CARLOS DAVIDSON

EDUCATION

Ph.D., Ecology, Conservation Ecology Emphasis Area. University of California, Davis. 2000. Dissertation: Spatial Patterns of California Amphibian Declines and Ecological Limits. Advisor: H. Bradley Shaffer.

Master’s degree, Economics. University of California, Berkeley. 1990.

Bachelor’s degree, Economics. University of California, Berkeley. 1982.

ACADEMIC POSITIONS

Professor. 2010-2021. Environmental Studies Program. San Francisco State University. 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco CA 94132.

Program director/Program coordinator. 2005-2015. Environmental Studies Program. San Francisco State University. 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco CA 94132.

Associate Professor. 2005-2010. Environmental Studies Program. San Francisco State University. 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco CA 94132.

Assistant Professor. 2000 – 2005. Environmental Studies Department. California State University, Sacramento.

AWARDS AND HONORS

California State University System. Campus as a Living Laboratory grants. Course redesign: Student Research for Campus Water Efficiency Projects. $15,439. AY 15-16.

Office for Research and Sponsored Projects, SF State. Individual investigator grants. Climatic refuges for declining amphibian populations. $18,844, AY 12-13.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Impacts of a fungal pathogen, pesticides, and temperature on the cascades frog in the mountains of northern California. With Janet Foley, Sharon Lawler, Karen Pope, Nathan Nieto, Kevin Aceituno, PI’s: Catherine Johnson and Jonah Piovia-Scott. $395,122. AY 10-13.

Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment. Effects of sub-lethal pesticide exposure on frog’s immune response. $20,000. 2005-2006.

State Water Quality Control Board, PRISM grant. Pesticide residues in frogs and amphibian declines in the California Cascades and Sierra Nevada. $190,000. 2004-2006.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. STAR grant. Airborne pesticides and disease outbreaks in Sierra Nevada frogs. Roland Knapp co-PI. $215,000. 2003-2004.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Historic pesticide use and California amphibian declines. Research grant. $29,000. 2001-2002.

PUBLICATIONS

Refereed journal articles

Vincent K, and Davidson C. 2015. The toxicity of glyphosate alone and glyphosate-surfactant mixtures to western toad (Anaxyrus boreas) tadpoles. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

Boone MD, Bishop CA, Boswell LA, Brodman RD, Burger J, Davidson C, et al. 2014. Pesticide regulation amid the influence of industry. Bioscience 64:917-922.

Davidson C, Williamson C, Vincent K, Simonich S, Yip KS, Hero JM, et al. 2013. Anuran population declines occur on an elevational gradient in the Western Hemisphere. Herpetological Conservation and Biology 8:503−518.

Davidson, C., K. Stanley, and S. Simonich. 2012. Contaminant residues and declines of the Cascades frog (Rana cascadae) in the California Cascades, USA. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 31:1895-1902

Grasso, R. L., R. M. Coleman, and C. Davidson. 2010. Palatability and antipredator response of Yosemite Toads (Anaxyrus canorus) to nonnative Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California. Copeia 2010: 457-462.

Stanley, K., S. M. Simonich, D. Bradford, C. Davidson, and N. Tallent-Halsell. 2009. Comparison of pressurized liquid extraction and matrix solid phase dispersion for the measurement of semi-volatile organic compound accumulation in tadpoles. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 28: 2038-2043.

Davidson, C., M. Benard, H. B. Shaffer, J. Parker, C. O’Leary, J. M. Conlon, and L. A. Rollins-Smith. 2007. Effects of chytrid infection and carbaryl exposure on survival, growth and antimicrobial peptide defenses in foothill yellow-legged frogs (Rana boylii). Environmental Science and Technology 41:1771-1776.

Davidson, C., and R. Knapp. 2007. Multiple stressors and amphibian declines: dual impacts of pesticides and fish on yellow-legged frogs. Ecological Applications 17:587-597.

Conlon, J. M., A. al-Dhaheri, E. al-Mutawa, R. al-Kharrge, E. Ahmed, J. Kolodziejek, N. Nowotny, P. F. Nielsen, and C. Davidson. 2007. Peptide defenses of the Cascades frog Rana cascadae: implications for the evolutionary history of frogs of the Amerana species group. Peptides 28:1268-1274.

Conlon, J. M., N. Al-Ghafari, L. Coquet, J. b. Leprince, d,, T. Jouenne, H. Vaudry, and C. Davidson. 2006. Evidence from peptidomic analysis of skin secretions that the red-legged frogs, Rana aurora draytonii and Rana aurora aurora, are distinct species. Peptides 27:1305 – 1312.

Conlon, J. M., A. Sonnevend, C. Davidson, A. Demandt and T. Jouenne. 2005. Host-defense peptides isolated from the skin secretions of the Northern red-legged frog Rana aurora aurora. Developmental and Comparative Immunology 29:83-90.

Davidson, C. 2004. Declining downwind: California amphibian population declines and historic pesticide use. Ecological Applications 14:1892-1902.

Conlon, J. M., A. Sonnevend, C. Davidson, D. Smith and P. F. Nielsen. 2004. The ascaphins: a family of antimicrobial peptides from the skin secretions of the most primitive extant frog, Ascaphus truei. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications 320:170-175.

Conlon, J. M., A. Sonnevend, M. Patel, C. Davidson, P. F. Nielsen, T. Pal and L. A. Rollins-Smith. 2003. Isolation of peptides of the bevinin-1 family with potent cadidacidal activity from the skin secretions of the frog Rana boylii. Journal of Peptide Research 62:207-213.

Davidson, C., H. B. Shaffer, and M. R. Jennings. 2002. Spatial tests of the pesticide drift, habitat destruction, UV-B and climate change hypotheses for California amphibian declines. Conservation Biology 16: 1588-1601.

Davidson, C., H. B. Shaffer, and M. R. Jennings. 2001. Declines of the California red-legged frog: climate, UV-B, habitat and pesticides hypotheses. Ecological Applications 11:464-479.

Davidson, C. 2000. Economic growth and the environment: Alternatives to the limits paradigm. BioScience 50:433-440.

Davidson, C. 1998. Issues in measuring landscape fragmentation. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 26:32-37.

Shaffer, H. B., R. N. Fisher, and C. Davidson. 1998. The role of natural history collections in documenting species declines. Trends and Reviews in Ecology and Evolution 13:27-30.

Books

Elliot, L., Gerhardt, C. and Davidson, C. 2008. The Frogs and Toads of North America: A comprehensive guide to their identification, behavior and calls. Houghton Mifflin, Boston

Audio Publications

Davidson, C. 1995 first edition, 2014 Second edition. Audio field guide to frog and toad calls of the Pacific Coast. CD/Cassette and booklet. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY.

Davidson, C. 1996. Audio field guide to the frog and toad calls of the Rocky Mountains and Southwest. CD/Cassette and booklet. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY.

Selected reports

C. Davidson. 2009 Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory for Pacifica, California for 2005.Pacifica Climate Committee. pp 11. 

Fager, C. and C. Davidson. 2008 Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory 1990-2006 for San Francisco State University. Report prepared for the SF State Facilities Department for submission to the American University and College Presidents Climate Commitment. pp 22. 

SELECTED PRESENTATIONS

Climate refuges, climate and the decline of red and yellow legged frogs. Amphibian Diseases annual meeting, Arizona State University, Tempe AZ. 2014

Anuran population declines occur on an elevational gradient in the Western Hemisphere. Amphibian Diseases annual meeting, Arizona State University, Tempe AZ. 2013

Evaluating the pesticide hypothesis for amphibian population declines: Evidence from landscapes to
laboratories. Invited symposium talk. World Congress of Herpetology. Vancouver, BC. 2012.

Are contaminants contributing to the declines of Cascades Frogs in California? California Nevada Amphibian Populations Task Force, Bodega Bay, CA 2009.

Agricultural pesticide drift and amphibians. Agriculture and Air Quality Conference, U.C. Davis, 2008.

Pesticide use and California amphibian declines. Invited talk. Univ. of California, Davis, CA. 2008.

Why are amphibian population declines concentrated in mountains? Invited talk. Sonoma State Univ. Rhonert Park, CA. 2008.

Pesticide use and California amphibian declines. Invited talk. Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. 2006.

Spatial associations between pesticide use and amphibian declines in California. Society for Conservation Biology. San Jose, CA 2006.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Professor. 2010-2021. Environmental Studies Program. San Francisco State University. Courses taught: Applied Local Sustainability, Environmental Leadership and Organizing, Senior Seminar, Internship, Research Methods, and Introduction to Environmental Studies.  

Associate Professor. 2005-2010. Environmental Studies Program. San Francisco State University. Taught Environmental Problems and Solutions, Senior Seminar, Internship, Research Methods, and Applied Local Sustainability courses.

Assistant Professor. 2000 – 2005. Environmental Studies Department. California State University, Sacramento. Taught Introduction to Environmental Science, Field Methods for Environmental Science, and Senior Thesis.

Invited instructor. January 2004. Graduate short-course for students from Latin and North America titled “Advanced training in amphibian population decline research.” Costa Rica.

Instructor. Environmental Analysis, Spring 2000, U.C. Davis. Designed and taught the introductory course for majors in Department of Environmental Science and Policy.

PROFESSIONAL AND CIVIC ACTIVITIES

University Service

Member CHSS elections committee, 2015 – 2017

Chair Environmental Studies faculty search committee, Fall 2015

Director/Program Coordinator Environmental Studies Program, SF State. 2005-2015

Faculty advisor to the ECO-Students student organization SFSU 2005-07; 2011- 2019

Member All University Sustainability Committee Fall 2008-2012. 2018-2020.

Member Romberg Tiburon director search committee, SF State, 2007.

Reviewer for Conservation Biology, Biological Conservation, Ecological Applications, Copeia, Oecologia, Diversity and Distributions, and Herpetological Review.

Community Service

Alternate Advisory Board member, San Mateo County Community Choice Energy, 2015-2016

Co-founder and member Pacifica Climate Committee, Fall 08 – present

Chair, City of Pacifica Climate Action Plan Task Force, 2010 – 2012

Board member Pacifica Land Trust, 2007-2010