Team Leader: Dr. Elizabeth Gow, PhD
I currently hold an Adjunct Professorship, in the Department of Integrative Biology, at the University of Guelph.
I have recently started a position with Birds Canada as a Movement Ecologist. I will be synthesizing animal movement data from the Motus Wildlife Telemetry System and other technologies to help identify conservation priorities.
Employment and Education
Current: Movement Ecologist, Birds Canada
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Adjunct Professor, Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Past: Liber Ero Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Past: NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Past: Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Conservation and Forest Sciences, University of British Columbia
PhD University of Saskatchewan
MSc York University
BSc York University
Contact: egow (at) uoguelph.ca
Google Scholar Link
I have recently started a position with Birds Canada as a Movement Ecologist. I will be synthesizing animal movement data from the Motus Wildlife Telemetry System and other technologies to help identify conservation priorities.
Employment and Education
Current: Movement Ecologist, Birds Canada
&
Adjunct Professor, Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Past: Liber Ero Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Past: NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Past: Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Conservation and Forest Sciences, University of British Columbia
PhD University of Saskatchewan
MSc York University
BSc York University
Contact: egow (at) uoguelph.ca
Google Scholar Link
Current Graduate Students
Marlee Pyott - Master's student
I completed my B.Sc. in Zoology at Laurentian University in Sudbury Ontario. Following this, I was accepted to the University of Guelph where I am now studying domestic cats as a part of my M.Sc. research in the Integrative Biology (One Health) program. Domestic cats are one of the most popular pets worldwide, providing companionship for millions of people. However, when it comes to cat care there is a flashpoint of controversy surrounding whether owners should provide their pet with unsupervised outdoor access. While an outdoor lifestyle can be beneficial because cats can get more exercise and are able to engage in a more natural behaviour, there are concerns for their predation on native wildlife, welfare, and pathogen transmission among other cats, people and wildlife. To determine the costs and benefits of providing unsupervised outdoor access will involve understanding the health consequences to both cats and their owners and the impacts cats can have on native biodiversity. For this research, I propose to obtain this critical information by using newly developed animal-borne cameras called Catcams. These lightweight cameras attach to the cat’s collar and can give insight into how cats interact with their environment, by providing a first-person perspective of their world. The results will provide the first estimates of outdoor cat welfare risks and predation rates in Canada, throughout the annual cycle and during both the day and night.
Past Students/Affiliates
Hannah Clyde - MSc 2020
Estimating habitat characteristics associated with the abundance of free-roaming domestic cats across the annual cycle
Estimating habitat characteristics associated with the abundance of free-roaming domestic cats across the annual cycle
I completed my B.Sc. in Honours Biology at McMaster University and my M.Sc. at the University of Guelph. For my M.Sc., I examined how free-roaming cat abundances change seasonally. Free-roaming cats include any domestic cat with unsupervised access to the outdoors (including owned and unowned cats). These animals can have negative impacts on the ecosystem. However, determining the impacts of free-roaming cats on wildlife requires understanding where cats are found and how cat abundances vary across the year. We used trail cameras in rural and urban areas in southern Ontario, Canada, to accomplish this goal. We found that cats were more likely to be found near buildings and away from agriculture in the spring/summer. In the fall/winter, cats were found near major roads and away from coyotes. Our research shows that the development of management strategies aimed at reducing free-roaming cats in temperate areas should incorporate seasonal and landscape patterns.
