Vicky J. Meretsky

Vicky J. Meretsky is an American biologist studying conservation biology and ecology. She is a professor of biology at Indiana University Bloomington and idirector of Environmental Masters Programs at the school.

Meretsky studied Biology at Cornell University. She completed Masters research at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California. Her second Master's degree is in statistics from the University of Arizona. Meretsky finished her doctorate at the University of Arizona, where she studied the foraging ecology of Egyptian vultures in the Negev Desert.

Meretsky currently has a professorial position at Indiana University Bloomington, where she teaches classes on conservation biology, climate change impacts on natural resources, and graduate statistics, holding several adjunct positions in different departments. She has been teaching at Indiana University Bloomington since 1998, when she began as an affiliated faculty member, though she previously taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Arizona from 1996 until 2001. Meretsky has also worked on multiple occasions as a consultant and specialist for outside universities and governmental organizations, including wetlands consultancy for the Department of Justice and a stint at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as a research biologist studying endangered species and ecosystem management in the Grand Canyon.

Meretsky is interested in both the science and policy aspects of conservationism, studying the effects of anthropogenic climate change on single species as well as broader impacts on ecosystems and whole regions. Her interests include, but are not limited to, "conservation planning, ecology of rare species, integrating ecosystem and endangered species management with adaptive management, and impacts of climate change on each." Meretsky has spent time studying numerous species within and without of the United States, including Egyptian vultures, the humpback chub, and the California condor, where she was involved in measuring the effects of the insecticide DDT on condor reproduction.

Meretsky's teaching ability while at Indiana University Bloomington has been lauded; she is a five-time winner of the Trustees Teaching Award at IU, three-time winner of the Teaching Excellence Recognition Award, and three-time winner of SPEA's Outstanding Teaching Award. In addition, she has received several grants for her continued research, including two EPA-funded ) National Lakes Assessment grants as well as a $400,000 teaching grant from the Department of Educationfor the funding of a US-Russia Global Environmental Issues Research and Study Program.

• Meretsky, V. J., Snyder, N. F., Beissinger, S. R., Clendenen, D. A., & Wiley, J. W. (2000). "Demography of the California Condor: implications for reestablishment". Conservation Biology, 14(4), 957–967.
• Stevens, L. E., Ayers, T. J., Bennett, J. B., Christensen, K., Kearsley, M. J., Meretsky, V. J., ... & Springer, A. E. (2001). "Planned flooding and Colorado River riparian trade‐offs downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona". Ecological Applications, 11(3), 701–710.
• Stevens, L. E., & Meretsky, V. J. (eds.). (2008). Aridland springs in North America: ecology and conservation. University of Arizona Press.
• Meretsky, V. J., Wegner, D. L., & Stevens, L. E. (2000). "Balancing endangered species and ecosystems: a case study of adaptive management in Grand Canyon". Environmental Management, 25(6), 579–586.
• Zengel, S. A., Meretsky, V. J., Glenn, E. P., Felger, R. S., & Ortiz, D. (1995). "Cienega de Santa Clara, a remnant wetland in the Rio Colorado delta (Mexico): vegetation distribution and the effects of water flow reduction". Ecological Engineering, 4(1), 19–36.