Blair O. Wolf is a Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of New Mexico. His research focuses on physiological ecology, particularly the thermoregulation and water balance of desert animals, including birds and reptiles. He investigates how environmental factors like temperature and aridity influence survival, behavior, and community dynamics in arid ecosystems. Wolf holds a Ph.D. in Zoology from Arizona State University (1996). His work emphasizes global change impacts on wildlife, with a focus on heat tolerance, evaporative cooling mechanisms, and the physiological limits of endotherms under climate change. He has contributed significantly to understanding torpor use in hummingbirds and the vulnerability of desert bird communities to extreme heat. His publications highlight interdisciplinary approaches, combining biophysical modeling with field studies to predict species vulnerability. Recent work addresses how rising temperatures and drought threaten desert biodiversity, particularly through evaporative water loss and metabolic constraints. Wolf’s research has been supported by grants exploring desert endotherm energetics and climate change effects on avian communities. He maintains active collaborations on topics like stable isotope analysis in reptiles and the physiological ecology of nocturnal birds.














