Shannon Barber-Meyer, PhD (Former Employee)

Context: Monitoring low-density, elusive predators such as grey wolves (Canis lupus) has often been undertaken via live-capture and radio-collaring. Recent advances in non-invasive methods suggest live-captures may not be necessary for adequate monitoring. Further, non-invasive methods are considered best practice when possible.Aims: I evaluated whether a suite of non-invasive methods could replac

No abstract available.

No abstract available.

Lateralization, or a left-right bias in behavior (e.g., handedness), was originally thought to exclusively exist in humans, but is now known to be widespread. Lateralization can exist at the individual or group level. In dogs (Canis lupus familiaris), tests of paw preference have produced inconsistent results. Because wolves (C. l.) differ genetically, morphologically, and behaviorally from dogs,

We studied the spontaneous vocal behaviour of captive wolves at the International Wolf Center (IWC) in Minnesota (spring 2019 and winter 2020), and the Centro del Lobo Ibérico Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente (CLIFRF) in Spain (winter 2020). We used AudioMoth recording devices to record wolf howling 24 hr/day. We identified 412 solo howl series and 403 chorus howls and found differences between wolves

During summer 2019, we recorded an apparent vocal interaction, lasting just under 4 min, between a pair of Great Horned Owls (Bubo virginianus) and a gray wolf (Canis lupus) in Yellowstone National Park. To our knowledge, this is the first report of such an acoustic interaction in the scientific literature. The increased use of passive acoustic recorders, which record spontaneous vocalizations emi

The International Wolf Center wolves are famous for providing unique educational opportunities to visitors to Ely and to people around the globe. Less known, are the contributions these wolves make to scientific research. Recently the Center’s Exhibit Pack were subjects of  behavioral and acoustic research.

Ethology is the study of behavior, and an ethogram is a list of behaviors, typically of a single species. For this ethogram we have selected a few representative behaviors that pups will exhibit during various growth phases, and therefore, this ethogram is not exhaustive. You will likely observe behaviors not detailed in this booklet (be sure to keep notes of your observations on the pages in th

We assessed the relative importance of wilderness to gray wolf (Canis lupus) population dynamics over 50 years in a population that 1) was long extant (i.e., not reintroduced or recolonized), 2) was not subject to harvest in our study area until recently, and 3) used both wilderness and adjacent, mainly public, non-wilderness. We analyzed the survival of radiocollared wolves (n = 756 collared-wolf

The presence of many pathogens varies in a predictable manner with latitude, with infections decreasing from the equator towards the poles. We investigated the geographic trends of pathogens infecting a widely distributed carnivore: the gray wolf (Canis lupus). Specifically, we investigated which variables best explain and predict geographic trends in seroprevalence across North American wolf popu

This study reports historic capture-mark-recapture survival and abundance estimates of common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) based on photo-identification surveys of coastal Venezuela (along the Aragua coast between Turiamo Bay and Puerto Colombia). We used the most recent data available: dolphins identified by unique dorsal fin marks during wet and dry season surveys conducted from 2004

Mirror self-recognition (MSR) tests have been conducted with a variety of species with the aim of examining whether subject animals have the capacity for self-awareness. To date, the majority of animals that have convincingly passed are highly social mammals whose wild counterparts live in complex societies, though there is much debate concerning what constitutes passing and what passing means in