Dr. Luke McDonald
Instructor, Center for Wildlife Studies
Ph.D. Wildlife Biology, Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University
M.S. Wildlife Biology, Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University
B.S. Wildlife, Fisheries, and Aquaculture Science, Mississippi State University
Email: lucian.r.mcdonald@gmail.com
Luke is a wildlife biologist leveraging remote sensing and GIS to study how humans and animals interact with each other as they navigate the landscape. His graduate research focused on understanding how moose navigate the road system in Alaska to aid the mitigation of moose-vehicle collisions. He combines on-the-ground data, like drone photography, GPS transmitters, or vegetation surveys, with satellite-derived data or metrics to answer questions about animal movement behavior and resource selection.Luke is an adjunct faculty member at Utah State University, where he instructs Python Programming for GIS and Advanced GIS.
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Chelak, Melissa S., Michel T. Kohl, Justin R. Small, Kurt T. Smith, Aaron C. Pratt, Jeffrey L. Beck, Codi R. Backen, M. Brandon Flack, Hailey P. Wayment, Jason A. Wood, Ryan Howell, Trevon D. Strange, Lucian R. McDonald, Kezia R. Manlove, Shandra N. Frey, Randy T. Larsen, Brian A. Maxfield, David K. Dahlgren, Terry A. Messmer, David C. Stoner. "Refurbishing used GPS transmitters improves performance for subsequent deployments on greater sage‐grouse." Wildlife Society Bulletin 49, no. 1 (2025): e1566.
McDonald, Lucian R., Terry A. Messmer, and Michael R. Guttery. "Temporal variation of moose–vehicle collisions in Alaska." Human-wildlife interactions 13, no. 3 (2019): 382-393.
McDonald, Lucian R., Terry Allan Messmer, and Michael Ray Guttery. Assessment of Factors Associated with Moose-vehicle Collisions and Their Relationship to Moose Seasonal Movements in the Matanuska and Susitna Valleys of Alaska. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Division of Wildlife Conservation, 2018.