David L. Pearson
Rain Forest Biodiversity and Conservation, Community Structure
Dr. Pearson's research is focused on the interaction of history and ecology in structuring communities. He uses biogeographical, phylogenetic and ecological hypotheses to test predictions of species co-occurrence patterns. These patterns are then applied to basic community structure studies as well as to determining priority areas for conservation. Although he has worked on a breadth of organisms from crabs and insects to Paramecium and birds, and a range of habitat types from coral atolls to desert grasslands, his current research concentrates on a small group of insects, tiger beetles, in tropical lowland rain forests around the world. Dr. Pearson also works on developing new techniques for environmental education, especially in South America.
Selected Publications
Erwin, T. L. And D. L. Pearson. 2008. A Treatise on the Western Hemisphere Caraboidea (Coleoptera): Their classification, distribution, and ways of life. Vol. 2. (Carabidae: Nebriiformes 2 – Cicindelitae). Pensoft, Sofia, 366 pp.
Pearson, D. L. and L. Beletsky. 2008. Thailand: The Travellers’ Wildlife Guide. Interlink Press, MA, 501 pp.
Pearson, D. L. and F. Cassola. 2007. Are we doomed to repeat history?: A model of the past using tiger beetles (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae) and conservation biology to anticipate the future. Journal of Insect Conservation 11: 47-59.
Pearson, D. L. and J. A. Shetterly. 2006. How do published field guides influence interactions between amateurs and professionals in entomology? American Entomologist 52: 246-2
Pearson, D. L., C. B. Knisley and C. J. Kazilek. 2006. A field guide to the tiger beetles of the United States and Canada: Identification, natural history, and distribution of the Cicindelidae. Oxford Univ. Press, NY, 288 pp.
2005. Pearson, D. L. and L. Beletsky. Brazil, Amazon and Pantanal: The Travellers' Wildlife Guide, 2nd edition. Interlink Press, Northampton, MA., 501 pp.
2004. Pearson, D. L. and L. Beletsky. Peru: The Travellers' Wildlife Guide, 2nd edition. Interlink Press, Northampton, MA., 492 pp.
2004. Pearson, D. L. and L. Beletsky. Ecuador and its Galpagos: The Travellers' Wildlife Guide, 2nd edition. Interlink Press, Northampton, MA., 498 pp.
2001. Cassola, F. and D. L. Pearson. Neotropical tiger beetles (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae): Checklist and biogeography. Biota Colombiana 2: 324.
2001. Pearson, D. L. and A. P. Vogler. Tiger Beetles: The Evolution, Ecology, and Diversity of the Cicindelids. Cornell Univ. Press, Ithaca, NY, 333 pp.
2001. Pearson, D. L. and S. C. Carroll. Spatial patterns of tiger beetle(Coleoptera: Cicindelidae) species richness in northwestern South America Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environ. 36:123134.
2000. Carroll, S. S. and D. L. Pearson. Detecting and modeling spatial and temporal dependence in conservation biology. Cons. Biol. 14: 18931897.
2000. Yager, D. D., A. P. Cook, D. L. Pearson and H. G. Spangler. A comparative study of ultrasoundtriggered behaviour in tiger beetles (Cicindelidae). J. Zool. 251:355368.
2000. Cassola, F. and D. L. Pearson. Global patterns of tiger beetle species richness (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae): Their use in conservation planning. Biol. Conserv. 95:197208.
1999. Pearson, D. L. and S. S. Carroll. The influence of spatial scale on crosstaxon congruence patterns and prediction accuracy of species richness. J. Biogeog.. 26: 10791990.
1999. Pearson, D. L., J. F. Guerra and D. W. Brzoska. The tiger beetles Of Bolivia: Their identification, distribution and natural history. Contributions on Entomology, International 3: 379523.
1999. Pearson, D. L. and D. W. Middleton. The New Key to Ecuador and the Galapagos (3rd edition), Ullysses Press, Berkeley, California, 451 pp.
1999. Pearson, D. L., J. Buestn and R. Navarrete. The tiger beetles of Ecuador: Their identification, distribution and natural history. Contributions on Entomology, International 3: 185315.
1998 Carroll, S.S. and D. L. Pearson. The effects of scale and sample size on the accuracy of spatial predictions of tiger beetle (Cicindelidae) species richness. Ecography 21: 401414.
1998. Carroll, S. S. and D. L. Pearson. Spatial modeling of butterfly species diversity using tiger beetles as a bioindicator taxon. Ecological Applications 8: 531543.