Coexistence is possible: spotted hyenas exposed to daytime pastoralism do just fine

This blog post is provided by Arjun Dheer and tells the #StoryBehindthePaper for the paper ‘Diurnal pastoralism does not reduce juvenile recruitment nor elevate allostatic load in spotted hyenas‘, which was recently published in Journal of Animal Ecology. In his study, he explores the impact of pastoralism on spotted hyena populations in Ngorongoro, discovering that they don’t seem stressed and numbers of recruited cubs didn’t differ between areas … Continue reading Coexistence is possible: spotted hyenas exposed to daytime pastoralism do just fine

Stressful environments put bumblebees at risk

This blog post is provided by Cristina Botías and Dave Goulson and tells the #StoryBehindThePaper for the article “Multiple stressors interact to impair the performance of bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) colonies”. Cristina Botías is a Research Fellow at the Apicultural and Agri-environmental Research Center (CIAPA-IRIAF, Spain), working on a range of applied research related to bee health. Dave Goulson is a Professor of Biology at the University … Continue reading Stressful environments put bumblebees at risk

Open call for papers: Special Feature on understanding climate change response in the age of genomics

Anthropogenic climate change is rapidly transforming environments and poses a major threat to species and ecosystems worldwide. Understanding how animal populations respond to these changing environments is crucial for developing conservation and mitigation strategies as global temperatures continue to rise. It is now becoming increasingly feasible to generate data at genome and population-wide scales for many species, including those at the greatest risk from the … Continue reading Open call for papers: Special Feature on understanding climate change response in the age of genomics

Is beta-diversity the elephant in the room?

Do you understand beta-diversity? If not, you are likely not alone. Here to explain this under-appreciated concept is Dr Ollie Wearn, an AXA Research Fellow at the Institute of Zoology, London. He is interested in a broad-range of topics, including land-use change, habitat fragmentation, biodiversity monitoring and practically anything involving camera-trapping and-or mammals. There’s a problem in land-use change research, and we’re not talking about … Continue reading Is beta-diversity the elephant in the room?

How can you help Arctic skuas?

Continuing from last week’s post describing the challenges faced by Arctic skuas, Dr Allan Perkins (RSPB Centre for Conservation Science) is back with some advice on what you can to to help. Arctic skuas may well be heading towards extinction as a breeding species within the UK. That is the stark warning from our recent study, which found that Arctic skuas have declined by 81% in Scotland. What … Continue reading How can you help Arctic skuas?

Stressed-Out Squirrels

A recently-published paper in the Journal of Animal Ecology has discovered that the grey squirrel (one of the most impacting alien invasive species in Europe) causes an increase in chronic stress in the native red squirrel. Lead author Dr Francesca Santicchia is a research fellow at the University of Insubria in Italy. She had studied the relationships among parasites, physiological stress, and personality in grey squirrel … Continue reading Stressed-Out Squirrels

Building “SealSpotter” and Working with Citizen Scientists

A new citizen-science initiative has just been launched in southern Australia. But don’t worry if you’re not local – volunteers can assist from anywhere in the world thanks to the online platform! Here to tell us more is Dr Rebecca McIntosh (with some help from Ross Holmberg) from Phillip Island Nature Parks. Australian fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus) are near-apex predators, and have been recognised … Continue reading Building “SealSpotter” and Working with Citizen Scientists

Return to the Wild: Conservation hope for the scimitar-horned oryx

In this post for Endangered Species Day Jared Stabach, a research ecologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute highlights the sharp decline in large mammal species across the Sahara and focuses on species that individuals and organizations are working to reintroduce. Deserts cover approximately 17% of the world’s land mass.  While understudied and underappreciated, these systems support a unique and charismatic flora and fauna, with … Continue reading Return to the Wild: Conservation hope for the scimitar-horned oryx

The intersection of wildlife conservation, disease, and human health

Today marks Endangered Species Day, when people around the world are encouraged to discover more about threatened species and their habitats. For conservation efforts to succeed, it is necessary to understand how animals interact with each other, with their environment – and with humans. Lauren White (University of Minnesota) addresses this by studying the idea of One Health – the intersection of human, animal, and … Continue reading The intersection of wildlife conservation, disease, and human health

Countdown to ISEC!

There are only three more days to register for the next International Statistical Ecology Conference (ISEC). Many workshops are now fully-booked, but there is still a significant line-up of invited sessions, general speakers, and social events on offer. And with so many statistical ecologists attending, this conference promises to be well above average! But for those of you facing uncertainty, Dr Rachel McCrea, Chair of the ISEC Scientific … Continue reading Countdown to ISEC!