SEFS-led study shows that humans, not apex predators, are the largest cause of death for coyotes and bobcats

Led by SEFS Associate Professor Laura Prugh, new research published the journal Science shows that in Washington state, the presence of apex predators like wolves and cougars can push coyotes and bobcats into areas with higher levels of human activity. The team, made up of researchers at the University of Washington, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Spokane Tribe of Indians, found that these smaller predators were more than three times as likely to die from human activity, like hunting or trapping, than by the apex predators they were moving away from.

The study sheds light on the impact of human-wildlife interactions and how interactions among species are changing. Former UW postdoctoral researcher Calum Cunningham, SEFS Research Analyst Lead Taylor Ganz, and SEFS Professor Aaron Wirsing are co-authors on the publication.


SEFS Assistant Professor Alex McInturff co-authors research on human-wildlife conflicts

SEFS Assistant Professor Alex McInturff is a co-author on a new study in Nature Climate Change, highlighting increasing human-wildlife conflict in a warming world. Led by the University of Washington’s Center for Ecosystem Sentinels, the paper found that climate shifts can drive conflicts by altering animal habitats across terrestrial, marine, and freshwater ecosystems, and involved mammals, reptiles, birds, fish and even invertebrates.

The research was highlight by UW News and covered in The Guardian, NPR, NBC News and Inverse.