@wildcru.bsky.social
Oxford University's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU) aims to transform wildlife conservation through world-class research, training and implementation.
Emily Madsen shared her PhD research on species specific local ecological knowledge from communities living alongside carnivores in Kenya.
Using interview surveys, Emily aims to understand how well people know different species and what factors influence differences in knowledge.
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Welcome back to WildCRU's candid camera.
Can you name all of the species in this camera trap image? Leave your guesses in the comments.
📸 Thanks to Lion Landscapes.
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Meet Senior Research Fellow Dr Lauren Harrington
With a background in animal ecology and behaviour, Lauren has worked for over 30 years in conservation research and now focuses on incorporating animal welfare science into conservation practice.
👉 www.wildcru.org/members/dr-l...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Echolocation gives animals a unique way to "see" the world through sound - but what shapes where these species live?
Researchers combined modelling and global datasets to discover the climatic influences on land and at sea.
Read more👉 doi.org/10.1111/gcb....
@biology.ox.ac.uk
We welcomed Tsyon Asfaw from Universiteit Antwerpen and University of Leeds to share a recent study of large carnivore conservation in protected areas of Ethiopia’s Omo Valley. Despite identifying rich biodiversity, there is rising conflict when coexisting with communities.
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Meet PhD researcher Guilherme Costa Alvarenga
Gui is combining jaguar population dynamics, habitat use and human-carnivore coexistence to develop the first landscape-scale ecological model of jaguar population connectivity across the species’ range.
wildcru.org/members/guil...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Introducing WildCRU’s candid camera!
Across global research sites, our team sets up camera traps to collect scientific data, but we also capture unexpected wildlife moments!
Do you know this animal? Hint: photo taken in Africa
📸 @jonathan-growcott.bsky.social & Charlotte Searle
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Meet PhD researcher Harrison Carter
His research aims to bridge the nature and finance sectors, allowing private markets to contribute towards our coexistence with nature in meaningful and scalable ways.
👉 wildcru.org/members/harr...
Science communication👉 wildharrison.com
@biology.ox.ac.uk
The financial sector’s influence on biodiversity is under growing scrutiny.
Researchers found that only one major private equity firm has measurable, time-bound commitments to tackle biodiversity loss.
Read the paper, led by Harrison Carter 👉 nature.com/articles/s41...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Photo of a young woman wearing a green t-shirt smiling at the camera. On screen text: PHD RESEARCHER MAIN SPECIES: African wild dog KEY REGIONS: South Africa RESEARCH FOCUS: Potential impacts of climate change on African wild dogs at range and individual scale. Passionate about supporting inclusive species range mapping and conservation action plans. FUN FACT: Before her wild dog days, Jenny spent a year following dwarf mongooses’ daily lives on foot and still misses her mongoose family.
Meet PhD researcher Jenny Linden!
Jenny’s research aims to assess the potential impacts of climate change on the endangered African wild dog using data from remote sensing, accelerometer collars, thermal data loggers, and fieldwork in South Africa.
👉 wildcru.org/members/jenn...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Chung-Hang Hung from National Taiwan University shared their research on little terns.
Despite key challenges including coastal development, extreme weather, and disturbances from humans and animals, nationwide monitoring shows that breeding populations have increased since 2021
@biology.ox.ac.uk
Unsustainable development is fragmenting landscapes and harming biodiversity.
Connecting Landscapes is a tool that helps policy makers assess trade-offs between development and conservation through modelling connectivity, population and genetic exchange.
doi.org/10.1016/j.en...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
From monitoring and threat detection, to vaccination and community initiatives, the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme is helping to protect the Afroalpine ecosystem and endangered wolves that call it home.
Discover 30 years of research 👉 ethiopianwolf.org/resources/EW...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
With Dinkenesh Ethiopia; Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority; Oromia Forest & Wildlife Enterprise; Amhara's Environment, Forest & Wildlife Protection & Development Authority, and dedicated Ethiopian Highland teams, EWCP have worked hard for 30 years to realise their vision.
30.09.2025 12:13 — 👍 3 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
Celebrating 30 years of Ethiopian wolf conservation!
The Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme has a vision to secure Ethiopian wolf habitat and populations, and extend the species' range.
Read more from EWCP's Science Director, Jorgelina Marino 👉 wildcru.org/news/learnin...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
@wwf.de
29.09.2025 15:11 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0Working with experts from diverse fields, Emu, Darragh Hare and Sophia Hibler co-designed a questionnaire to gather public opinions, gaining valuable insights in light of changing EU protection status for wolves (which has relaxed the possibilities for their lethal control).
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Public perceptions of living with large carnivores🐺
Dr. Emu-Felicitas Ostermann-Miyashita shared results from a public perception study on large carnivores (lynx, bears, and wolves) in Germany.
[1/2] @biology.ox.ac.uk @zalf.bsky.social
Meet Diploma student Stephen Ngoma!
From studying farming impacts on waterfowl to witnessing carnivore vulnerability to habitat degradation and human-induced threats, Stephen’s work aims to protect threatened species and the ecosystems they depend on.
wildcru.org/members/step...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
In Chad’s Greater Zakouma Ecosystem, lions move with the seasons, staying near waterholes during the dry season, but roaming far beyond during the wet season.
Study led by Chiara Fraticelli, with WildCRU’s Claudio Sillero-Zubiri & Hans Bauer
👉 link.springer.com/article/10.1...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
The study also assessed the mitigation resource capacity of countries, essential for tailoring conservation strategies in the future.
Read the research led by Samantha Nicholson and co-authored by Hans Bauer and Tsyon Asfaw 👉 sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
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Lions across Africa are under threat from habitat loss, poaching, and wildlife trade.
A continent-wide survey of 132 lion subpopulations was conducted in collaboration with landscape managers and lion researchers to determine perceived threat severity.
[1/2] @biology.ox.ac.uk
Meet Diploma student Emmanuel Kutiote! 🦁
Sparked by a childhood love of South Sudan’s wilderness, Emmanuel now aims to protect his home country’s wildlife and support local communities to conserve natural resources.
Find out more about his work 👉 www.wildcru.org/members/emma...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
How should protected areas be designed to best safeguard wildlife on Borneo?
A study by Ewan Macdonald, David Macdonald & Sam Cushman explored the potential impacts of 28 landscape designs on Sunda clouded leopard population size and genetic diversity.
👉 link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Meet Diploma student Trevor Balone! 🦁
With an interest in blending traditional tracking and modern technology, Trevor enjoys trekking through the bush to monitor wildlife populations and better understand how they interact with local communities.
👉 www.wildcru.org/members/trev...
What are the ecological and socio-economic factors influencing wire snare poaching?
A review of over 300 studies, led by Dylan Feldmeier and coauthored by Amy Dickman, sheds light on local issues that drive the practice and threaten biodiversity.
👉 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Meet Diploma student Matilde (Tilly) Sant’Ana! 🐆
Working on diverse conservation projects across Africa, Tilly has gained experience in species monitoring, and undertaking both ecological research and conservation management.
Discover Tilly's work www.wildcru.org/members/mati...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
From reforestation at Mar Lodge Estate and Scottish Wildcat reintroduction, to species recovery challenges and dolphin spotting, our Diploma students' trip to the Scottish Highlands provided insights into the possibilities and challenges of protecting nature.
👉 bit.ly/3UY73LE
@biology.ox.ac.uk
UPCOMING EVENT: Join us online for our first Ecological Survey Techniques lecture of the year, 'Wildlife, Warriors and Women: Big Cat Conservation in Tanzania and Beyond' with Professor Amy Dickman, Joint CEO of Lion Landscapes.
🔗Find out more: buff.ly/RuUmuJw
#OxfordLifelongLearning #FreeLecture
What shapes scientific bias?
A new study led by Allison Shaw, and co-authored by WildCRU’s @sandralai.bsky.social, investigates how bias is perceived and observed in movement ecology, highlighting disparities in authorship, geography, and representation.
doi.org/10.1098/rspb...
@biology.ox.ac.uk
