Diana Tomback

Diana F. Tomback is an American ecologist and an academic. She is a professor of Integrative Biology at the University of Colorado Denver as well as the policy and outreach coordinator at the Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation, a non-profit organization.

Tomback has worked in the fields of evolutionary ecology, avian ecology, conservation biology and forest ecology, primarily focusing on the ecology of bird-dispersed pines and their corvid dispersers. She is best known for research on the coevolved mutualism between whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) and its avian seed disperser Clark's nutcracker (Nucifraga columbiana) and for studies or compilations on the ecology and restoration of whitebark pine. Among her notable works are publications in academic journals, including Journal of Animal Ecology, Forest Ecology and Management, Ecological Applications, BioScience, and Ecology and Evolution as well as an edited book titled Whitebark Pine Communities: Ecology And Restoration.

Education Tomback completed her Bachelor of Arts in zoology at the University of California at Los Angeles in 1970, followed by a Master of Arts in zoology in 1972 from the same institution with ornithologists Nicholas E. Collias and Thomas R. Howell as advisors. In 1977, she obtained a PhD in biological sciences from the University of California at Santa Barbara working in the fields of avian behavioral ecology, advised by Stephen I. Rothstein. the Denver Post and The Washington Post.

Works Throughout her career, Tomback has contributed to several books, including authoring chapters in Why Birds Matter. Avian Ecological Functions and Ecosystem Services, Mountain Ecosystems : Dynamics, Management, and Conservation. and Sierra East. She also served as lead editor for themed journal issues of Forest Ecology and Management and Forests. Moreover, she played a role in addressing the decline of whitebark pine ecosystems by assuming the lead editor role for the book Whitebark Pine Communities: Ecology And Restoration, published in 2001. Moreover, she also contributed to the book Yellowstone's Birds: Diversity and Abundance in the World's First National Park. The book serves as a guide to the birds of Yellowstone National Park, covering over 200 species.

Research Tomback's early research explored the essential role of the Clark's nutcracker in seed dispersal and regeneration of whitebark pine. She studied the year-round utilization of fresh and stored pine seeds by nutcrackers. Her investigations uncovered information on seed caching locations, diverse forest community utilization, seed store relocation strategies, and the crucial role nutcrackers play in facilitating forest regeneration for several western conifers. Beginning in 1987, as a faculty member at the University of Colorado Denver, she contributed to an inter-agency research team investigating the decline of whitebark pine in the Northern Rocky Mountains, leading to a USDA Forest Service Centennial Conservation Award in 1991 for her role in clarifying the nutcracker's importance in whitebark pine regeneration. In her 1990 exploration of the evolution of bird-pine mutualisms, she and collaborator Yan Linhart examined the approximately 100 species of pines and proposed that bird-dispersed pines likely evolved from ancestors dispersed by wind, with the absence of wings as a derived character shaped through interactions between corvids, the environment, and pines. In addition, she collaborated with various students and colleagues on studies of population structure and community dynamics in whitebark pine and related pines. She researched the growth patterns and genetic structure of individual Swiss stone pine trees in Switzerland, exploring the influence of seed caching by the Eurasian nutcracker (N. caryoctactes).

For much of her career, Tomback has worked at the interface between forest ecology and avian ecology. Her collaborations with former graduate students resulted in two key management papers, addressing the effects of forest health declines on whitebark pine cone production and the probability of nutcracker seed dispersal. In 2010, collaborating with botanist Peter Achuff, she addressed the ecological significance, threats, and challenges facing white pine species in western Canada and the United States. Emphasizing their contributions to biodiversity and ecosystem services, her work underscored the urgent need for conservation and management interventions. In 2011, as part of a team of ornithologists, she explored the economic and practical value of birds, specifically highlighting the ecosystem services they provide to human society. In 2012, she and collaborators participated in a study using the Illumina Seq-to-SSR method, a cost-effective and efficient means of identifying microsatellites in species genomes. The method's reliability, particularly for species with few SSR loci, was demonstrated through comparisons between the Burmese python, two bird species, and 454 sequencing, showcasing its affordability and applicability. From about 2006 to 2018, she and her students researched the distribution and functional role of whitebark pine in treeline communities, working in the northern Rockies of the U.S. and in Canada. She returned to nutcracker-related studies focusing on understanding nutcracker energetics and decision-making. She continued collaborating with a working group advocating for avian ecosystem services, and quantified nutcracker seed dispersal for whitebark pine, resulting in the contributed volume, Why Birds Matter, edited by Cagan H. Şekercioğlu, Daniel G. Wenny, and Christopher J. Whelan, which highlighted the ecological functions of birds, including a chapter authored by her.

Awards and honors 1983 – Elective Member, American Ornithologists' Union 1991 – Centennial Conservation Award, U.S. Forest Service 1994 – Fellow, American Ornithologists' Union 2014 – Outstanding Faculty Achievement Award, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Colorado Denver 2015 – Charles Bullard Fellowship, Harvard University 2024 – AAAS Fellow