Current projects

I am working to expand existing frameworks that link animal movement with disease transmission. Space use in general is a key determinant of the possibility of transmission and dispersal of disease within populations, across species and across the landscape. I am using existing data on species of conservation or economic interest like wild pigs, white-tailed deer, and bighorn sheep.

Past projects

Prevalence of hookworms in dogs and felines around protected areas

Viper the scat dog sits by a puma scat sample she located

I studied the possibility for transmission of environmentally transmitted parasites between domestic dogs and wild felines (ocelots, pumas, jaguars) in the Osa Peninsula, an important conservation area in southern Costa Rica. I combined field sampling, visual and molecular parasitology, and mathematical modelling to study this issue.

Abundance of wild felines and comparison of density estimation methods

Camera pick up — Recovering a camera-trap deep in the tropical forest

I am using camera-traps to determine the density of wild feline hosts at the edges of a protected area in the Osa peninsula. This information is crucial to understand the role that these species play in transmitting the parasite to other individuals within and across species.

There are different frameworks for density estimation in wildlife, and the main differences lie in the possibility of identifying individuals. Since I am studying wild cats with recognizable spots, this presents the opportunity to estimate density using different methods, and inform about their performance.