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BALLANCE, LISA

Director, Marine Mammal & Turtle Research Division, SWFSC, NOAA

Degrees:

• B.S., UC San Diego
• M.S., Moss Landing Marine Laboratories
• Ph.D., UC Los Angeles

Research Interests:

• Ecology of Seabirds and Cetaceans
• Ecosystem-Based Approaches to Management
• Species Diversity Patterns and Trends in Space and Time (Interannual to Regime Shift Scales)

Courses Recently Taught:

• SIO 133: Marine Mammal Biology
• SIO 296: Special Topics/Marine Biology
• SIO209: Special Topics
• SIO296: Special Topics/Marine Biology

Honors and Awards:

• Department of Commerce Bronze Medal, 2008
• NOAA Fisheries Supervisor of the Year, 2007
• Department of Commerce Silver Medal, 2003

Mentoring:

• Fullam, Kerri (Graduate; 2011-)
• Hiriart-Bertrand, Luciano (Masters; 2011-2012)
• Swall, Alyssa (Masters; 2011-2012)
• Joyce, Trevor (Graduate; 2010-)
• Krause, Doug (Graduate; 2010-)
• Nehasil, Stephanie (Masters; 2009-2010)
• Rockwood, Cotton (Graduate; 2009-)
• Ruiz-Cooley, R. Iliana (Post Doc; 2009-2012)
• Martin, Summer (Graduate; 2008-)
• Whitty, Tara (Graduate; 2007-)
• Redfern, Jessica (Post Doc; 2004-2006)
• Vilchis, L. Ignacio (Graduate; 2002-2010)

Nur, N., J. Jahncke, M.P. Herzog, J. Howar, K.D. Hyrenbach, J.E. Zamon, D.G. Ainley, J.A. Wiens, K. Morgan, L.T. Ballance, and D. Stralberg. 2011. Where the wild things are: predicting hotspots of seabird aggregations in the California Current System. Ecological Applications 21(6):2241-2257.

Ballance, L.T. and T. Whitty. 2010. Review of “Ecosystem-Based Management for the Oceans” Restoration Ecology 18(5):780-781.

Olson, R.J., B.N. Popp, B.S. Graham, G.A. López-Ibarra, R. Galván-Magaña, C.E. Lennert-Cody, N. Bocanegra-Castillo, N.J. Wallsgrove, E. Gier, B. Alatorre-Ramírez, L.T. Ballance, and B. Fry. 2010. Food web inferences of stable isotope spatial patterns in copepods and yellowfin tuna in the pelagic eastern Pacific Ocean. Progress in Oceanography 86:124-138.

Ballance, L.T. 2009. Cetacean Ecology. Pages 196-201 in: Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals, Second Edition. W.F. Perrin, B. Würsig and J.G.M. Thewissen (eds.). Elsevier, San Diego.

Ballance, L.T., D.G. Ainley, G. Ballard, and K. Barton. 2009. An energetic correlate between colony size and foraging effort in seabirds, an example of the Adélie penguin Pygoscelis adeliae. Journal of Avian Biology 40:279-288.

Force, M.P. and L.T. Ballance. 2009. A Pink-footed Shearwater in Hawai’i. ‘Elepaio 69(6):39-40.

Force, M.P., J.M. Cotton, R.A. Rowlett, and L.T. Ballance. 2009. First records of Chatham Island Petrel Pterodroma axillaris in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Marine Ornithology 37:269-271.

Weimerskirch, H. M. Le Corre, C.A. Bost, L.T. Ballance, and R.L. Pitman. 2009. L’avifaune et l’écologie des oiseaux marin. Pages 381-392 in: Clipperton, environnement et biodiversité d’un microcosme océanique. L. Charpy (ed.). Patrimones Naturels 68. MNHN, Paris; IRD, Marseille.

Vilchis, L.I., L.T. Ballance, and W. Watson. 2009. Temporal variability of neustonic ichthyoplankton assemblages of the eastern Pacific warm pool: Can community structure be linked to climate variability? Deep-Sea Research I 56:125-140.

Andrews, R.D., R.L. Pitman and L.T. Ballance. 2008. Satellite tracking reveals distinct movement patterns for Type B and Type C killer whales in the southern Ross Sea, Antarctica. Polar Biology 31:1461-1468.

Pagen, R., P. Peter, and L.T. Ballance. 2008. A Fregatta storm-petrel off Mexico. Western Birds 29:225-227.

Redfern, J.V., J. Barlow, L.T. Ballance, T. Gerrodette, and E.A. Becker. 2008. Absence of scale dependence in dolphin-habitat models for the eastern tropical Pacific ocean. Marine Ecology Progress Series 363:1-14.

Ballance, L.T. 2007. Understanding seabirds at sea: why and how? Marine Ornithology 35:127-135.

Ballance, L.T. 2007. Review of Spear, L.B. and Ainley, D.G. Storm-Petrels of the Eastern Pacific Ocean: Species Assembly and Diversity along Marine Habitat Gradients. (Ornithological Monographs no. 62.) Ibis 149:871.

Pitman, R., Fearnbach, H., LeDuc, R., Gilpatrick, J.W., Ford, J.K.B. and Ballance, L.T. 2007. Killer whales preying on a blue whale calf on the Costa Rica Dome: genetics, morphometrics, vocalizations and composition of the group. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 9(2): 151-58.

Ballance, L.T., R.L. Pitman, R. Hewitt, D. Siniff, W. Trivelpiece, P. Clapham, and R.L. Brownell, Jr. 2006. The removal of large whales from the Southern Ocean. Evidence for long-term ecosystem effects? Pages 215-230 in: Whales, whaling, and ocean ecosystems. J.A. Estes, D.P. DeMaster, D.F. Doak, T.M. Williams, and R.L. Brownell, Jr. (eds.). University of California Press, Berkeley, CA.

Ballance, L.T., R.L. Pitman, and P.C. Fiedler. 2006. Oceanographic influences on seabirds and cetaceans of the eastern tropical Pacific: a review. Progress in Oceanography 69:360-390.

Barlow, J. M. Ferguson, W.F. Perrin, L.T. Ballance, T. Gerrodette, G. Joyce, C. D. MacLeod, K. Mullin, D.L. Palka, and G. Waring. 2006. Abundance and density of beaked and bottlenose whales (Family Ziphiidae). Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 7(3):263-270.

Brooke, M.D.L., L.T. Ballance, R.L. Pitman, and R.W. Furness. 2006. Fishery impacts on the food supplies of seabirds. Acta Zoologica Sinica 52 (Supplement):639-640.

Lavín, M.F., P.C. Fiedler, J.A. Amador, L.T. Ballance, J. Färber-Lorda, and A.M. Mestas-Nuñez. 2006. A review of eastern tropical Pacific oceanography: summary. Progress in Oceanography 69:391-398.

MacLeod, C., W.F. Perrin, R.L. Pitman, J. Barlow, L.T. Ballance, A. D’Amico, T. Gerrodette, G. Joyce, K.D. Mullin, D.L. Palka, and G.T. Waring. 2006. Known and inferred distributions of beaked whale species (Cetacea: Ziphiidae). Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 7(3):271-286.

Pyle, P., G. Friedrichsen, T. Staudt, C. Oedekoven, and L.T. Ballance. 2006. First record of Ringed Storm-Petrel (Oceanodroma hornbyi) for North America. North American Birds 60(1):162-163.

Redfern, J.V., M.C. Ferguson, E.A. Becker, K.D. Hyrenbach, C. Good, J. Barlow, K. Kaschner, M. Baumgartner, K.A. Forney, L.T. Ballance, P. Fauchald, P. Halpin, T. Hamazaki, A.J. Pershing, S. Qian, A. Read, S. Reilly, L. Torres, and C. Werner. 2006. Techniques for cetacean-habitat modeling. Marine Ecology Progress Series 310:271-295.

Vilchis, L.I., L.T. Ballance, and P.C. Fiedler. 2006. Pelagic habitat of seabirds in the eastern tropical Pacific: effects of foraging ecology on habitat selection. Marine Ecology Progress Series 315:279-292.

Borberg, J.M., L.T. Ballance, R.L. Pitman, and D.G. Ainley. 2005. A test for bias attributable to seabird avoidance of ships during surveys conducted in the tropical Pacific. Marine Ornithology 33:173-179.

Karnovsky, N.J., L.B. Spear, H.R. Carter, D.G. Ainley, K.D. Amey, L.T. Ballance, K.T. Briggs, R.G. Ford, G.L. Hunt, Jr., C. Keiper, J.W. Mason, K.H. Morgan, R.L. Pitman and C.T. Tynan. 2005. At-sea distribution, abundance and habitat affinities of Xantus’s Murrelets. Marine Ornithology 33:89-104.

Pitman, R.L., L.T. Ballance, and C. Bost. 2005. Clipperton Island: Pig sty, rat hole and booby prize. Marine Ornithology 33:193-194.

Ford, R.G., D.G. Ainley, J.L. Casey, C.A. Keiper, L.B. Spear, and L.T. Ballance. 2004. The biogeographic patterns of seabirds in the central portion of the California Current. Marine Ornithology 32:77-96.

Ballance, L.T. 2002. Cetacean Ecology. Pages 208-214 in: Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals. W.F. Perrin, B. Würsig and J.G.M. Thewissen (eds.). Academic Press, San Diego.

Ballance, L.T. 2002. Review of Cormorant harassment to protect juvenile salmonids in Tillamook County, Oregon. Marine Ornithology 30:54.

Pitman, R.L. and L.T. Ballance. 2002. The changing status of marine birds breeding at San Benedicto Island, Mexico. Wilson Bulletin 114(1):11-19.

Ballance, L.T., R.C. Anderson, R.L. Pitman, K. Stafford, A. Shaan, Z. Waheed, and R.L. Brownell, Jr. 2001. Cetacean sightings around the Republic of the Maldives, April 1998. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 3(2):213-218.

Ballance L.T., D.G. Ainley and G.L. Hunt, Jr. 2001. Seabird Foraging Ecology. Pages 2636-2644 in: J.H. Steele, S.A. Thorpe and K.K. Turekian (eds.) Encyclopedia of Ocean Sciences, vol. 5. Academic Press, London.

Pitman, R.L., L.T. Ballance, S. L. Mesnick, and S. J. Chivers. 2001. Killer whale predation on sperm whales: observations and implications. Marine Mammal Science 17(3):494-507.

Spear, L.B., L.T. Ballance, and D.G. Ainley. 2001. Response of seabirds to thermal boundaries in the tropical Pacific: the thermocline versus the Equatorial Front. Marine Ecology Progress Series 219:275-289.

Ballance, L.T. and R.L. Pitman. 1999. Foraging ecology of tropical seabirds. Proceedings of the 22nd International Ornithological Congress, Durban:2057-2071. Adams, N. and R. Slotow (eds.). Johannesburg: BirdLife South Africa.

Hertel, F. and L.T. Ballance. 1999. Wing ecomorphology of seabirds from Johnston Atoll. Condor 101:549-556.

Ballance. L.T. and R.L. Pitman. 1998. Cetaceans of the western tropical Indian Ocean: distribution, relative abundance, and comparisons with cetacean communities of two other tropical ecosystems. Marine Mammal Science 14(3):429-459.

Ballance, L.T., R.L. Pitman and S.B. Reilly. 1997. Seabird community structure along a productivity gradient: importance of competition and energetic constraint. Ecology 78:1502-1518.

Ballance, L.T. 1995. Flight energetics of free-ranging Red-footed Boobies, Sula sula. Physiological Zoology. 68:887-914.

Ballance, L.T. 1992. Ranges and habitat utilization patterns of the bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, in the Gulf of California, Mexico. Marine Mammal Science 8:262-274.

Pitman, R.L. and L.T. Ballance. 1992. Parkinson's Petrel distribution and foraging ecology in the eastern tropical Pacific: aspects of an exclusive feeding relationship with dolphins. Condor 94:824-834.

Ballance, L.T. 1990. Residence patterns, group organization, and surfacing associations of bottlenose dolphins in Kino Bay, Gulf of California, Mexico. Pages 267-283. In: The bottlenose dolphin. Leatherwood, S. and R.R. Reeves (eds.). Academic Press.

Pitman, R.L. and L.T. Ballance. 1990. Daytime feeding by Leach's Storm-Petrel on a midwater fish, Vinciguerria lucetia, in the eastern tropical Pacific. Condor 92:524-527.

Croll, D.A., L.T. Ballance, B.G. Würsig, and W.B. Tyler. 1986. Movements and daily activity patterns of a Brown Pelican in central California. Condor 88:258-260.