Education
B.A., Biology, Greenville College
Ph.D., Zoology, Washington State University
Bio
David Benson, Ph.D., earned a B.A. in Biology from Greenville College and a Ph.D. in Zoology from Washington State University, where his research focused on the evolution of monogamy in the white-tailed ptarmigan bird species.
Since 1999, Dr. Benson has been a professor at Marian University, where he teaches a variety of courses, including restoration ecology, behavioral ecology, microbiology, and conservation biology. He is the founding director of the Nina Mason Pulliam EcoLab, which provides ecological education, application, and research opportunities for students. In the summer, Dr. Benson works as a park ranger in Glacier National Park in Montana, teaching people about glaciers and trying to avoid being eaten by grizzly bears.
Courses Taught
Research
Dr. Benson did 30 years of research in Glacier National Park on a population of white-tailed Ptarmigan birds. He discovered that changing climate was forcing them to move, adapt, and die. Their breeding and late summer locations are now farther upslope than they used to be. They've changed their habitat preference, and their population numbers are about a third of what they were when he started in the 1990s.
