Paul Curtis

• 1992 Certified Wildlife Biologist®, The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, MD
• 1990 Ph.D. Zoology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC
• 1981 M.S. Wildlife Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
• 1978 B.S. Natural Resources, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV

My core programming deals with reducing negative impacts associated with wildlife, and I seek to strategically integrate extension programming with applied research. Extension activities include a combination of web resources, online courses, publications, workshops, lectures, and other delivery methods.  Primary extension audiences are natural resource management professionals, Cooperative Extension county educators, community leaders, elected officials, farm and forest landowners, and others experiencing wildlife conflicts. I helped develop the National Wildlife Control Training Program (https://wildlifecontroltraining.com/) to provide a basic curriculum and skills for nuisance wildlife control professionals. Students taking this online course receive a certificate that can be used for licensing by state wildlife agencies in New York and other states.  I am currently engaged in urban deer research, both locally and regionally.  The Cornell Integrated Deer Research and Management Program integrates applied research and extension to improve deer management outcomes in several communities.  I am also currently working on methods to better monitor deer impacts to forest regeneration and enhance biodiversity. 

Recent Publications

• Pustilnik, J. D., J. B. Searle, and P. D. Curtis. 2021. The effects of red fox scent on winter burrow use by eastern cottontail rabbits and other wildlife in suburbia: evaluating predator-prey dynamics, daily activity patterns, and evolutionary trade-offs. Urban Ecosystems 24:529–547. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-020-01056-5
• Curtis, P. D.  2020. After decades of suburban deer research and management in the eastern United States: where do we go from here? Human-Wildlife Interactions 14(1):111-128. https://doi.org/10.26077/k7ye-k912
• Diehl, J., Z. O. Korpi, S. A. Oswald, J. M. Arnold, and P. D. Curtis. 2020. Nocturnal sleep behavior in common terns. Waterbirds 43(1):28-35. https://doi.org/10.1675/063.043.0103
• Blossey, B., P. D. Curtis, J. R. Boulanger, and A. Dávalos.  2019. Red oak seedlings as bioindicators to assess browsing pressure and efficacy of white-tailed deer management. Ecology and Evolution 9:13085–13103. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5729                                        
• Lesser, M. R., M. Dovciak, R. Wheat, P. Curtis, P. Smallidge, J. Hurst, D. Kramer, M. Roberts, and J. Frair.  2019. Modelling white-tailed deer impacts on forest regeneration to inform deer management options at landscape scales. Forest Ecology and Management 448:395-408. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2019.06.013
• Curtis, P. D., K. L. Wise, J. Cummings, A. D. Gabriel, K. Ganoe, J. J. Miller, M. E. Hunter, K. A. O’Neil, J. R. Lawrence, P. E. Cerosaletti, and Dale R. Dewing. 2019. Field evaluation of anthraquinone treatment to reduce corn seedling damage by birds. Crop Protection 123:59-62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2019.05.021
• Elser, J. L., C. A. Lindell, K. M. M. Steensma, P. D. Curtis, D. K. Leigh, W. F. Siemer, J. R. Boulanger, and S. A. Shwiff.  2019. Measuring bird damage to three fruit crops: A comparison of grower and field estimates. Crop Protection 123:1-4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2019.05.010
• Hannay, M., J. R. Boulanger, P. D. Curtis, R. A. Eaton, B. C. Hawes, D. K. Leigh, C. A. Rossetti, K. M. Steensma, and C. A. Lindell. 2019. Bird species and abundances in fruit crops and implications for bird management. Crop Protection 120:43-49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2019.02.015
• Bracey, A., S. Lisovski, D. Moore, A. McKellar, E. Craig, C. Pekarik, F. Strand, J. Costa, S. Matteson, P. Curtis, G. Niemi, and F. Cuthbert. 2018. Migratory routes ad wintering locations of declining inland North American populations of common terns and implications for conservation. The Auk 135(3):385-399. https://doi.org/10.1642/AUK-17-210.1
• Stedman, R. C., L. R. Larson, K. G. Tidball, M. Tidball, and P. D. Curtis. 2017. Hunting and the local food movement: Insights from central New York State. Wildlife Society Bulletin 41: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/wsb.802
• Tidball, M. M., J. Exler, M. Somanchi, J. Williams, C. Kraft, P. Curtis, and K. Tidball. 2017. Addressing information gaps in wild-caught foods in the US: Brook trout nutritional analysis for inclusion into the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 60:57-63.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jfca.2017.03.004
• McCance, E. C., D. J. Decker, A. M. Colturi, R. M. Baydack, W. F. Siemer, P. D. Curtis, and T. Eason.  2017.  Importance of urban wildlife management in the United States and Canada. Mammal Study 42(1):1-16.  https://doi.org/10.3106/041.042.0108.
• Boulanger, J. R., and P. D. Curtis. 2016. Efficacy of surgical sterilization for managing overabundant suburban white-tailed deer. Wildlife Society Bulletin 40:727-735. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/wsb.706
• Lindell, C.A., K. S. Steensma, P. D. Curtis, J. R. Boulanger, J. E. Carroll, C. Burrows, D. P. Lusch, N. L. Rothwell, S. L. Weiferich, H. M. Henrichs, D. K. Leigh, R. A. Eaton, and G. M. Linz.  2016. Proportions of bird damage in tree fruits are higher in low fruit abundance contexts. Crop Protection 90:40-48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2016.08.011
• Craig, E., T. King, J. Sparks, and P. D. Curtis. 2015. Aquaculture depredation by double-crested cormorants breeding in eastern North America. Journal of Wildlife Management 80:57-62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jwmg.989
• Craig, E., S. Elbin, J. Sparks, and P. D. Curtis. 2015. Identifying important foraging habitats for colonial waterbirds in an urban estuary: a stable isotope approach. Waterbirds 38:330-338.  https://dx.doi.org/10.1675/063.038.0410
• Craig, E., B. Dorr, K. Hanson-Dorr, J. Sparks, and P. D. Curtis. 2015. Isotopic discrimination in the double-crested cormorant. PLoS ONE 10:e0140946. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0140946
• Curtis, P. D., R. Smith, and S. Hygnstrom. 2015. The National Wildlife Control Training Program: an evolution in wildlife damage management education for industry professionals. Human-Wildlife Interactions 9(2):166-170.

• 2019: Environmental Programming Cooperator Award, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County, Syracuse, NY
• 2017: Outstanding Accomplishments in Extension/Outreach, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
• 2016: 2nd Place National Winner, and 1st Place Eastern Region Winner, Program Excellence through Research Award, National Extension Association of Family & Consumer Sciences; “Leveraging the Locavore Movement: Exploring Wild Game and Fish Consumption and Hunter/Angler Recruitment and Retention”
• 2012: Educator of the Year, National Wildlife Control Operator’s Association for the National Wildlife Control Training Program book and online curriculum
• 2008: Northeast Extension Directors’ Award of Excellence for 2007, for the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management
• 2005: Outstanding Professional Award, The Wildlife Society, New York Chapter
• 2004: Extension Publication Award, NY Association of Natural Resources Extension Professionals, Best Practices for Nuisance Wildlife Control Operators: A Training Manual
• 2004: Extension Publication Award, American Society for Horticulture Sciences, Pumpkin Production Guide
• 2004: Outstanding Professional Award, Northeast Association of Wildlife Damage Biologists
• 2002: Silver Telly Broadcast Communication Award, Bat Management Videotape

• NTRES 4280/6280 Principles and Practices of Applied Wildlife Science