Research projects
Current Projects
Using long-term observations to decode male elephant social behavior
Past Projects
Using molecular ecology to reconstruct the diets of Yellowstone National Park’s migratory herbivore community
During graduate school, I was part of a collaborative team including National Park Service researchers and undergraduate students that is harnessing molecular tools to asses seasonal fluctuations in resource use for five of Yellowstone National Park’s iconic large herbivore species including American bison, Rocky Mountain elk, bighorn sheep, mule deer, and American pronghorn. GPS-collared animals are routinely tracked by NPS researchers to understand seasonal migrations in ‘America’s Serengeti,’ and, lucky for us, taking the time to repeatedly collect fresh dung samples for our analysis. After extracting undigested plant DNA from the dung (a messy but ultimately fun job) and applying powerful next-generation sequencing (NGS), we use a process known as DNA metabarcoding that helps us assign sequences to particular species of plants. This enables us to reconstruct animal diets with a greater degree of accuracy than is possible with other dietary reconstruction techniques, opening new windows into our understanding of what these mega-movers are choosing to eat throughout the year and how they interact with each other. As park officials are tasked with managing fluctuating herbivore populations under changing climate conditions, complex interactions between public and private lands, and species-level conservation directives, a high-resolution understanding of these critical ecological interactions can provide insights into how particular management interventions can affect where, when, and how individuals of different species use their food resources.
Low-cost monitoring technologies for assessing livestock movement and foraging ecology in integrated landscapes
In July 2018, I pursued research characterizing the foraging and spatial ecology of a herd of domestic camels at Mpala Research Centre in Laikipia, Kenya in order to provide management-relevant insights. In order to test whether camels indiscriminately foraged in space or selected particular habitat features, I used low-cost GPS-loggers to track their movement patterns. But knowing where animals go is only one part of the intensive management equation. I also designed and deployed eight animal-borne video cameras (Camel Cams!) to collect detailed foraging observations – capturing information on exactly which plants camels were selecting to eat, to interrogate whether camels favor particular types or species of plants relative to others in this landscape.
Ultimately, the results of this work revealed that herders responsible for managing the camels followed distinct sets of daily routes, often concentrating foraging time in wet depressions where grass and browse was most plentiful - perhaps not exceptionally surprising (see video to the left). However, the video data captured by Camel Cam shows just how choosy the camels were when it came to selecting their food. In addition to revealing far more grass foraging than previously appreciated (camels are supposed to primarily browsers), videos like the one featured below show that they’ll often forego spinier species like the thicket-forming Acacia etbaica while searching for the much poorly defended species, Acacia brevispica that forms a key component of local wildlife diets as well.