Education
Ph.D., Michigan State University
Areas of Expertise
- Herpetology
- Life history/ecology of vertebrates
- Conservation and management
Research Interests
Studies of herpetofaunal biodiversity in southern ecosystems; environmental impacts of forest management on herpetofauna; using amphibians and reptiles as ecological bioindicators; turtle population ecology and demography; behavioral responses of venomous snakes to human encounters. Funded by Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Golf Association, U.S. Geological Survey.
Selected Publications
Gibbons, Whit, and Mike Dorcas. 2005. Snakes of the Southeast. 2005. University of Georgia Press.
Gibbons, J.Whitfield, and M. E. Dorcas. 2004. North American Watersnakes: A Natural History. University of Oklahoma Press.
Gibbons, J.Whitfield, and Kimberly A. Andrews. 2004. PIT tagging: Simple technology at its best. Bioscience 54:447-454.
Gibbons, J. Whitfield . 2003. Chapter 17 – Societal Values and Attitudes: History and Sociological Impact on Amphibian Conservation Problems. Amphibian Conservation. R. D. Semlitsch, Smithsonian Institution Press: 214-227.
Gibbons, J. Whitfield, and Karen L. McGlothlin. (2003). A Changing Balance: An Ecological Perspective on the Loss of Biodiversity. Chapter in, Loss of Biodiversity: Exploring Environmental Challenges – A Multidisciplinary Approach. Sharon L. Spray & (eds.) Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.: 29-54.
Gibbons, J. Whitfield, and M. E. Dorcas. 2002. Defensive behavior of cottonmouths (Agkistrodon piscivorus) towards humans. Copeia 2002 (1):195-198.
Gibbons, J. Whitfield, and K.A. Buhlmann. 2001. Recommendations for enhancing herpetofaunal biodiversity in southern forests; Chapter 28, pages 372-390 in, Wildlife of Southern Forests: Habitat and Management. James Dickson (ed). Hancock House Publishers, Blaine, WA.
Gibbons, J.W. and A.R. Gibbons. 1998. Ecoviews: Snakes, Snails, and Environmental Tales. University of Alabama Press.
Gibbons, J.W. 1993. Keeping All the Pieces: Perspectives on Natural History and the Environment. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC.
