We hope that most people are aware that penguins exist (we hope!), but are you aware of each penguin species’ IUCN Red List status? Established in 1964, the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species has evolved to become the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global extinction risk status of animal, fungus and plant […]
Gray whales in the eastern North Pacific have been shrinking in number for the past six years — and the decline seems to be getting worse. This is surprising because gray whales had made a big comeback after being hunted almost to extinction. But now, warming oceans are changing their Arctic feeding areas. Less sea ice and shifts in ocean
Written by Dr. Kasim Rafiq and graduate student Marie-Pier Poulin of the Abrahms LabAll research and photographs are done in compliance with IACUC-approved protocols, and have been permitted through the appropriate permits. Over the past few months, we have been busy collecting data on African carnivores at Dog Camp, the Botswana-based bush camp of our long-term collaborators Wild Entrust’s Botswana
Full title: Comparative life-cycle analyses reveal interacting climatic and biotic drivers of population responses to climate change Dr. Briana Abrahms and Dr. Dee Boersma collaborated on this study, published in PNAS Nexus in September. The study looked at long-term data from 41 plant and animal species to understand how climate change and other factors together affect survival and reproduction. The
Post written by Marie-Pier Poulin Graduate student Marie-Pier Poulin scans for animal tracking collars in the Okavango Delta. Photo credit: Leigh West In mid-June, PhD candidate Leigh West, postdoctoral researcher Dr. Kasim Rafiq, and graduate student Marie-Pier Poulin arrived at Dog Camp, the Botswana-based bush camp of our long-term collaborators Wild Entrust’s Botswana Predator Conservation. Over the past month, we
World Ocean Day 2025 is year two in a multi-year action theme: Catalyzing Action for Our Ocean & Climate. Many students from Dee’s Video Storytelling class have been inspired by the ocean and featured them in their videos. Favorite ocean-themed videos 🌊Our global mean sea level has been rising as far back as the 19th century. Sea level rise impacts
Congratulations to Leigh West, Dr. Abrahms’s graduate student, who just recently published her first article as lead author. Her research article, “Droughts reshape apex predator space use and intraguild overlap,” was published in the Journal of Animal Ecology on October 4th, and also serves as the second chapter of her dissertation. This is an exciting milestone for Leigh as she
From the Abstract:Droughts are increasing in frequency and severity globally due to climate change, leading to changes in resource availability that may have cascading effects on animal ecology. Although several studies have demonstrated the ecological impacts of drought, the behavioural responses of individuals that scale up to these broader-scale effects are not well known, particularly among animals in top trophic
Authors: Gemma Carroll, Briana Abrahms, Stephanie Brodie & Megan A. Cimino Journal: Nature Ecology and Evolution DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-024-02454-0 “Climate change is driving a rapid redistribution of life on Earth. Variability in the rates, magnitudes and directions of species’ shifts can alter spatial overlap between predators and prey, with the potential to decouple trophic interactions. Although phenological mismatches between predator requirements
Authors: Elliott L. Hazen, Matthew S. Savoca T.J. Clark-Wolf, Max Czapanskiy, Peter M. Rabinowitz, and Briana AbrahmsJournal: Annual Review of Environment and ResourcesDOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-111522-102317 “Sentinel species, from birds to invertebrates, have been used to provide insights into ecosystem function, as leading indicators of risk to human health and as harbingers of future change, with implications for ecosystem structure and function.
Don’t know how to celebrate World Ocean Day this year? We have a few ideas: This year’s World Ocean Day theme this year is “One Ocean. One Climate. One Future.” One of Dee’s BIOL 305 students, Giovanna Esquivel, created this powerful PSA reminding us how our actions impact our world. Whether you’ve never been to the ocean or you go
Authors: Eric L. Wagner, Scott F. Pearson, Thomas P. Good, Peter J. Hodum, Eric R. Buhle, Michael B. SchrimpfJournal: Marine Ecology Progress SeriesDOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps14222 A severe marine heat wave (MHW) persisted in the California Current ecosystem from 2014 through 2016… Photo credit: Scott Pearson of WDFW
Authors: Briana Abrahms, Neil H. Carter, T. J. Clark-Wolf, Kaitlyn M. Gaynor, Erik Johansson, Alex McInturff, Anna C. Nisi, Kasim Rafiq & Leigh WestJournal: Nature Climate ChangeDOI: 10.1038/s41558-023-01608-5Coverage: KUOW, NPR, The Guardian, Newsweek, Scientific American Climate change and human–wildlife conflict are both pressing challenges for biodiversity conservation and human well-being in the Anthropocene…
Authors: T. J. Clark-Wolf, P. Dee Boersma, Ginger A. Rebstock, and Briana AbrahmsJournal: Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesDOI: 10.1073/pnas.2209821120 Long-term climate changes and extreme climate events differentially impact animal populations, yet whether and why these processes may act synergistically or antagonistically remains unknown…
Authors: Briana Abrahms, Kasim Rafiq, Neil R. Jordan, and J. W. McNuttJournal: Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesDOI:10.1073/pnas.2121667119 Understanding the degree to which animals are shifting their phenology to track optimal conditions as the climate changes is essential to predicting ecological responses to global change…
