Research Themes

Ecology & Evolution

Conservation

 Animals face many challenges in response to human activity and human-induced climate change.  

Habitat change: Animals’ habitats are changing as a result of climate change and human activities with downstream consequences to fitness and population viability. We examine a variety of behavioural responses such as habitat selection, dispersal, acoustic signal modification and social system changes.

Sustainable living and green technology: As humans respond to the climate crisis with sustainable energy technologies (e.g. electric cars, wind farms), the need to rapidly assess the response of species is essential to acting quickly to mitigate negative effects of new technology use, which includes new technology and support structure, as well as changes in human activity.

Climate Change

There ecology of animals is strongly impacted by climate change. Animals may respond to these changes with alterations in their physical, physiological and behavioural traits. However, behaviors can provide some of the first clues that animals are being affected by their changing environment. Furthermore, in social species, interactions between ecological factors and social behaviors may influence individual and population responses. Thus, sociality may either mediate or exacerbate the negative effects of environmental change and influence a species’ resilience to rapid environmental change.  

Our lab is examining how animals are responding to rapid environmental changes, and whether observed changes are adaptive. We focus particularly on behaviours, but because an individual’s behaviour is tied to internal states and influenced by their physical traits, we also examine behaviourally-associated morphological and physiological response.

Warmer winters at our study site has lead to more open water areas during winter. © Miya Warrington