Education
Ph.D. in Biology - Queen's University [2008 - 2014]
B.Sc. in Field Biology (Summa Cum Laude) - Paul Smith's College [2005 - 2007]
A.S. in Environmental Studies - Hudson Valley Community College [2002 - 2005]
Work Experience
Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute - Water Quality Director [2020 - Present]
Oversee water quality monitoring and research programs for the Adirondack Watershed Institute.
Paul Smith's College - Visiting Assistant Professor [2020 - Present]
Teaching graduate courses in natural resource conservation with a focus on aquatic ecology.
Paul Smith's College - Adjunct Faculty [2016 - 2020]
Courses taught: Biometrics, Foundations of Environmental Science (lab instructor), paleoecology and alpine plant ecology for summer field ecology course,
Ausable River Association - Science and Stewardship Director [2014 - 2020]
Provide effective stewardship of the Ausable River watershed by developing a water quality monitoring program for the Ausable River and collaborating with regional scientists to expand our knowledge of the watershed. Oversee a variety of outreach programs including social media, newsletters, events, workshops, and the River Steward program.
Brendan Wiltse Photography - Owner [2013 - Present]
I am a professional landscape, nature, and wildlife photographer. My mission as a photographer is to connect people with the natural world through visual media. I donate my work to non-profits that are focused on the conservation of the natural world. My images have been published in books, magazines, calendars, blogs, and various digital outlets.
Adirondack Mountain Club - Johns Brook Property Coordinator [2011 - 2014]
Oversaw the entire operation of the Johns Brook Property, including Johns Brook Lodge, two year-round cabins, and three lean-tos. Hired and trained seasonal staff, worked with maintenance staff to plan annual projects, and assisted in organizing volunteer work weekends.
Adirondack Mountain Club - Johns Brook Caretaker [2009 - 2011]
Helped check on and maintain the Johns Brook Property year-round. Conducted regular visits to the property throughout the year, particularly in the winter. Completed minor maintenance tasks and assisted in the operation of the lodge.
Adirondack Mountain Club - Chief Summit Steward [2006 - 2008]
Educated the hiking public about the alpine ecosystem on New York’s highest summits and oversaw the operation of the Adirondack High Peaks Summit Stewardship Program in 2008.
Friends of Poke-O-Moonshine - Summit Guide [2004 - 2005]
Educated visitors to the Poke-O-Moonshine fire tower on the natural and cultural history of the Adirondacks.
Scholarly Publications
Wiltse B., Yerger E.C., & Laxson C.L. [2019] A reduction in spring mixing due to road salt runoff entering Mirror Lake (Lake Placid, NY).Lake and Reservoir Management.
Stager J.C., Wiltse B., Cumming B.F., Holsen T.M., Stetler J., Laxson C.L. & Charles D.F. [2019] A novel ecological state at Bear Pond (Adirondack Mountains, New York, USA) following acidification and recovery.Lake and Reservoir Management, 35(2): 208-223.
Stager J.C., Wiltse B., Hubeny J.B., Yankowsky E., Nardelli D., & Primack R. [2018] Climate variability and cultural eutrophication at WaldenPond (Massachusetts,USA) during the last 1800 years. PLOS One.
Mushet G.R., Flear K., Wiltse B., Paterson A.M., & Cumming B.F. [2017] Increased relative abundance of colonial scaled chrysophytes since pre-industrial times in minimally disturbed lakes from the Experimental Lakes Area, Ontario.Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 75: 1465-1476.
Stager J.C., Alton K., Martin C.H., King D.T., Petruny L.W., Wiltse B., & Livingstone D.W. [2017] On the Age and Origin of Lake Ejagham, Cameroon, and Its Endemic Fishes. Quaternary Research, 89(1): 21-32.
Wiltse, B., Yerger, E.C., Pionteck, N.C., & Laxson, C.L. [2017] Mirror Lake 2016 Water Quality Report. Ausable River Association, Wilmington.
Wiltse B., Paterson A.M., Findlay D.L. & Cumming B.F. [2016] Seasonal and decadal patterns in (Bacillariophyceae) Discostella species from bi-weekly sampling records of two boreal lakes (Experimental Lakes Area, Canada). Journal of Phycology, 52(5): 817-826.
Stager J.C., Cumming B.F., Laird K., Garrigan-Piela A., Pederson N., Wiltse B., Lane C.S., Nester J., & Ruzmaikin A. [2016] A 1600 year hydroclimate record from Wolf Lake, New York. The Holocene, 27(2): 246-257.
Laird K.R., Das B., Kingsbury M., Moos M.T., Pla-Rabes S., Ahad J.M.E., Wiltse B., & Cumming B.F. [2013] Paleolimnological assessment of limnological change in 10 lakes from northwest Saskatchewan downwind of the Athabasca oils sands based on analysis of siliceous algae and trace metals in sediment cores. Hydrobiologia, 720(1), 55-73.
Wiltse B. & Stager J.C. [2010] A paleolimnological record from Lake George, NY. Adirondack Journal of Environmental Studies. Vol. 16 Online Edition.
Conference Presentations
Pershyn C., Sporn L., & Wiltse B. [2020] Mapping the spatial distribution of native and non-native trout in the Ausable River watershed. New York State Chapter of the American Fisheries Society - ORAL
Wiltse B., Yerger E.C., & Laxson C.L. [2019] A reduction in spring mixing due to road salt runoff entering Mirror Lake (Lake Placid, NY). North American Lake Management Society Symposium - ORAL
Wiltse B., Sporn L., & Pershyn C. [2019] Mapping the spatial distribution of native and non-native trout in the Ausable River watershed. Adirondack Research Consortium - ORAL
Wiltse B., Yerger E.C., Pionteck N. & Laxson C.L. [2018] Impact of road salt on Mirror Lake. Adirondack Lakes Alliance Symposium - ORAL
Wiltse B., Yerger E.C., Pionteck N. & Laxson C.L. [2018] Road salt interrupts turnover of Mirror Lake (Lake Placid, NY). Adirondack Research Consortium - ORAL
Stager J.C., Wiltse B., Cumming B.F., Holsen T.M., Stetler J., Laxson C.L. & Charles D.F. [2018] Sediment records of a novel ecological state following acidification at Bear Pond, Adirondack Mountains, NY. 53rd Annual GSA Northeastern Section Meeting - ORAL
Wiltse B., Yerger E.C., Pionteck N. & Laxson C.L. [2017] Road salt induced seasonal meromixis of Mirror Lake (Lake Placid, NY). Lake Champlain Research Conference - ORAL
Wiltse B., Sporn L., & Pershyn C. [2017] Mapping brook trout occupancy using environmental-DNA. Lake Champlain Research Conference - POSTER
Wiltse B., Sporn L., & Pershyn C. [2017] Mapping brook trout occupancy using environmental-DNA. Adirondack Research Forum - POSTER
Wiltse B., Paterson A.M., & Cumming B.F. [2011] An assessment of recent climate change in diatom assemblages from eight “reference lakes in the Experimental Lakes Area, Northwestern Ontario. ASLO Aquatic Science Meeting - ORAL
Flear K., Wiltse B., Paterson A.M., & Cumming B.F. [2011] Investigating the role of recent climate change on assemblages of scaled chrysophytes in boreal lakes from the Experimental Lakes Area, Northwestern Ontario. ASLO Aquatic Science Meeting - POSTER
Flear K., Wiltse B., Paterson A.M., & Cumming B.F. [2011] Marked change in scaled chrysophytes assemblages in six boreal lakes, Northwestern Ontario, since preindustrial times. 64th Canadian Conference for Fisheries Research - ORAL
Wiltse B. & Cumming B.F. [2010] Timing of the response of eight lakes in the Experimental Lakes Area (Northwestern Ontario) to recent climate change. Water Research Group Student Symposium - ORAL
Wiltse B. & Cumming B.F. [2010] Evidence for the response of boreal shield lakes in the Experimental Lakes Area (Northwestern Ontario) to recent climate change. Ontario-Québec Paleolimnology Group Student Conference - ORAL
Wiltse B. & Cumming B.F. [2009] Major shifts in diatom community structure suggest circa 1900 CE response to climate change in boreal lakes from NW Ontario, Canada. 11th International Paleolimnology Symposium – ORAL
Wiltse B. & Stager J.C. [2009] A paleolimnological record from Lake George, NY: Implications of drought susceptibility and eutrophication. 16th Annual Conference on the Adirondacks - ORAL
Wiltse B. & Cumming B.F. [2009] Major shifts in diatom community structure suggest the influence of recent climate change on lakes in the boreal region of Canada. Ontario Ecology and Ethology Colloquium – ORAL
Teaching Experience
Discovering the Ausable: An Aquatic Stewardship Program [2014]
Co-developed a five-day teen program to engage high-school aged youth in the aquatic sciences and watershed stewardship.
Queen’s University Center For Teaching and Learning Enhancement Grant [2010]
Ongoing development of undergraduate statistics resources and evaluation of teaching tools. Amount awarded - $3250
Queen’s University – Introduction to Statistics in R: Tutorial Material [2009]
Authored a chapter in the tutorial manual used to teach Data Management and Analysis for Biology at Queen’s University.
Queen’s University (Teaching Assistant) [2008 - 2011]
• BIOL243 – Data Management and Analysis for Biology
• BIOL335 – Limnology and Aquatic Ecology (Head TA)
• BIOL303 – Community and Ecosystem Ecology
• BIOL350 – Evolutionary Ecology of Humans
Adirondack Mountain Club - Summit Steward [2006 - 2008]
Educated the public in a backcountry setting about rare and fragile alpine vegetation in the Adirondack Park of New York State.
Friends of Poke-O-Moonshine - Summit Guide [2004 - 2005]
Served as both an environmental and historical interpreter of the Adirondack Park of New York State.
Board Appointments
Norther Forest Atlas Project [2020 - Present]
Adirondack Wilderness Advocates [2016 - 2020]
The Waterman Fund [2016 - Present]
Adirondack Lakes Alliance [2015 - Present]
Certifications and Training
Certified Interpretive Guide - National Association of Interpretation [May 2013 - Never Expires]
Provides the framework and skills necessary to develop thematic interpretive programs.
Certified Interpretive Host - National Association of Interpretation [June 2012 - Never Expires]
Focuses on customer service skills and incorporation of mission support statements during customer interactions.
Wilderness First Responder - Wilderness Medical Associates [May 2014 - May 2017]
Epinephrine administration to treat anaphylaxis and asthma, single person CPR including relief of foreign body airway obstruction and AED use, removal of impaled objects, joint dislocations, and patient packaging/transport.
Open Water Diver Certification - YMCA [May 1998 - Never Expires]
General open water diver certification for single tank dives up to 100ft deep.
Boater Safety Certification - New York State [May 1998 - Never Expires]
General boater safety including personal watercraft.
Field and Outdoor Experience
Ausable River Watershed Monitoring [2014 - Present]
Conduct regular monitoring at 21 river and tributary locations for temperature, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, and pH. Collect surface water samples and vertical profiles on four lakes year-round. Use temperature loggers to monitor water temperature at 13 locations. Collect water samples, stage, discharge, and specific conductance at two long-term continuous monitoring locations on the Chubb River. Conduct storm water outfall monitoring on Mirror Lake.
NW Ontario Field Work [2008 - 2011]
Participated in three field seasons ranging from 7 – 21 days. Work primarily focused on retrieving sediment cores using both piston and gravity cores. Water samples and digital bathymetry were also collected.
Adirondack Field Work [2007]
Collected several sediment cores from the north basin of Lake George, Lower St. Regis Lake, and Lake Placid.
Outdoor Experience [2005 - Present]
I have climbed all 46 high peaks in the Adirondacks, hiked 1200 continuous miles on the Appalachian Trail, completed the entire (~130 mile) Northville-Placid Trail in winter, as well as numerous other hiking/backpacking trips. I have over ten years of experience working alone in remote backcountry settings.