Nathan Senner : Department of Environmental Conservation : UMass Amherst

Bio Sketch

Nathan started studying birds at the age of 14. After earning a B.A. from Carleton College, he was awarded a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship to follow Hudsonian Godwits on their annual migration from the Arctic to the southern tip of South America and back. He continued this research while pursuing his PhD at Cornell University with Dr. John Fitzpatrick. From there, he traveled across the Atlantic for a postdoc with Dr. Theunis Piersma at the University of Groningen studying the flexibility of Black-tailed Godwit annual cycles. Following that, he was a postdoc at the University of Montana with Dr. Zachary Cheviron investigating the population dynamics of high-elevation deer mice. In his free time, Nathan trains with his running partner, Oliver (three-time canine champion of the Snow Joke Half Marathon and inarguably Montana's fastest dog).

Courses Taught

NRC 565 -Wildlife Population Dynamics

Recent Publications

Google Scholar

*Lab Graduate Student, **Lab Undergraduate Student

Clements SJ, JP Loghry, JA Linscott*, J Ruiz, JG Navedo, NR Senner, BM Ballard, and M.D. Weegman. 2026. Less-frequent location information restricts inference about stopover behaviour but not migration phenology in shorebirds. Ibis 168: 10.1111/ibi.70079.

Fernández K, NR Senner, JA Johnson, JG Navedo, and C Verdugo. 2026. Allelic diversity and selection at the MHC class I and class II in a long-distance migratory shorebird, the Hudsonian Godwit (Limosa haemastica). Immunogenetics 78:10.

*Bathrick RE, A Courtemanche**, K Christie, JA Johnson, C Gesmundo, LA McDuffie, DR Ruthrauff, and NR Senner. 2026. Tringa flavipes (Lesser Yellowlegs) from separate breeding sites subdivide the Prairie Pothole Region in space and time during southbound migration. Ornithological Applications 128: duag048.

*Handmaker MC, FJ Sanders, AD Smith, EP Shealy**, N Fontaine, MB Kaplin, JM Thibault, MC Martin, C Duquet, AV Sterling, and NR Senner. 2026. Specializing in order to generalize: fidelity to foraging areas is modulated by flexible fine-scale habitat use in Hudsonian Whimbrel (Numenius hudsonicus). Movement Ecology 14: 40.

**Smith E, RJ Swift*, L Puleo*, A Courtemanche**, MM Pelton**, H Walton**, F Huang*, and NR Senner. 2026. Nest site and habitat changes over 15 years in a predicted climate refugium have a positive impact on Hudsonian Godwit nest survival. Polar Biology 49: 47.

*Huang F, C Tyson, BR Addis, C Elowe, L Puleo*, S Saint-Juste**, M Stager, RJ Swift, L Wilde*, and NR Senner. 2026. Growth, movement, and survival of precocial shorebird chicks are constrained by environmental conditions. Behavioral Ecology 37: arag035.

Harrison A-L, CR Stenzel, AM Anderson, JE Howell, RB Lanctot, A Dayer, B Andres, C Hickey, E Gallo-Cajiao, EJ Williams, J Deppe, J Devries, KS Werner, M Reiter, PA Smith, R Gibbons, R Clay, S Johnston, SE Senner, S Brown, T Boorsma, AO Kerstupp, A Pierce, A Scarpignato, AJ Boyce, A Taylor, BM Ballard, B Kempenaers, B Lagasse, B Olson, D Bradley, D Newstead, D-J Léandri-Breton, E Nol, E Blomberg, E Kwon, J Hill, J-F Lamarre, J Rausch, JA Johnson, J Smith, JG Navedo, J Paquet, K Christie, K Regan, TL Tibbitts, L Johnson, M Hipfner, M Stantial, MD Weegman, NR Senner, O Gilg, P Loring, PA Smith, S Flemming, W Wehtje, and W English. 2026. The collective application of tracking data to shorebird conservation. Conservation Biology 40: e70194.

Gherardi-Fuentes C, J Ruiz, NR Senner, JA Johnson, JA Masero, J Gutiérrez, C Verdugo, and JG Navedo. 2026. Lack of population structure of an extreme migratory shorebird: evidence of gene flow between seemingly segregated populations. Ecology and Evolution 16:e72771.

Stager M, PM Benham, NR Senner, RR Fitak, K Denmead, RK Andringa, JK Grace, DL Dittmann, J Siegrist, and AM Forsman. 2026. Immediate and long-term consequences of a storm-induced mass mortality event in a migratory songbird. Nature Ecology and Evolution 10: 907-918.

Weiser EL, RB Lanctot, DR Ruthrauff, ST Saalfeld, TL Tibbitts, JM Abad-Gómez, J Aldabe, J Bosi de Almeida, JA Alves, GQA Anderson, PF Battley, H Belting, J Bêty, K Bianchini, MA Bishop, RA Bom, K Bowgen, GS Brown, SC Brown, L Bugoni, NHK Burton, DR Bybee, C Carneiro, G Castresana, Y-C Chan, C-Y Choi, KS Christie, NA Clark, JR Conklin, M Cruz-López, SJ Dinsmore, SG Dodd, DC Douglas, LJ Eberhart-Hertel, WB English, HT Ewing19, FA Faria, SE Franks, RA Fuller, RE Gill, Jr., M-A Giroux, CL Gratto-Trevor, DJ Green, RE Green, RMW Green, TG Gunnarsson, JS Gutiérrez, A-L Harrison, CA Hartman, CJ Hassell, SA Hoepfner, JCEW Hooijmeijer, JA Johnson, OW Johnson, B Kempenaers, M Klaassen, EMA Kok, J Krietsch, C Küpper, AY Kwarteng, E Kwon, J-F Lamarre, CJ Latty, N Lecomte, AHJ Loonstra, Z Ma, L Mander, C Marlow, PP Marra, JA Masero, LA McDuffie, RL McGuire, J Melter, DS Melville, V Méndez, TJ Michels, CA Morrissey, T Mu, DJ Newstead, GW Page, AK Pierce, T Piersma, M Repenning, BH Robinson, AD Rocha, D Rogers, AL Scarpignato, S Schulte, ES Scragg, NR Senner, PA Smith, AR Taylor, RC Taylor, B Þórisson, M Valcu, MA Verhoeven, L Ware, N Warnock, MF Weber, LJ Wright, and MB Wunder. 2025. Power source, data retrieval method, and attachment type affect success of dorsally mounted trackers in 37 species of shorebirds. Journal of Avian Biology 2025: e03487.

Velotta JP, M Stager, ZA Cheviron, and NR Senner. 2025. Incomplete genetic compensation and countergradient variation of blood-oxygen transport in deer mice. Evolution 79: qpaf186.

Ruiz de Alegría-Arzaburu A, J Garcia-Walther*, L Ortiz Serrato, J Vargas Vega, and NR Senner. 2025. The impact of beachface morphology on habitat suitability and breeding success of least terns and snowy plovers. Estuaries and Coasts 48: 134.

*Puleo L, F Huang*, M Stager, and NR Senner. 2025. Flexibility in the face of climate change? A rapid and dramatic shift toward later spring migration in Hudsonian Godwits (Limosa haemastica). Proceedings of the Royal Society B 292: 20250982.

*Faria FA, J Aldabe, JB Almeida, JJ Bonanno, L Bugoni, R Clay, J García-Walther, AM González, A Lesterhuis, GT Nunes, and NR Senner. 2025. Population estimates of shorebirds on the Atlantic coast of southern South American generated from large-scale, simultaneous, volunteer-led surveys. Journal of Field Ornithology 96: 2.

Clements, SJ, JP Loghry, JA Linscott*, J Ruiz, JC Gunn, JG Navedo, NR Senner, BM Ballard, and MD Weegman. 2025. Migration strategy and constraint in behavior differs among three shorebird species with different life histories. Ecosphere 16: e70161.

English WB, B Lagassé, S Brown, M Boldenow, J Burger, B Casler, AD Dey, B Feigin, S Freeman, HR Gates, KE Iaquinto, S Koch, J-F Lamarre, RB Lanctot, C Latty, V Loverti, L McKinnon, D Newstead, L Niles, E Nol, D Payer, R Porter, J Rausch, S Saalfeld, F Sanders, NR Senner, S Schulte, K Sowl, B Winn, L Wright, M Wunder, and PA Smith. 2025. Comparing the influence of migration timing and local conditions on reproductive timing in Arctic-breeding birds. Ecology and Evolution 15: e70610.

**Pelton M, S Padula,** J Garcia-Walther,* M Andrews, R Mercer, R Porter, F Sanders, J Thibault, NR Senner, and JA Linscott.* 2022. Kiawah and Seabrook islands are a critical site for the rufa Red Knot. Wader Study 129: 105-118.

*Linscott JA, JG Navedo, J Ruiz, SJ Clement, MD Weegman, BM Ballard, and NR Senner. 2022. Compensation dominates for Hudsonian godwits on a long-distance, transoceanic migratory flight. Movement Ecology 10:11.

*Wilde LR, JE Simmons,** RJ Swift, and NR Senner. 2022. Age-specific variation in sensitivity to resource availability in precocial young influence population responses to phenological mismatches in a sub-Arctic breeding shorebird. Ecology 103: e3743.

Gutiérrez JS, JN Moore, JP Donnelly, C Dorador, JG Navedo, and NR Senner. 2022. Climate change and lithium mining influence flamingo abundance in the Lithium Triangle. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 289: 20212388.

*Wilde LR, RJ Swift, and NR Senner. 2022. Behavioral adjustments in the social associations of a precocial shorebird mediate the costs and benefits of grouping decisions. Journal of Animal Ecology 91: 870-882.

*Verhoeven MA, AD McBride, JCEW Hooijmeijer, T Piersma, and NR Senner. 2022. Earthworm abundance and availability does not influence the reproductive decisions of black-tailed godwits in an agricultural grassland. Ecological Solutions and Evidence 3: e12125.

*Verhoeven MA, AHJ Loonstra, AD McBride, C Both, NR Senner, and T Piersma. 2021. Age-dependent timing and routes demonstrate developmental plasticity in a long-distance migratory bird. Journal of Animal Ecology 91: 566-579.

Stager M, NR Senner, DL Swanson, MD Carling, and ZA Cheviron. 2021. Temperature heterogeneity correlates with intraspecific variation in physiological flexibility in a small endotherm. Nature Communications 12: 4401.

Schweizer RM, MR Jones, GS Bradburd, JF Storz, NR Senner, CJ Wolf, and ZA Cheviron. 2021. Broad concordance in the spatial distribution of adaptive and neutral genetic variation along an elevational cline in deer mice. Molecular Biology and Evolution 38: 4286-4300.

Drucker JR, NR Senner, and JP Gomez. 2021. Interspecific aggression in sympatry between congeneric Thamnophilus antbirds. Behavioral Ecology 32: 1032-1041.

Sanders F, M Handmaker,* AS Johnson, and NR Senner. 2021. Critical nocturnal roost on South Carolina coast supports nearly half of the Atlantic coast population of Whimbrel Numenius hudsonicus during northward migration. Wader Study 128: 117-124.

*Faria FA, M Reppening, G Taveres Nunes, NR Senner, and L Bugoni. 2021. Breeding habitats, phenology, and size of a resident population of Two-banded Plover (Charadrius falklandicus) at the northern edge of its distribution. Austral Ecology 46: 1311-1321.

*Linscott JA and NR Senner. 2021. Restoring the diversity of functions to migratory stopover events. Ornithological Applications 123: duaa074.

Education

Post-Doc: University of Montana (2015-2018)

Post-Doc: University of Groningen (2012-2015)

Ph.D. Cornell University (2013)

B.A. Carleton College (2004)

Research Interests

The Senner Lab focuses on understanding how individual-level process scale up to influence population- and species-level processes. We believe that integrating across biological levels of organization is critical to understanding how organisms respond to environmental change. Much of our research focuses on long-distance migratory birds, which as a group are rapidly declining. To study these species, we incorporate on-the-ground data collection at long-term study sites with the use of tracking technologies, remote sensing data, and large-scale citizen science monitoring initiatives to document the factors influencing individuals, populations, and species throughout their lives.