Dave Dahlgren

Biography

David Dahlgren's professional pursuits focus on providing science-based information concerning wildlife habitat conservation and management on working landscapes and western ecosystems. His role is a faculty member in the Department of Wildland Resources and an Extension specialist where he interacts with many stakeholders, from local to statewide and national communities. As part of Dave's Extension programming, members of his lab and he conducts applied research often focused on avian species such as native grouse, other galliforms, songbirds, corvids, and wetland birds. This research helps support better conservation and management of these species and their rangeland habitat and related systems. After working for a state wildlife agency (i.e., Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks), Dave appreciates the need for applied research to inform decision making by managers and policy makers. He is particularly interested in the interaction of livestock grazing and wildlife and finding compatibility on working lands that support rural local communities and provide critical ecosystem services. Dahlgren believes our society has an abiding need to better understand that sustaining life, including our own, ultimately depends on healthy ecosystems. He particularly enjoys working with local producers, private landowners, and state and federal agency managers. He strongly feels that cooperation with local people working on the ground and integration with state and national conservation efforts is key to the future conservation of wildlife on both public and private working lands. He sees the role of hunting in conservation as foundational and the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation as our endowed American inheritance that can support us as we evolve to meet the future challenges of all our wildlife resources.