Coexisting with wildlife is an oft-stated goal but assumptions about what constitutes coexistence can lead to goal misalignment and undermine policy and program efficacy. Our research group seeks to transform coexistence from an ambiguous aim of advocacy groups, to an important object of study, and create fruitful new lines of inquiry that broaden our understanding and appreciation of wildlife in the Anthropocene. We explore mechanisms underlying coexistence and collect empirical evidence of the strategies most likely to produce coexistence outcomes. We also develop predictive tools that forecast human-wildlife interactions and opportunities for coexistence under different scenarios.

Representative Publications:

• Building a resilient coexistence with wildlife in a more crowded world
• Paths of coexistence: Spatially predicting acceptance of grizzly bears along key movement corridors.
• A call for a national collaborative predator coexistence programme.
• Human adaptation strategies are key to cobenefits in human-wildlife systems.
• Governing trade-offs in ecosystem services and disservices to achieve human-wildlife coexistence.
• Conservation professionals agree on challenges to coexisting with large carnivores but not on solutions.
• Co-adaptation is key to coexisting with large carnivores.

Coyote in snow. Photo credit: Abby Sage

Cowboys crossing in Montana. Photo credit: Abby Sage