pouyat, USDA Forest Service; Emily Graves, USFWS; Caroline Ridley, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Dough Kaylor, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; William Ota, Michigan State University Special Session |
| 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM MT | Policy Options for a Governing a Federal Restoration Initiative for the Great Salt Lake Presenter: Pervaze Sheikh, Congressional Research Service Contributed Oral Presentation |
| 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM MT | Hooves on the Landscape: Spatial Patterns and Resource Selection by Free-Roaming Horses in Western North America Presenters: Steven L. Petersen, Brigham Young University; Pat Clark, Agricultural Research Service; Craig Carr, Montana State University Contributed Oral Presentation |
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Learn more about the upcoming ESA Annual Meeting, July 26–31, on the meeting website.
ESA invites press and institutional public information officers to attend for free. To register, please contact ESA Public Affairs Manager Mayda Nathan directly at mayda@esa.org.
The Ecological Society of America, founded in 1915, is the world’s largest community of professional ecologists and a trusted source of ecological knowledge, committed to advancing the understanding of life on Earth. The 8,000 member Society publishes six journals and a membership bulletin and broadly shares ecological information through policy, media outreach, and education initiatives. The Society’s Annual Meeting attracts 4,000 attendees and features the most recent advances in ecological science. Visit the ESA website at https://www.esa.org.
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