Friend or foe? How human presence affects mammals at waterholes

Jessy Patterson's first (PhD) dissertation chapter, focussing on providing a better understanding of the effects of human presence on mammal waterhole attendance and activity patterns, has just been published in Journal of Zoology. Read more

Highlight on collared carnivores in Etosha

If you have visited Etosha National Park in the past 2 years, chances are that you saw lions or spotted hyaenas wearing radio collars. If you are a photography enthusiast like me, you also probably complain about how these Read more

Looking beyond the light: how does artificial lighting at waterholes affect mammal behaviour?

Earlier this year, I wrote a blog post about one of my PhD dissertation chapters on carnivore diets. A few weeks ago, we kicked off data collection for another one of my chapters which focuses on determining the effects Read more

Crouching lion & coursing hyaenas: Which one zebras are more afraid of?

Predators and their prey have complex relationships that are influenced by a range of factors. Each predator species has its own preferences for what prey to eat, which can be affected by its size, sociality, habitat, season, and more. Read more

To cross or not to cross? The effects of fences around Etosha on large carnivore movement.

Fencing represents one of the most common linear infrastructures in the world and is used for a variety of reasons, including wildlife management.  In particular, fencing is widely used to mitigate human-wildlife conflicts, reducing the risk of disease transmission Read more