GELIFES Seminars - Tim Hofmeester
Tim Hofmeester (SLU Umea)
Adaptations of Scandinavian wildlife communities to the Anthropocene
The world is rapidly changing and wildlife have to adapt to these changes to survive. With an increasing human population, more and more wildlife have to live in landscapes that are dominated by human activities. The survival of wildlife in these human-dominated landscapes is dependent on the tolerance of people to wildlife. We will thus need to strive for human-wildlife coexistence if we want to preserve the world’s wildlife. At the same time, climate change might limit the adaptive capacity of wildlife to survive in novel landscapes. As different species have different tolerances to both climate and habitat, wildlife communities might change in their composition. My research focusses on the monitoring of wildlife communities and studying how land-use and climate affect these communities, with a specific focus on Scandinavian species. I use a combination of conservation technology – camera traps, acoustic sensors and AI – and citizen science to strive for a collaborative monitoring of wildlife communities. I will show several examples of how the presence of animals in different parts of the landscape is influenced by both land-use and climate, and how Scandinavian wildlife species differ in their occurrence in human-dominated landscapes. The attitudes of the public towards wildlife and wildlife management are changing. I will conclude with some examples of how technology might play a role in shaping these attitudes.
Biosketch:
Tim Hofmeester is an associate professor and researcher at the Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Environmental Studies of the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Umeå, Sweden. His research focusses on human-wildlife coexistence, (digital) wildlife monitoring, and applied statistics. He also has a soft spot for small carnivores. Tim strives for an evidence-based and inclusive wildlife management.