Ryan Danby

Director and Professor

School of Environmental Studies (joint appointment to Geography and Planning)

Ryan Danby

Contact Information

Office: Rm 3244 Biosciences Complex
Phone: 613.533.6000 ext 77105
Email: ryan.danby@queensu.ca
Mailing Address:
School of Environmental Studies
Â鶹¹ÙÍø's University
Kingston, Ontario, Canada,
K7L 3N6

 

 

Website: /geographyandplanning/qleg/

Google Scholar Page:

ResearchGate Page:

Academic Training

  • PDF, University of Alberta (Biological Sciences)
  • PhD, University of Alberta (Environmental Biology and Ecology)
  • MES, Wilfrid Laurier University (Geography and Environmental Studies)
  • BES, University of Waterloo (Environment and Resource Studies)

General Academic Interests

  • Biogeography and vegetation science
  • Landscape ecology
  • Conservation biology
  • Parks and protected areas
  • Circumpolar northern environments

Teaching

  • ENSC 320 – Wildlife Issues in a Changing World
  • ENSC 430 – Honours Project in Environmental Sustainability
  • GPHY 102 – Earth System Science
  • GPHY 318 – Advanced Biogeography
  • GPHY 418 – Landscape Ecology
  • GPHY 818 – Graduate Seminar in Landscape Ecology

Research

My current research falls into two broad areas. You can see publications in both areas at my  and my .

1. Ecosystem Change: The study of terrestrial ecosystem change and species distributions at multiple scales, particularly the responses of forest, shrubland and tundra ecosystems.

2. Biodiversity Conservation: Conservation science, planning and management at multiple spatial scales, particularly as it relates to regional ecosystem-based management of parks and protected areas.

Recent Student-led Publications

  • Schoenhardt MA, Wong C, Danby RK. 2026. Characterization of Dall’s sheep (Ovis dalli dalli) post-lambing habitat in Kluane National Park and Reserve based on four decades of population monitoring. Canadian Journal of Zoology 104: 1–16. DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2025-0068
     
  • Mosgrove, S, Danby RK, Lowitt K. 2025. Asset mapping for sustainable rural tourism development in Canada’s Frontenac Arch UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Tourism Geographies. DOI:
     
  • Jones JD, Urquhart J, Eberhardt E, Garrah E, & Danby RK. 2024. Patterns and drivers of amphibian and reptile mortality vary among species and scale: evidence from eastern Ontario, Canada. Global Ecology and Conservation 50: e02855.
     
  • Bonta C, King G, Danby RK. 2023. Greening on the Bathurst caribou range in northern Canada: are erect shrubs responsible for remotely-sensed trends? Arctic Science 9: 581-599.
     
  • Cohen M, Danby RK. 2023. Woody plant encroachment in rock barrens on the Frontenac Arch, eastern Ontario, Canada. Applied Vegetation Science 26(2): e12733.
     
  • Stefanuk MA & Danby RK. 2021. Accumulated heating and chilling are important drivers of forest phenology and productivity in the Algonquin-to-Adirondacks conservation corridor of eastern North America. Forests, 12: 282.

Current Graduate Students in Environmental Studies

  • Madeline Hart – Distribution and regeneration of range-edge tree species in the Frontenac Arch Ecoregion, Ontario, Canada
     
  • Jenna Cooper - Wildlife habitat dynamics at subarctic treeline

Past Graduate Students in Environmental Studies

  • Kaelen Partridge (2025) – Spatial-temporal Analysis of Large Mammal-Vehicle Collisions in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario.
     

  • Lauren Cross (2004) – Relationship between Climate-Induced Changes and Spatial-Temporal Trends of the Bathurst Caribou Herd During Rapid Population Decline (1997-2017). Thesis link:
     

  • Mary Anne Schoenhardt (2023) - Post-lambing Spatial Distribution of Dall’s Sheep in Southwest Yukon. Thesis link:
     

  • Sage Mosgrove (2023) (co-supervised with Dr. Kristen Lowitt) - Mobilizing Assets for Sustainable Rural Tourism Development in UNESCO’s Frontenac Arch Biosphere. Thesis link: 
     
  • Sara Baker (2022) - An adaptive design to reduce animal road mortality: analyzing the effectiveness of a fence-culvert ecopassage design on Highway 401, Ontario. Thesis link: 
     
  • Michelle Cohen (2022) - Woody plant encroachment on granite barrens in the Frontenac Arch, Eastern Ontario. Thesis link: 
     
  • Sarah Finnimore (2022) (co-supervised with Dr. Graham Whitelaw) - The blockage of Wiltse Creek: An issue and stakeholder analysis.
     
  • Derek Bedford (2020) - Spatiotemporal Patterns of White-Tailed Deer Habitat Use on Hill Island in Thousand Islands National Park of Canada. Thesis link:  
     
  • Michael Stefanuk (2019) - Productivity And Phenology of Forests in the Algonquin-to-Adirondacks Corridor: Climatic Drivers and Recent Trends. Thesis link:
     
  • Joshua Jones (2018) - The Locations and Drivers of Herpetofaunal Wildlife Road Mortality on Two Highways within the Frontenac Arch, Ontario. Thesis link:
     
  • Julia McCann (2018) - Helping turtles cross the road: Improving culvert design and monitoring. Thesis link:
     
  • Achla Joshi (2016) - Distribution, associations, and limiting growth factors of tree species in a vegetation transition zone of eastern Ontario, Canada. Thesis link:
     
  • Md Saifuzzaman (2015) - Land use and land cover dynamics in the Ganges Delta region, Bangladesh. - Thesis link:
     
  • Michelle Mazzocatto (2015) - Spruce bark beetle disturbance in the forest-tundra ecotones of southwest Yukon: impacts and predisposing factors. Thesis link:
     
  • Claire Kryczka (2014) - Extending Concepts and Practice of State of the Environment Reporting to Biosphere Reserves. Thesis link:
     
  • Evelyn Garrah (2012) - Wildlife Road Mortality on the 1000 Islands Parkway in South Eastern Ontario: Peak Times, Hot Spots, and Mitigation Using Drainage Culverts. Thesis link: