Mark Jennings, Ph.D.
Senior Associate Ecologist and Herpetologist

Dr. Jennings is a versatile, highly trained ecologist with specialties in both fisheries ecology and herpetology. He has worked extensively with a variety of fishes, reptiles, and amphibians throughout California and is a noted authority on a number of species including the tidewater goby, steelhead, California tiger salamander, red-legged frog, western pond turtle and giant garter snake. As a research associate at the California Academy of Sciences, he completed a 4-year study of the status of third category (species of special concern) amphibians and reptiles in California for the California Department of Fish and Game. The product of this research is the most comprehensive description of the distribution and status of all species of special concern ever produced in the state. This report served as the model for subsequent species of special concern reports for other vertebrate groups, which includes recommendations for changes in listing status as warranted, and for future research.

Dr. Jennings has consulted on more than 500 projects over the last 10 years throughout California. As an Associate Ecologist for LOA, he has assisted on numerous projects regarding the California red-legged frog (more than a dozen ongoing projects in the Bay Area), California tiger salamander, western pond turtle, San Francisco garter snake, and Alameda whipsnake.

Dr. Jennings has held a research position as a fish biologist with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Fisheries Contaminant Research Center, Dixon, California. His research efforts concentrated on the effects of selenium on fisheries of the San Joaquin Valley, California. He supervised both field and laboratory studies.

Dr. Jennings is certified as a fisheries scientist and has conducted a variety of studies prior to his work with the Fish and Wildlife Service. Included in these surveys were stream surveys in Pima County, Arizona, an assessment of impacts of dredge mining on streams, the effects of fire on fish populations, and an assessment of anadromous fish stocks in the Clearwater River, Idaho. He has taught an upper division fisheries course and assisted in several laboratory courses.

Since 1980, Dr. Jennings has published over 75 scientific papers in the field of ichthyology and herpetology. He is currently working on a major study of the tidewater goby for the California Department of Transportation.