Bio

I investigate predator-prey dynamics with a special focus on direct and indirect predator effects on prey behavior, prey demography, and ecosystem functioning. Specifically, I explore the anti-predator decision-making of large herbivores in response to predators such as lions, hyenas, cheetahs, wild dogs, leopards, and wolves and track the cascading effects of predators on soil and plant communities. For my work, I design cutting-edge technological tools, including machine learning and artificial intelligence, to tackle complex conservation challenges. My work heavily involves citizen science, public outreach, and capacity building.

I have a PhD in Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution from the University of Minnesota, where I worked with the Serengeti Lion Project (www.lionresearch.org) and the Snapshot Serengeti Project (www.snapshotserengeti.org) to study how lions structure African wildlife communities. I completed a postdoctoral fellowship at University of Minnesota examining the ecosystem-wide impacts of recolonizing wolf populations in North America and am currently a National Science Foundation postdoc at Princeton University investigating how ecological communities respond to predator reintroductions.

I have published over three dozen scientific papers and written chapters in books including “Social Strategies of Carnivorous Mammalian Predators” (2022) and “The Biology and Conservation of the African Lion” (2023). I have appeared on BBC’s “Waterhole: Africa’s Animal Oasis”, PBS’s “Life at the Waterhole”, National Geographic’s “Weird & Wild”, Mongabay’s “Candid Animal Cam”, and many other documentary, print, radio, and podcast venues.

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