Thomas Sherry
Professor & Acting Chair
Biography
Professor Sherry’s lab studies the population ecology, evolution, diversity, and conservation of birds, especially long distance migrants between tropical (Caribbean) and temperate ecosystems in northern US and southern Canada; and resident tropical species. The lab is interested in what controls or limits populations, including food and competition among species; predators; and dispersal barriers. Human influences on habitats and landscapes in North America and the Neotropics (Caribbean, especially Jamaica, and Central America), and on global change are also of interest. The lab is also exploring the intersection of ecological and evolutionary approaches to bird populations, feeding biology, and community assembly, particularly in Caribbean and mainland New World tropical environments. Some topics we researched include the importance of food in the Caribbean limiting populations of migratory birds, ecosystem of birds for agriculture including coffee cultivation, and the impacts of tropical forest loss and fragmentation on resident tropical bird populations and communities. Professor Sherry is currently synthesizing informatio on insectivorous bird-insect co-evolution and its consequences for understanding the diversity and coexistence of tropical birds.
Education
Dartmouth College
UCLA
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Articles
Effects of habitat, season, and age on winter fat storage by migrant and resident birds in Jamaica
2019
Most small birds wintering in the tropics should show little subcutaneous fat deposition (SFD), except in habitats where food availability may decline in late winter or, for some resident species, to prepare for incubation or brooding fasts. However, these predictions need re‐examination in light of a new, precise, cross‐validated method to compare SFD among habitats and species. We sampled 170 Nearctic‐Neotropical migrant and 279 resident birds during early and late winter in 1993 and 1994 in Jamaica, West Indies.
Comparing four simple, inexpensive methods for sampling forest arthropod communities
2019
Terrestrial arthropods are diverse, and quantifying their availability to consumers is important for understanding both consumer and insect distribution, abundance, and communities. However, characterizing arthropod communities in complex forest ecosystems is challenging. We compared arthropod communities in a wet‐limestone forest in Jamaica during the dry season sampled by four methods: branch clips, sweep netting, and sticky traps applied to tree trunks and hanging free of vegetation.
Dietary opportunism, resource partitioning, and consumption of coffee berry borers by five species of migratory wood warblers (Parulidae) wintering in Jamaican shade coffee plantations
2016
Diets reflect important ecological interactions, but are challenging to quantify for foliage‐gleaning birds. We used regurgitated stomach samples from five primarily insectivorous species of long‐distance migrant warblers (Parulidae) wintering in two moderate‐elevation shade coffee farms in Jamaica to assess both foraging opportunism and prey resource partitioning.
Media Appearances
How common are eagles in metro New Orleans? Metairie resident spots one in his neighborhood
"There are at least four nests in metro New Orleans," Sherry said. "This is a great area for eagles -- they like water."
Freak tire accident kills college student at highway rest stop: 'It's heartbreaking for everybody'
"They're just spectacular, they're beautiful," Sherry told ABC News in a telephone interview Thursday. "I realized these were not only accurate, realistic, biological illustrations but also these were works of art."
"At the very least," Sherry noted, "we have this incredible memorial to her that I hope to use in various ways to shine a light on what an outstanding student she was."
