Well, this is my favorite post ever now.

Rodent indent not self-evident: a case of mistaken identity of the ‘Chicago Rat Hole’ | Biology Letters The ‘Chicago Rat Hole’ is a remarkable full body impression ostensibly created by a brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) crossing fresh concrete in Chicago’s Roscoe Village that became a viral sensation. Whi...

This crucially important and obviously visionary work makes me feel vindicated for having said the same thing last year, albeit with much less evidence, while being mercilessly mocked by the city and its residents. royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Great story, and thanks for the shoutout for the Urban Wildlife Information Network!

Loved working on this paper!

Health as an outcome and driver of human–wildlife interactions Abstract. Human–wildlife interactions (HWIs) influence the health of humans and wildlife but a unifying framework is needed to understand the causes of HWI

Very excited about this recent publication, led by my amazing co-worker @mhmurray.bsky.social ! academic.oup.com/bioscience/a...

Great study! Oh I really miss studying prairie dogs. So much to learn!

Having a great time at #IUWC2025. Saw some amazing talks, and I got maybe the best compliment on my research I've ever received. I'm way too embarrassed to tell you what it was. Tomorrow I'll be co-leading an all-day symposium on UWIN! Can hardly wait!

Local and long-distance colonization influence the distribution of a species in a fragmented landscape - Stacks Journal Peer-reviewed research - Local and long-distance colonization influence the distribution of a species in a fragmented landscape

New publication out this week in @stacksjournal.bsky.social where we looked at the relative roles local and long-distance colonization play on the distribution of striped skunks throughout the Chicago Metropolitan area! 🧪

www.stacksjournal.org/article/kase...

This is our first post on @bsky.app and we want to share that 🦊 We’ve joined the UWIN network! 🌎Happy that Kim Rivera and Mason Fidino are in Bariloche with us leading a workshop on camera trapping design and using GitHub 📷💻We’re excited to apply this knowledge to study urban wildlife Argentina! 🏙️🐾

Climate change partly to blame for growth in NYC's rat population, study says As CBS News New York's Vanessa Murdock reports, the Big Apple isn't the only city struggling with this problem.

Want to increase your scientific impact? Maybe try working with absolute rockstars? It works for me. @mhmurray.bsky.social
www.cbsnews.com/newyork/vide...

Coyote Captured Looking for Love in Chicago Aldi’s Refrigerator Aisle On Monday morning, Chicago Animal Care and Control responded to a report of a coyote at the Humboldt Park Aldi store.

Yesterday a coyote went into a grocery store in Chicago.

news.wttw.com/2025/01/13/c...

Illinois Officials Have Issued a Warning About Bird Flu. Here’s What to Know While the flu poses minimal immediate risk to humans, experts warn that the virus’ rapid spread among birds and mammals could increase the likelihood of mutations, potentially creating a strain more t...

Gave an interview about bird flu in Illinois--probably a good idea to keep your cats inside (actually that's always a good idea) and take down your bird feeders if you're near outbreaks. news.wttw.com/2024/12/30/i...

Always this.

Please do! I want to be inclusive. Right now I know it's quite over-representative of North Americans / people I know personally. 😀

I'll add you and anyone else you like.

I made one a bit ago! go.bsky.app/VFEo51C

Hi I made a starter pack for scientists and conservationists based at zoos! Please share and let me know if you want in.

go.bsky.app/VFEo51C

Don't forget zoos do conservation in the wild too!

Ooooh want to create a new UWIN partnership there?

To be clear, others spotted them before we did! This is just the first time they've popped up on our cameras.

Otters Spotted on Zoo Wildlife Cameras for the First Time in Chicagoland | Lincoln Park Zoo The zoo's Urban Wildlife Institute recently captured North American otter images on its wildlife cameras for the first time in 14 years of biodiversity monitoring. Otters are a keystone species whose ...

Well it only took 14 years or so, but our team has finally detected river otters in the Chicago suburbs. A testament to the clean-up of Chicago's waterways, and to our stubborn determination to keep putting camera traps out forever. Hoping for bobcats next! www.lpzoo.org/otters-spott...

I made a starter pack for researchers with UWIN--the Urban Wildlife Information Network (www.urbanwildlifeinfo.org). Let me know if you want in!

go.bsky.app/Eei6Tbs

We are excited too!

We have a starter pack for scientists using camera traps! 📸 If you work with camera trap data in any way, either collecting data, running ecological models, training CV/ML models, let me know I’ll add you to this list 🎉 go.bsky.app/CbJkbVw

Gentrification drives patterns of alpha and beta diversity in cities | PNAS While there is increasing recognition that social processes in cities like gentrification have ecological consequences, we lack nuanced understandi...

Here's a recent cool paper from our team led by @masonfidino.bsky.social if you'd like a sense of the kind of work we do! www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...

Hi I'm new here! My team and I study animals in the Chicago area using passive approaches like camera traps and acoustic monitors. We also coordinate a global network of ecologists doing the same-- www.urbanwildlifeinfo.org. I'll probably also talk about working for a small free zoo.

go.bsky.app/29rs45P We have an Urban Ecology Starter Pack! 🌆

Can add me if you like!