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Ph.D., OCFThesis TopicEffects of trophic interactions and climate change on the space use of an Arctic marine mesopredator SupervisorDr. Marie Auger-Méthé |
Degrees
M.Sc., Ecology and Evolution, Dept. of Biology, York University
B.Sc., Dept. of Biology, University of Winnipeg
Research Unit
Statistical Ecology Research Unit
Biography
My research focuses on Arctic marine mammal space-use, predator-prey dynamics, and fitness under changing seascapes. I am developing models to test the landscape of fear hypothesis, which predicts that predator (polar bear) space-use will indirectly influence prey (ringed seal) space-use, where prey avoid predator distribution on the seascape. I will model the space-use of polar bear and ringed seal, and how the predator-prey relationship is affected by shifts in sea ice regime, and also investigate the temporal effects of a poor-ice-year on the fitness and body condition of ringed seals. In addition to identifying future important areas for important Arctic marine mammals, my research will provide insights on the breadth of impact of a poor-ice year, which is essential for proactive management and conservation.
Awards
NSERC Alexander Graham Bell Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS-D3)
UBC Four-Year Doctoral Fellowship
Ocean Leaders Graduate Fellowship
Sumaila-Volvo Graduate Prize for Environmental Sustainability
Wendy Fan Memorial Scholarship
Cecil and Kathleen Morrow Grant
Northern Scientific Training Program
Publications
Selected peer-reviewed publications:
Florko KRN, Ross TR, Ferguson SH, Northrup JM, Obbard ME, Thiemann GW, Yurkowski DJ, Auger-Méthé M. The dynamic interaction between predator and prey drives mesopredator movement and foraging ecology. Submitted.
Florko KRN, Shuert CR, Cheung WWL, Ferguson SH, Jonsen ID, Rosen DAS, Sumaila UR, Tai TC, Yurkowski DJ, Auger-Méthé M. 2023. Linking movement and dive data to prey distribution models: new insights in foraging behaviour and potential pitfalls of movement analyses. Movement Ecology, 11:17.
Florko KRN, Edkins T, Ferguson SH, Yurkowski DJ, Michel C. 2023. Summary of marine mammal aerial surveys in Norwegian Bay and Ellesmere Island, Nunavut in 2022. Canadian Technical Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 3534: vii + 19 p.
Kwong LE, Ross T, Lüskow F, Florko KRN, Pakhomov EA. 2022. Spatial, seasonal, and climatic variability in mesozooplankton size spectra along a coastal-to-open ocean transect in the subarctic Northeast Pacific. Progress in Oceanography, 201: 102728.
Florko KRN, Davidson ER, Lees KJ, Hammer LJ, Lavoie M-F, Lennox RJ, Simard E, Auger-Méthé M, Archambault P, McKindsey C, Whoriskey FG, Furey NB. 2021. Tracking movements of decapod crustaceans: a review of a half-century of telemetry-based studies. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 679: 219-239.
Florko KRN, Tai TC, Cheung WWL, Sumaila UR, Ferguson SH, Yurkowski DJ, Auger-Méthé M. 2021. Predicting how climate change threatens the prey base of Arctic marine predators. Ecology Letters, 24: 2563-2575.
Florko KRN, Carlyle CG, Young BG, Yurkowski DJ, Michel C, Ferguson SH. 2021. Narwhal (Monodon monoceros) detection by infrared flukeprints from aerial survey imagery. Ecosphere, 12: e03698.
Florko KRN, Thiemann GW, Richardson ES, Bromaghin JF. 2021. Diet composition and body condition of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) in relation to sea ice habitat in the Canadian High Arctic. Polar Biology, 44: 1445-1456.
Carlyle CG, Florko KRN, Young BG, Yurkowski DJ, Michel C, Ferguson S.H. 2021. Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal observations in the Canadian high-Arctic. Ecosphere, 12: e03534.
Florko KRN, Thiemann GW, Bromaghin JF. 2020. Drivers and consequences of apex predator diet composition in the Canadian Beaufort Sea. Oecologia, 194: 51-63.
Florko KRN, Derocher AE, Breiter CC, Ghazal M, Hedman D, Higdon JW, Richardson ES, Sahanatien V, Trim V, Petersen SD. 2020. Polar bear denning distribution in the Canadian Arctic. Polar Biology, 43: 617-621.
Florko KRN, Bernhardt W, Breiter CC, Ferguson SH, Hainstock M, Young BG, Petersen SD. 2018. Decreasing sea ice conditions in western Hudson Bay and an increase in abundance of harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) in the Churchill River. Polar Biology, 41: 1187-1195.
Bohn SJ, Webber QMR, Florko KRN, Paslawski KR, Peterson AM, Piche JE, Menzies AK, Willis CKR. 2017. Personality predicts ectoparasite abundance in an asocial sciurid. Ethology, 123: 761-771.
Florko KRN, Bohn SJ, Kalcounis-Rueppell MC, Brigham RM. 2017. A 23-year-old little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) record from southwest Saskatchewan, Canada. Northwestern Naturalist, 98: 57-59.
Google Scholar
Social Media
Twitter: @kflorko