Wildlife Welfare, Health and Conservation
Image credit: Miguel Carrasco
Faced with global grand challenges of biodiversity loss, climate change and disease risks, it’s imperative we adopt evidence-based approaches to protect ecosystems whilst also optimising the health and welfare of individual wild animals.
Our research focuses on free-living and captive wild animals in the UK and worldwide. We use eco-epidemiological approaches to study wildlife health including research on antimicrobial resistance, toxicology of birds of prey, and infectious diseases such as avian influenza. We also use a range of methods to elucidate the welfare implications of human-wildlife interactions including during tourism, reintroductions, and in captivity. Examples of ongoing projects include assessing the risks of veterinary pharmaceuticals to birds of prey; examining the value of wildlife-friendly gardening; investigating links between species ecology and welfare in zoos; and exploring how to optimise the use of conservation dogs to protect African carnivores.
Projects and Collaborations
For current projects and collaborations, visit the pages of the PIs working on this research theme
Bueno-Padilla
Rooney
Mellor
Colston