As the Wildlife Disease Ecologist at Lincoln Park Zoo’s Urban Wildlife Institute, my research uses a One Health approach to understand how living in cities can affect the health and behavior of wildlife and human-wildlife interactions relevant to public health.

While many species are excluded from urban areas, several persist and even thrive. Some species appear to benefit from urban resources but may have higher rates of infection or poor nutrition. Further, many of these species have negative interactions with people and traditional approaches, such as removal or relocation of wildlife, are becoming unfeasible for political, ethical, and ecological reasons. My goal is to improve wildlife conservation and management by better understanding how wildlife live among people – and how we can coexist.