T. Wayne Schwertner is an Assistant Professor in WSES at Tarleton and is a research wildlife biologist with Texas A&M AgriLife Research. He has extensive experience conducting research and management of game bird populations, including doves. Prior to coming to Tarleton, Dr. Schwertner had a twelve-year career with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, including duties as the Statewide White-winged Dove Program Leader. During this time, he played a key role in implementing Texas’s first statewide white-winged dove survey, as well as the ongoing white-winged dove banding project. Dr. Schwertner has experience in modeling population dynamics and habitat relationships of a number of vertebrate species.
COURSES OFFERED
Undergraduate
- WSES 1100 Transition to University Studies (Fall 2016)
- WSES 1301 Society, Natural Resources & Environment (Fall 2016)
- WSES 2322 Principles of Wildlife Conservation and Management (Fall 2016)
- WSES 3311 Wildlife Diseases (Fall 2016)
- WSES 4086 Problems: Permaculture (Fall 2016 )
- WSES 4185 Leadership Studies in Cons. (Fall 2016)
RESEARCH AND SCHOLARLY ACTIVITIES
Research Activities
- Population ecology of crested guineafowl in northeastern Swaziland (2012 – Tarleton State University – $11,000)
- Assessing distribution and abundance of white-tipped dove (Leptotila verreauxi) in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas (2013 – US Fish and Wildlife Service – $107,343)
- Addressing Global Food Security and Hunger through Integrated Research, Education, and Outreach in Resource Conservation and Sustainability: Developing a Sustainable Program in 6 International Natural Resource Management (2012 – National Institute of Food and Agriculture – $692,000)
- Development of a simulation model of small, confined populations of at-risk antelope species (2012 – Tarleton State University – $7,000)
- Rapid Ecoregional Assessments of the Western United States (2010 – US Bureau of Land Management – $50,000)
- Amphibian, Reptile, and Mammal Assessment of US Army Corps of Engineer Properties along the Missouri River in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska (2008 – US Army Corps of Engineers – $732,000)
- Effects of the LCRA-SAWS water project on waterfowl in Colorado, Matagorda, and Wharton counties, Texas (2008 – Lower Colorado River Authority – $180,000)
- Amphibian, reptiles, and small mammal communities and habitat relationships at Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Nevada (2008 – US Fish and Wildlife Service – $500,000)
- Factors Influencing Rio Grande Wild Turkey Production and Abundance in the Southern Edwards Plateau of Texas (2001 – Texas A&M and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department – $977,760)
- Landscape changes as related to Rio Grande wild turkey production and survival in the Edwards Plateau of Texas (Texas Parks and Wildlife Department – $675,120)
- Addressing information deficiencies related to mourning dove, white-winged dove, and eastern wild turkey management in Texas: input and analysis of historical data need to support current and future management objectives (Texas Parks and Wildlife Department – $648,982)
- Monitoring survival, harvest, and recruitment of white-winged doves in the southwestern United States (Texas A&M University and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department– $621,535)
- Population dynamics of the white-winged doves (Texas State University and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department– $298,588)
- Nest-site Characteristics of Sympatric White-winged, Mourning, and Inca Doves in Mason, Texas (Texas A&M and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department– $12,000)
Scholarly Activities
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., AND B. A. COLLIER. 2012. Analysis of data in wildlife biology in Nova. J. Silvy, editor. Techniques for wildlife investigation and management, 7th edition. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
PUBLICATIONS
Refereed Publications
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., J. T. BACCUS, AND M. R. HEANEY. 2011. A new county record and noteworthy range extension of the Texas antelope squirrel (Ammospermophilus interpres Merriam) in Texas. Southwestern Naturalist 56:275
- SMALL, M. F., J. T. BACCUS, AND T. W. SCHWERTNER. 2010. Productivity in an urban White-winged Dove population on the Edwards Plateau, Texas. Bulletin of the Texas Ornithological Society. 43(1-2):62-67
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., AND K. JOHNSON. 2006. Using land cover to predict white-winged dove occurrence and relative density the Edwards Plateau. Pages 98–102 in Cain, J. W., III, and P. R. Krausman, editors. Managing Wildlife in the Southwest, Southwest Section of The Wildlife Society, Tucson, Arizona, USA
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2006. Multi-scale asynchrony and spatial structuring of medium-sized carnivore abundance trends in central Texas, 1978–2003. Texas Journal of Science. 58:155–168
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2005. Effect of precipitation on Rio Grande wild turkey production in Texas. Proceedings of the National Wild Turkey Symposium. 9:127–132
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2005. Effect of precipitation on Rio Grande wild turkey production in Texas. Proceedings of the National Wild Turkey Symposium. 9:127–132
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2004. Raccoon abundance and Rio Grande wild turkey recruitment in central Texas. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. 58:238–247
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. J. PETERSON, N. J. SILVY, AND F. E. SMEINS. 2003. Brood survey power and estimates of Rio Grande wild turkey production in Texas. Proceedings of the 8 Annual Conference of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. 57: 213–221
- SCHWERTNER, T. W. 2002. An observation of the foraging behavior of a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) feeding on field crickets (Gryllus). Southwestern Naturalist 47: 117–118
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., H. A. MATHEWSON, J. ROBERSON, M. SMALL, AND G. WAGGERMAN. 2002. White-winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica) in A. Poole and F. Gill, eds. The Birds of North America, No. 710. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. R. MITCHELL, AND D. W. ROSBERG. 2002. Immobilizing white-tailed deer using medetomidine-ketamine versus xylazine-Telazol®. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. 56: 343–351
- SCHWERTNER, T. W. 1998. Mason Mountain WMA: A case study in financial self-sufficiency. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies 52: 197–205
- PEROTTO-BALDIVIESO, H. L., X. B. WU, M. J. PETERSON, F. E. SMEINS, N. J. SILVY, T. W. SCHWERTNER. 2011. Flooding-induced landscape changes along dendritic stream networks and implications for wildlife habitat. Landscape and Urban Planning 99:115–122
- MELTON, K. B., J. Z. DREIBELBIS, R. AGUIRRE, B. A. COLLIER, T. W. SCHWERTNER, M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2008. Abnormal eggs in Rio Grande wild turkey in Edwards Plateau, Texas. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 120: 226–228
- SMALL, M. F., J. T. BACCUS, AND T. W. SCHWERTNER. 2008. Survivorship of radio-transmitted urban white-winged doves on the Edwards Plateau of Texas. Texas Journal of Science 60:45–56
- COLLIER, B. A., D. A. JONES, J. N. SCHAAP, C. J. RANDEL, III, B. J. WILLSEY, R. AGUIRRE, T. W. SCHWERTNER, N. J. SILVY, M. J. PETERSEN. 2007. Survival of Rio Grande wild turkeys on the Edwards plateau of Texas. Journal of Wildlife Management. 71:82–86
- COLLIER, B. A., K. B. MELTON, J. Z. DREIBELBIS, W. P. KUVLESKY, G. A. PROUDFOOT, R. AGUIRRE, D. G. HEWITT, T. W. SCHWERTNER, S. J. DEMASO, N. J. SILVY, AND M. J. PETERSON. 2007. Variation in brood sex ratios of Texas Rio Grande wild turkeys. Journal of Wildlife Management 71:1793–1799
- GRAY, S. S., T. R. SIMPSON, J. T. BACCUS, R. W. MANNING, AND T. W. SCHWERTNER. 2007. Diets and foraging preference of greater kudu in the Llano Uplift of Texas. Wildlife Biology. 13:1–10
- SINGHURST, J. R., L. L. SANCHEZ, D. FRELS, JR., T. W. SCHWERTNER, M. MITCHELL, S. MOREN, AND W. C. HOLMES. 2007. The vascular flora of Mason Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Mason, County, Texas. Southeastern Naturalist 6:683–692
- LOCKE, S. L., R. R. LOPEZ, M. J. PETERSON, N. J. SILVY, AND T. W. SCHWERTNER. 2006. From the field: evaluation of portable infra-red cameras for detecting Rio Grande wild turkeys. Wildlife Society Bulletin. 43:839–844
- METZ, S. T., K. B. MELTON, R. AGUIRRE, B. A. COLLIER, T. W. SCHWERTNER, M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2006. Poult adoption and nest abandonment by a female Rio Grande wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo intermedia) in Texas. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology. 118:259–261
- SMALL, M. F., J. T. BACCUS, AND T. W. SCHWERTNER. 2006. Historic and current distribution and abundance of White-winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica) in the United States. Occasional Publication of the Texas Ornithological Society. 6:1–23
Non-Refereed Publications
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., AND B. A. COLLIER. In Press. Analysis of data in wildlife biology in Nova. J. Silvy, editor. Techniques for wildlife investigation and management, 7th edition. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
Presentations
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., J. H. WHITE, M. R. HEANEY, AND R. W. MANNING. 2012. Bio-acoustic monitoring of bat presence and spatio-temporal activity in northeast Texas. Presented at the 47th Annual Meeting of the Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Fort Worth, Texas, USA. 16–18 February 2012.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. R. HEANEY, AND B. COOK. 2010. Waterfowl energy demands and energy availability from waste rice on the Texas Gulf Coast: a simulation. Presented at the 17th Annual Conference of The Wildlife Society, Snowbird, Utah. 2–6 October 2010.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., N. J. SILVY, AND M. J. PETERSON. 2005. Either-sex turkey hunting in Texas: is fall hen harvest sustainable? Presented at the 40th Annual Meeting of the Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Amarillo, Texas, USA. 24–26 February 2005.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2004. Effect of precipitation on Rio Grande wild turkey production in Texas. Presented at the 11h Annual Conference of The Wildlife Society, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. 19–23 September 2004.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. J. PETERSON, AND N. J. SILVY. 2004. Effect of precipitation on Rio Grande wild turkey production in Texas. Presented at the 39th Annual Meeting of the Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Kerrville, Texas, USA. 19–21 February 2004.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., AND M. R. MITCHELL. 2002. Efficacy of prostaglandin-F2α/betamethasone as an abortifaciant in captive white-tailed deer. Presented at the 37th Annual Meeting of the Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Corpus Christ, Texas, USA. 21–23 February 2002.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. R. MITCHELL, AND D. W. ROSBERG. 2002. Immobilization of white-tailed deer using medetomidine-ketamine versus xylazine-Telazol®. (Poster) Presented at the 9th Annual Conference of The Wildlife Society, Bismarck, North Dakota, USA. 24–28 September 2002.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., M. R. MITCHELL, AND D. W. ROSBERG. 2002. Immobilization of white-tailed deer using medetomidine-ketamine versus xylazine-Telazol®. Presented at the 37th Annual Meeting of the Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Corpus Christi, Texas, USA. 21–23 February 2002.
- SCHWERTNER, T. W., S. L. WEBB, AND T. A. PILCIK. 2001. Nest-site attributes and tree selection by white-winged doves in Mason, Texas. Presented at the 48th Annual Meeting of the Southwestern Association of Naturalists, Hays, Kansas, USA. 19–21 April 2001.
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS & ACCREDITATIONS
- Co-chair, Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Annual Conference Local Arrangements Committee (2012–2013)
- Chair, Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Program Committee (2008–2009)
- Board Member at Large (elected), Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society (2006–2007)
- Chair, Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Program Committee (2005–2006)
- Chair, Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Program Committee (2004–2005)
- Member, Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Excellence in Wildlife Conservation Committee (2000–2002; Chairman in 2000–2001)
- Member, Texas A&M University Office of Graduate Studies, Research and Presentation Grant Selection Committee (2001)
- Member, Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Wildlife Conservation Camp Committee (2000–2001)
- Member, Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Conservation Review Committee (1999–2000 )
DEGREES
- Ph.D, Texas A&M University
- MS,Texas State University
- BS,Texas A&M University
GRADUATE GROUP MEMBERSHIPS
- Texas A&M University System Graduate Faculty Status