Ryan Utz, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Water Resources

Falk School of Sustainability & Environment

412-365-1326

Eden Hall LDG10

Hometown: Gibsonia, PA
Joined Chatham: 2015

ACADEMIC AREAS OF INTEREST

Urban stream ecology, restoration ecology, salmonid life history and bioenergetics, fisheries science, dedacal-scale physicochemical changes in stream ecosystems

PERSONAL AREAS OF INTEREST

Backpacking, botany, hard cider brewing, photography, and fly-fishing.

Personal Blog

BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Ryan Utz is an aquatic ecologist who focuses on urban streams, salmonids, ecological restoration, and detecting environmental trends at broad spatio-temporal scales. Prior to joining Chatham, Dr. Utz served for four years as an aquatic ecologist at the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON). Past research projects have included an assessment of river enhancement to improve habitat for Chinook salmon in California's Central Valley, comparing how effects of urbanization on streams differ between ecoregions of Maryland, and exploring bioenergetic patterns of brook trout in West Virginia.

EDUCATION

PhD, University of Maryland (College Park, MD), 2010
MSc, West Virginia University (Morgantown, WV), 2005
BS, University of Miami (Miami, FL), 2003

CERTIFICATIONS

Wilderness First Responder

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Ward, D. and R. Utz. 2024. Winners and losers: Competition and the invasive grass Bromus inermis. Acta Oecologica 124: 104021.
McEvoy, H., Parker, S., Merola-Lapson, J., Taylor, I., Woods, P. and R. Utz. 2024. A decadal-scale comparison of lotic Odonata nymph surveys in northern Pennsylvania, USA reveals possible assemblage restructuring. International Journal of Odonatology 27: 161-171.
Utz, R.M., Leo, N., Grund, S., Zimmerman, E., and C. Tracey. 2024. Hydroecology of Marshallia pulchra, a riverscour endemic forb of high gradient rivers in the eastern United States. Natural Areas Journal 44: 76-86.
Corrêa, E.C., Utz, R.M., Cesar de Aquino Ribas, A., Viana, D., Dalponti, G., Covich, A.P., and F. de Oliveira Roque. 2024. No effects of macroconsumer exclusion on macroinvertebrate functional composition in Brazilian karst streams along a gradient of riparian forest loss. Biotropica 56: e13309.
Kaushal, S.S., Likens, G.E., Mayer, P.M. Shatkay, R.R., Shelton, S., Grant, S.B., Utz, R.M., Yaculak, A., Maas, C.M., Reimer, J.E., Bhide, S., Malin, J., and M. Rippy. 2023. The anthropogenic salt cycle. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment 4: 770-784.
Ng, M., McCormick, A., Utz, R.M., and J.M. Heberling. 2023. Has climate change altered poison ivy over the last century? An empirical test using herbarium specimens. American Journal of Botany 110: e16225.
Corrêa, E.C., and R.M. Utz. 2023. Effects of agricultural expansion on lotic benthic macroinvertebrates communities: a review and case study from Brazil. Pages 117-135 in Myster, R.W. Neotropical Gradients and their Analysis. Springer, New York.
Utz, R.M., Hart‡, I.S., and Q. Rice. 2023. Soil arthropod communities associated with Berberis thunbergia invasion in a temperate deciduous forest harbor more detritivores. Ecological Entomology 48: 512-516.
Bierker‡, S.R., Brubaker‡, F., Scheideman‡, K.E., Ciamacco, M., Harris‡, M.E., and R.M. Utz. 2023. Small mammals perceive most fruits of invasive plants as low-quality forage in a Pennsylvanian forest and meadow. Northeastern Naturalist 30: 24-40.
Kaushal, S., Mayer, P., Likens, G., Reimer, J., Maas, C., Hart, I., Utz, R., Shatkay, R., Wessel, B., Maietta, C., Pace, M., Duan, S., Boger, W., Yaculak, A., Galella, J., Wood, K., Morel, C., Nguyen, W., Querubin, S., Sukert, R., Lowien, A., Houde, A., Roussel, A., Houston, A., Cacopardo, A., Ho, C., Talbod-Wendlandt, H., Widmer, J. Slagle, J., Bader, J., Chong, J., Wollney, J., Kim, J., Shepherd, L., Wilfong, M., Houlihan, M., Sedghi, N., Butcher, R., Chaudhary, S, and W. Becker. 2023. Five state factors control progressive stages of freshwater salinization syndrome. Limnology and Oceanography Letters 8: 190-211.
Wood, J.L. and R.M. Utz. 2022. Southward expansion of the invasive riparian monocot Butomus umbellatus L. (Butomaceae) into the Allegheny and Ohio River watersheds is supported by citizen science observations and a formal collection. Castanea 87: 302-305.
Utz, R.M., Bidlack, S.M., Fisher, B. and S.S. Kaushal. 2022. Quantifying the importance of urbanization as a driver of freshwater salinization in the northeastern United States. Journal of Environmental Quality 51: 952-965.
Parker, S.M. and R.M Utz. 2022. Temporal design for aquatic organismal sampling across the National Ecological Observatory Network. Methods in Ecology and Evolution 13: 1834-1848.
Betras, T.L., de Cortie, E., Carroll, A., Utz, R., and W.P. Carson. 2022. Do invasive species provide refuge from browsers? A test of associational resistance in a peri-urban habitat plagued by deer. Forest Management and Ecology 510: 120086.
Kaushal, S.,S. Likens, G.E., Pace, M.L., Reimer, J.E., Maas, C.M., Gallela, J.G., Utz, R.M., Duan, S., Kryger, J.R,, Yaculak, A.M., Boger, W.L., Bailey, N.W., Haq, S., Wood, K.L., Wessel, B.M., Park, C.E., Collison, D.C., Aisin, B.I., Gedeon, T.M., Chaudhary, S.K., Widmer, J., Blackwood, C.R., Bolster, C.M., Devilbiss, M.L., Garrison, D.L., Halevi, S., Kese, G.Q., Quach, E.K., Rogelio, C.M.P., Tan, M.L., Wald, H.J.S., and S.A. Woglo. 2021. Freshwater salinization syndrome: from emerging global problem to managing risks. Biogeochemistry 154:255-292.
Hart, I.S., Utz, R.M., Taylor, A.N., Chess, M., Locy, D.D., and B.A. Porter. 2021. High conservation value of the Odonata assemblage in the upper Ohio River mainstem: a large, regulated river in North America. American Midland Naturalist. 185:175-186.
Ardón, M., Zeglin, L.H., Utz, R.M., Cooper. D.S., Dodds, W.K., Bixby, R.J., Burdett, A., Follstad-Shah, J., Griffiths, N.A., Harms, T.K., Johnson, L.T., Johnson, S.L., Jones, J., Kominoski, J.S., McDowell, W., Rosemond, A.D., Trentman, M.T., Van Horn. D., and A. Ward. 2021. Experimental nitrogen and phosphorus enrichment stimulates multiple trophic levels of algal and detrital-based food webs: a global meta-analysis from streams and rivers. Biological Reviews 96:692-715.
Utz, R.M., B. Bookout and S. Kaushal. 2020. Influence of temperature and precipitation on diel variations in dissolved oxygen concentrations in rural and urban headwater streams. Aquatic Sciences 82:82.
Blinn, H., Utz, R.M., Greiner, L.H., and D.R. Brown. 2020. Exposure assessment of adults living near unconventional oil and natural gas development and reported health symptoms in southwest Pennsylvania, USA. PLoS ONE 15: e0237325.
Utz, R.M., Slater, A., Rosche, H., and W.P. Carson. 2020. Do dense layers of invasive plants elevate the foraging intensity of small mammals in temperate deciduous forests? A case study from Pennsylvania, USA. NeoBiota 56:73-88.
Utz, R.M. and M.N. Fetsko. 2020. Exploratory survey of salamander assemblages in Pennsylvanian forests with dense understories of Berberis thunbergii, an invasive shrub. Northeastern Naturalist 27:299-306.
Sonn, J.M., Utz, R.M., and C.L. Richards-Zawacki. 2019. Effects of latitudinal, seasonal and daily temperature variation on chytrid fungal infections in a North American frog. Ecosphere 10: e02892.
Mannino, J.C., Isaac, B.L., and R.M. Utz. 2019. New Allegheny County, Pennsylvania occurrences for Crataegus chrysocarpa and Geranium dissectum plus the rediscovery of Sherardia arvensis. Bartonia 70: 93-95.
Link, A.F., Johnson, L. and R.M. Utz. 2019. To manage or not? Successful native tree seedling restoration despite a dense, invasive shrub, Berberis thunbergii. Plant Ecology. 220: 577-593.
Corrêa, E.C., de Oliveira Roque, F., Utz, R.M., Silva, W.M., Severo-Neto, F., and K. Gido. 2019. Effects of macroconsumers on benthic communities across a gradient of land use in karst Neotropical streams. Hydrobiologia 836: 21-34.
Kaushal, S.S., Likens, G.E., Pace, M.L., Haq, S., Wood, K.L., Gallela, J., Morel, C., Doody, T.R., Wessel, B., Kortelainen, P., Raike, A., Skinner†, V., Utz, R., and N. Jaworski. 2019. Novel 'chemical cocktails' in inland waters are a consequence of the Freshwater Salinization Syndrome. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 374: 20180017.
Corrêa, E.C., F.L. de Oliveira Roque, Utz, R.M., Correa, J.S., de Souza, F.L., and A.P. Covich. 2018. Effects of macroconsumers on benthic communities: rapid increases in dry-season accrual of calcium in a tropical karst stream. PLoS ONE 13: e0209102.
Link, A.F., Turnblacer, T., Snyder, C. K., Daugherty, S.E., and R.M. Utz. 2018. Low recruitment of native trees in a deciduous forest associated with Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii DC) invasion. Invasive Plant Science and Management 11: 1-7.
Kaushal, S.S., Likens, G., Pace, M., Utz, R., Haq, S., Gorman, G., and M. Grese. 2018. The freshwater salinization syndrome on a continental scale. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 115: E574-E583.
Utz, R.M., Pearce, T.A., Lewis, D.L., and J.C. Mannino. 2018. Elevated native terrestrial snail abundance and diversity in association with an invasive understory shrub, Berberis thunbergii, in a North American deciduous forest. Acta Oecologia 86: 66-71.
Utz, R.M., Cooper, S.D., Gido, K.B., and J. Stewart. 2017. Exclusion of fish and invertebrates from benthic patches across water conductivity levels using high-frequency (10 Hz) pulses and adjustable electrical settings. Freshwater Science 36: 151-161.
Utz, R. M., Hopkins, K., Beesley, L., Booth, D.B., Hawley, R.J., Baker, M., Freeman, M.C., and K.L. Jones. 2016. Ecological resistance in urban streams: the role of natural and legacy attributes. Freshwater Science 35: 380-397.
Smith, R., Hawley, R., Neile, M., Vietz, G., Diaz-Pascacio, E., Hermann, J., Lovell, A., Prescott, C., Rios-Tourma, B., Smith, B., and R. Utz. 2016. Urban stream renovation: incorporating societal objectives to achieve ecological improvements. Freshwater Science 35: 364-379.
Hilderbrand, R.H. and R.M. Utz. 2015. Ecological thresholds and resilience in streams. Pages 461-478 in: Rowinski, P.M. and A. Radecki-Pawlik. Rivers: physical, fluvial, and environmental processes. Springer, New York.
Pennino, M.J., Kaushal, S.S., Mayer, P.M., Utz, R., and C.A. Cooper. 2016. Stream restoration and sanitary infrastructure alter sources and fluxes of water, carbon, and nitrogen in urban watersheds. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences. 20: 3419-3439.
Utz, R.M. 2014. Are we overlooking landscape-scale threats to common freshwater fishes? Fisheries 39: 294-297.
Goring, S.J., Weathers, K.C., Dodds, W.K., Sorrano, P.A., Sweet, L.C., Cheruvelli, K.S., Kominoski, J.S., Ruegg, J., Thorn, A.M., and R.M. Utz. 2014. The collaborative culture of macrosystems ecology: optimizing participant benefits. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 12: 39-47.
Hafs, A.W., Harrison, L.R., Utz, R.M. and T. Dunne. 2014. Quantifying the role of woody debris in providing bioenergetically favorable habitat for juvenile salmon. Ecological Modelling 285: 30-38.
McManamay, R.A. and R.M. Utz. 2014. Open-access databases as unprecedented resources and drivers of cultural change in fisheries science. Fisheries 39: 417-425.
Utz, R.M. and M. Denslow. 2014. Noteworthy collections: Colorado. Madroño 61: 251. [First reported occurrence of wild Muscari neglectum (Hyacinthaceae) in Colorado].
Kaushal, S.S., Likens, G.E., Utz, R.M., Pace, M.L., Grese, M., and M. Yepsen. 2013. Increased river alkalization in the Eastern U.S. Environmental Science and Technology 47: 10302-10311.
Utz, R.M., Fitzgerald, M.R., Goodman, K.J., Parker, S.M., Powell, H. and C.L. Roehm. 2013. The National Ecological Observatory Network: an observatory poised to expand spatiotemporal scales of inquiry in aquatic and fisheries science. Fisheries 38: 26-35.
Utz, R.M., Mesick, C.F., Cardinale, B.J., and T. Dunne. 2013. How does gravel augmentation impact early-stage Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) embryonic survivorship? Journal of Fish Biology 82: 1484-1496.
Koskelo, A.I., Fisher, T.R., Utz, R.M., and T.E. Jordan. 2012. A new, precipitation-based method of baseflow separation and event identification for small watersheds (<50 km2). Journal of Hydrology 450-451: 267-278.
Utz, R.M., Zeug, S.C. and B.J. Cardinale. 2012. Growth and diet of juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in restored habitat of a California river. Fisheries Management and Ecology 19: 375-388.
Utz, R.M., Zeug, S.C., Cardinale, B.J., and L.K. Albertson. 2012. Trophic ecology and population attributes of two resident non-game fishes in riverine habitat engineered to enhance salmon spawning success. California Fish and Game 98: 104-124.
Utz, R.M. and R.H. Hilderbrand. 2011. Interregional variation in urbanization-induced geomorphic change and macroinvertebrate habitat colonization in headwater streams. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 30: 25-37.
Utz, R.M., Eshelman, K.N. and R.H. Hilderbrand. 2011. Variation in physicochemical responses to urbanization between two Mid-Atlantic physiographic regions. Ecological Applications 21: 402-415.
Hilderbrand, R.H., Utz, R.M., Stranko, S.A., and R.L. Raesly. 2010. Applying ecological thresholds to forecast biodiversity loss from human development. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 29: 1009-1016.
Utz, R.M., Hilderbrand, R.H., and R.L. Raesly. 2010. Regional differences in patterns of fish species loss with changing land use. Biological Conservation 143: 688-699.
Utz, R.M., and K.J. Hartman. 2009. Density-dependent individual growth and size dynamics of central Appalachian brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 66: 1072-1080.
Utz, R.M., Hilderbrand, R.H., and D.M. Boward. 2009. Identifying regional differences in threshold responses of aquatic invertebrates to land cover gradients. Ecological Indicators 9: 556-567.
Utz, R.M., and K.J. Hartman. 2007. Identification of critical prey items to Appalachian brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) with emphasis on terrestrial organisms. Hydrobiologia 575: 259-270.
Utz, R.M., Ratcliffe, B.R., Moore, B.T., and K.J. Hartman. 2007. Disproportionate relative importance of a terrestrial beetle family (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) as a prey source for central Appalachian brook trout. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 136: 177-184.
Utz, R.M., and K.J. Hartman. 2006. Temporal and spatial variation in the energy intake of a brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) population in an Appalachian watershed. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 63: 2675-2686.