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Dr Fred Watson

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Professor
Department of Applied Environmental Science
California State University Monterey Bay

Instructor of students in these programs:
M.S. in Environmental Science
B.S. in Environmental Science, Technology & Policy
B.S. in Biology
B.S. in Marine Science
B.S. in Environmental Studies

Groups:
- Watershed Institute Publications
- Zambian Carnivore Programme

I combine teaching , research , and professional application across a diverse range of fields including native plant ecology, wildlife ecology, land use, remote sensing, statistics, agricultural water quality treatment, stormwater, ecosystem visualization, aquatic ecology, simulation modeling, the hydrology of streams, lagoons, and snowpacks, and planning for recreation, transportation, land use, and conservation.

Student advisee projects
29 years experience advising 100s of student applied research projects in thesis and internship formats
Current student advisee projects:
  • Adele S Use of modern tools for assessing and planning equitable access to public open spaces. Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District
  • Connor O-B. Oak restoration & ectomycorrhizae with Elkhorn Slough Foundation
  • Judith E. Contra Costa Goldfields monitoring & restoration with BLM at Fort Ord National Monument
  • Lidia D Disturbance of seabird colonies, with National Park Service
  • Joe S Partitioning of agricultural evapotranspiration from irrigation vs rainfall, with NASA
Recent student advisee projects:
  • Ashley M, Diego G, Damian A.Remote sensing of algal blooms in coastal lagoons.
  • Jacqueline B. Monterey Gilia restoration with Naval Support Activity Monterey
  • Liz S. Tracking restoration success over 25 years with BLM at Fort Ord
  • Josh B. Factors influencing amphibian roadkill in and around the former Fort Ord
  • Bethany S. Habitat associations of hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus) and western red bats (Lasiurus blossevillii) in the Monterey Bay region.
  • Sarah B. Grassland restoration with BLM at Fort Ord National Monument
  • Filipp K. CSUMB Habitat Working Group vegetation mapping & habitat improvement.
  • Eric P. Vegetation & trails study & management at Carmel River State Beach. With CA State Parks.
  • Amelia S & Trent B. Oak defoliation by Phryganidia californica on Fort ord
  • Michael B. Assessing wildlife use of ranch land using camera traps. With Big Sur Land Trust.
  • Michelle T. Cliff buckwheat (Eriogonum parvifolium) status and management at Garrapata State Beach. With CA State Parks.
  • Aubrie H. Assessment of dune plant restoration at Salinas River State Beach. With Central Coast Wetlands Group.
  • Cal B. CSUMB on-campus habitat assessment & planning. With campus planning & facilities dept.
  • Timothy R. Regrowth of chaparral species after River Fire at Toro Park; and Housing Element analyses in Monterey area, for Landwatch Monterey County.
  • Liana S. Sand Gilia (Gilia tenuiflora ssp. arenaria) status assessment. With USFWS.
  • Laura F. Synoptic camera-trap assessment of mammal use of Pt Lobos State Reserve & Lobos Ranch. With State Parks and the Pt Lobos Foundation.
  • John W. Assessment of special status plants at Martin Dunes. With Big Sur Land Trust.
  • John I. Effects of goat foraging on plant communities at Fort Ord National Monument. With BLM.
  • CSUMB ENVS 660 Class 2020. Vegetation mapping at Garrapata State Park. With State Parks, CDFW, and CNPS.
  • CSUMB ENVS 660 Class 2019. Status assessment of long-term success for protection and restoration of native dune plants as mitigation for the Sand City shopping centers. With City of Sand City.
 
Current research and creative activity
 
Native plant conservation 2016 to present. Taxon-wide assessment and conservation of an endangered plant - Sand Gilia - Gilia tenuiflora ssp. arenaria - with funding from USFWS. Advising students working on Erigonum parvifolium (habitat for endangered Smith's Blue Butterfly), dune restoration, and the on-campus CSUMB Habitat Working Group.

Trail master planning - 2013 to present. Master planning the Fort Ord Regional Trail and Greenway (FORTAG), which I co-founded and which involves planning for recreation, transportation, land use, and conservation. Related trail and open-space planning work includes participation on the Toro County Park Trails Task Force and the ParkIt! initiative.

Wildlife ecology - 2008 to present: I work in Zambia with the Zambian Carnivore Programme on a variety of landscape ecology and wildlife-related projects involving remote sensing, population dynamics, and landscape ecology. This has yielded ten peer-reviewed papers so far.

Locally, I advise students on various wildlife ecology projects encompassing bat habitat selection, observational studies of birds and mammals on Fort Ord, California, and camera-trap assessments of mammal utilization of State Parks.

2001 - 2014: I worked on wildlife and landscape ecological research at Yellowstone National Park, yielding a bunch of papers and a 30-chapter book on the ecology of large mammals in Yellowstone National Park produced under the leadership of wildlife ecologists from Montana State University and the National Park Service.
 
Mostly previous applied research activity
 
2000 to about 2019: My water quality work on the California Central Coast has examined sediment, nutrients, pesticides, pathogens, and stormwater.Two of the more recent areas of activity were in treatment wetlands and stormwater. The treatment wetland work relates to the design and operation of experimental treatment wetlands & bioreactors, yielding results (e.g. papers on pesticides and pathogens and student theses on nutrients) used by regional water quality managers, as well as data sets developed by my Environmental Modeling class. The stormwater work addresses measurement and modeling of stormwater in urban areas on the Monterey Peninsula, in relation to minimizing impacts on Areas of Biological Significance (ASBSs) in coastal waters, and the role of Low Impact Development (LID).
2000-2016. Lagoon hydrology / limnology / ecology. I led a series of detailed studies of the Carmel and Salinas lagoons for a range of clients including California American Water, State Parks, and Monterey County Water Resources Agency.

 

2002-2010: My ecosystem visualization (EcoViz) work has resulted in interpretive computer-rendered visualizations of ecosystem processes being seen by millions of visitors to terrestrial and marine protected areas in the US.
2000-2007: I worked on steelhead trout ecology on the Central Coast of California, completing a number of federally utilized research and teaching products describing the habitat of this threatened fish in the streams and lagoons of the region, funded by water agencies at the regional, county, and peninsula level.
1998-1999: Before coming to CSUMB I worked as an environmental model developer and forest hydrologist at CSIRO Land and Water and the University of Melbourne in Australia.
1987-1998: I received my formal education in Australia, where I earned a PhD in Environmental Engineering (1998) and a B.A. in Geography and Computer Science (1993), both from the University of Melbourne.

 

I teach a five classes at CSUMB, including: Plant Communities of California, Research Methods, Remote Sensing, Watershed Systems, and Professional Environmental Science
I enjoy botanizing, birding, endurance sport, hiking, skiing, canoeing, playing music, painting, hanging out with my family, and learning more and more about the environment.

CSUMB Department of Applied Environmental Science, 8/29/25