The following story was submitted in the Pawsitively Picture Perfect photo contest. The top three finishers received $500 in cash, as well as $2,000 in cash and supplies for their favorite shelter. To read more stories, click here!
You would never know that as a young puppy, Lily Ann had a broken bone that never healed properly, causing one leg to be shorter than the other.
This has not stopped her from enjoying life, though, as Lily has no idea she is different.
Lily is a happy go lucky girl who runs zoomies around Rosie, my mother’s senior rescue Airedale. She enjoys car rides with the windows down, going to the local dog park, and playing with her many Jolly Balls and other toys.
But Lily’s best buddy is a long-haired cat named Paddington. They can often be seen taking naps together in the afternoon sun and chasing each other around the house. They even play hide and seek!Lily knows no stranger and gives juicy snout kisses to everyone she meets. She makes me laugh every day and I can’t imagine my life without my Lily Ann!
I am broadly interested in how human activities influence the ability of wildlife to persist in the modified environments that we create.
Specifically, my research investigates how the configuration and composition of landscapes influence the movement and population dynamics of forest birds. Both natural and human-derived fragmenting of habitat can influence where birds settle, how they access the resources they need to survive and reproduce, and these factors in turn affect population demographics. Most recently, I have been studying the ability of individuals to move through and utilize forested areas which have been modified through timber harvest as they seek out resources for the breeding and postfledging phases. As well I am working in collaboration with Parks Canada scientists to examine in the influence of high density moose populations on forest bird communities in Gros Morne National Park. Many of my projects are conducted in collaboration or consultation with representatives of industry and government agencies, seeking to improve the management and sustainability of natural resource extraction.
