Phone: (406) 872-4517
Email: gordon.luikart@umontana.edu

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Education

• Ph.D., 1997, University of Montana, Organismal Biology and Ecology
• M.S., 1992, University of Montana, Zoology
• B.S., 1988, Iowa State University, General Biology with minor in Animal Ecology

Research Interests

My general research interests are in conservation biology, population genetics, and ecology (view CV).  My primary research applies genetics to the conservation of natural and managed populations (video).  I work at FLBS and in the Montana Conservation Genomics Laboratory (MCGL) at the University of Montana (UM) with colleagues, Fred Allendorf, Steve Amish, Leif Howard, Brian Hand, Ryan Kovach, and others.  Our research applies principles and tools of population genetics/omics to fish, wildlife, and a variety of other taxa, including invasive species and parasites that are threatening native ecosystems and regional economies (AIS video). We have established exchange programs and collaborations between the University of Montana and the University of Porto in Portugal (CIBIO-UP) and also with South Africa’s National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI). We have exciting projects with Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks, the US Geological Survey, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the US Forest Service.  We develop and apply novel field sampling methods, DNA typing techniques, and data analysis approaches to understand landscape connectivity, local adaptation, invasive species control (including pathogens), and the negative effects of inbreeding and also hybridization (outbreeding depression) on individual fitness and population viability. Current work includes predicting adaptive gene flow rates and population persistence in species challenged by environmental change.

Publications

Google Scholar page

Books:

Book chapters (selected):

• Scribner, K., M. Kardos, G. Luikart, R.S. Waples, N. Sard, J. Homola, J. Kanefsky, and S. Smith.  Application of genetic data and theory in fisheries management. Chapter 20 in Analysis and Interpretation of Freshwater Fisheries Data. 2nd ed. Eds: Guy, Brown, and Brenden. In review.
• Luikart, G., B.K. Hand, ^M. Kardos, O.P. Rajora, S. Aitkin, P. Hohenlohe. 2018.  Population genomics: Advancing understanding of nature.  In Population Genomics Concepts, Approaches and Applications.  Ed: Om P. Rajora. (link)
• Pierson, J.C., G. Luikart, and M.K. Schwartz. 2015. The application of genetic indicators in wild populations: potential and pitfalls for genetic monitoring. In Surrogates and Indicators in Ecology, Conservation and Environmental Management. Eds: Lindenmayer, D.B., J.C. Pierson, and P. Barton. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne. CRC Press, London. (link)

Publications (selected): (*student) (^postdoc)

• **Hemstrom, W., **J. Grummer, Luikart, and M. Christie. 2024. Next-generation data-filtering in the genomics era. Nature Reviews Genetics. Invited Review, 25:750–767 doi.org/10.1038/s41576-024-00738-6
• *Miller, D., S. Amish, L. Howard, R. Bajno, M. McCartney, and Luikart. 2024. Improved eDNA detection using high-volume sampling: the effect of sampling methods on qPCR signal of invasive zebra mussels. Environmental DNA. 6: e511. doi.org/10.1002/edn3.511
• van Rees, C.B., B.K. Hand, C. Bargeron, T.J. Cline, W. Daniel, J.A. Ferrante, K. Gaddis, M.E. Hunter, C.S. Jarnevich, M.A. McGeoch, J. Morisette, M. Neilson, C. Rees, A. Sepulveda, R.D. Wallace, D. Whited, T. Wilcox, J. Kimball, and  G. Luikart. 2022. Alien invasive species management needs methodological integration. Biological Reviews, 97:1712-1735. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12859
• ^Kardos, M., and G. Luikart. 2021. The genomic architecture of fitness drives population viability in changing environments. American Naturalist, 197:511–525. doi.org/10.1086/713469
• Schiebelhut, L., A.S. Guillaume, A. Kuhn, R.M. Schweizer, E.E. Armstrong, M.A. Beaumont, M. Byrne, T. Cosart, B.K. Hand, *L. Howard, S.M. Mussmann, S.R. Narum, R. Rasteiro, A.G. Rivera-Colón, N. Saarman, A. Sethuraman, H.R. Taylor, G.W.C. Thomas, M. Wellenreuther, Luikart. 2023. Practical guidance in conservation genomics: from study design to application. Molecular Ecology Resources. 24: e13893. doi.org/10.1111/1755-0998.13893
• Strait, J., L.A. Eby, R.P. Kovach, C.C. Muhlfeld, M.C. Boyer, S.J. Amish, S. Smith, W.H. Lowe, and G.  Luikart. 2020. Hybridization alters growth and migratory life history expression of native trout. Evolutionary Applications, 8:821-833. doi.org/10.1111/eva.13163
• Ezenwa, V.O., S.A. Budischak, P. Buss, M. Seguel, G. Luikart, A.E. Jolles, and K. Sakamoto. 2021. Natural resistance to worms exacerbates bovine tuberculosis severity independently of worm coinfection. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 118 (3) e201508011. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2015080118
• Robinson, Z., D. Bell, *T. Dhendup, G. Luikart, A. Whiteley, and ^M. Kardos 2021. Evaluating genetic rescue attempts in the Anthropocene. Conservation Biology, 35: 666-677.org/10.1111/cobi.13596
• Luikart, G., T. Antao, B.K. Hand, C.C. Muhlfeld, M.C. Boyer, T. Cosart, *B. Trethewey, R. Al-Chockhachy, and R. Waples. 2021. Detecting population declines via estimating the effective number of breeders (N_b). Molecular Ecology Resources. 21: 379-393. doi.org/10.1111/1755-0998.13251
• Sepulveda, A., N. Nelson, C. Jerde, and  G. Luikart. 2020. Are environmental DNA methods ready for aquatic invasive species management? Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 35:668-678.
• Muhlfeld C.C., R.P. Kovach, R. Al-Chokhachy, S.J. Amish, J.L. Kershner, R.F. Leary, W.H. Lowe, G. Luikart, P. Matson, D.A. Schmetterling, B.B. Shepard, P.A.H. Westley, D. Whited, A. Whiteley, and F.W. Allendorf. 2017. Legacy introductions and climatic variation explain spatiotemporal patterns of invasive hybridization in a native trout. Global Change Biology, 23: 4663-4674. DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13681
• *Beja-Pereira, A., ^P.R. England, N. Ferrand, A. Bakheit, M.A. Abdalla, M. Mashkour, J. Jordana, P. Taberlet, and G. Luikart.  2004.  African origins of the domestic donkey. Science, 304:1781.

Files

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Luikart-CV-USGS-BioSketch.8.12.25.rtf