RESEARCH IN THE NORTHERN BOREAL FOREST
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My PhD work focused on the non-consumptive effects of predation in snowshoe hare populations. In the boreal forest, snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) populations undergo a regular cyclic fluctuation with 8-10 years between peak densities. Predator populations follow this fluctuation with a lag of 1-2 years and, during hare population decline, predators (mainly lynx (Lynx canadensis) and coyote (Canis latrans)) can cause up to 100% of hare deaths. Only recent work suggests that these declines also involve non-consumptive predation effects, with hares during decline years experiencing chronic stress potentially leading to increased vigilance, altered foraging, and lower productivity. However, to date, perceived predation risk in snowshoe hares has only been assessed in penned hares leaving fundamental gaps in our understanding of how free-ranging hares respond to perceived risk, whether risk responses transcend multiple (e.g. behavioral, physiological, etc.) axes and if these responses translate demographically. My work focused on measuring behavioral, physiological and energetic responses of free-ranging hares in areas of increased predation risk (compared to controls) and quantifying the extent that risk can cause cascading multi-level responses in adults.
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THE LINK FROM RISK-RESPONSES TO DEMOGRAPHY
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While ecologists have, in recent decades, come to understand that indirect interactions between predator and prey can be just as, if not more important, than the effects of direct predation alone, we still have limited understanding of how these effects manifest themselves within prey populations. While we have documented numerous physiological, energetic, and behavioral responses to predator presence, we have yet to gain a mechanistic understanding on how those responses correspond to changes in demography. These two collaborators are trying to help bring us such an understanding:
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Jacob Seguin - Jacob's MSc work focused on the maternal implications of risk and the corresponding effects on juveniles. By tracking free-ranging dams and their young from areas of varying predation risk he documented, not only the level of maternal care under different levels of risk, but also juvenile survival, dispersal, and behavior. You can read all about this in the Canadian Journal of Zoology!
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Dr. Sophia Lavergne - Sophia's PhD work also focused on the maternal implications of risk and how this risk affects juvenile epigenetic programming. By examining stress receptor expression from juveniles taken from free-ranging dams from areas of varying predation risk, she has been able to document the extent to which risk can induce epigenetic change; a possible mechanism by which stress impacts future generations.
THE GOLDEN AGE OF TRACKING TECHNOLOGY
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Technology is advancing with each decade and, for ecologists, we have now entered what some call "the golden age". New smaller, lighter and more precise GPS equipment has allowed us to capture the movements of smaller mammals, a feat which was almost impossible before given dense forest cover. Biologging has also come into the spotlight, with a variety of technology, including accelerometers, temperature loggers, and heart rate monitors, now available in smaller, more compact forms which have allowed us to glimpse into the lives of animals on a minute-by minute basis. In collaboration with other researchers, we have been able to use this technology to gain fine-scale insights within our study system:
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Dr. Emily Studd - Emily's PhD work took advantage of new biologging technology to help us gain insight into the lives of predator and prey. While she is fundamentally interested in applying this technology to answer pressing ecological questions, many of the researchers from the Kluane Research Group have to thank her for her outstanding ability to transform accelerometer data into something meaningful for the animals in which we study.
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Dr. Guillaume Bastille-Rousseau (Southern Illinois University - Assistant Professor - R coding genius) - A former member of Trent University, Guillaume continues to be a valued resource for many researchers who have come to know him. His knowledge on spatial analysis is among the best that I have seen, and he was able to launch me into the field of spatial ecology and animal movement. I hope to continue working with Guillaume in the future.