{"id":51,"date":"2017-05-08T06:36:44","date_gmt":"2017-05-08T06:36:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dereklee.peachpuff-wolverine-566518.hostingersite.com\/?p=51"},"modified":"2017-05-08T06:45:58","modified_gmt":"2017-05-08T06:45:58","slug":"new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/","title":{"rendered":"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>How do you reverse a population decline and save an endangered species? This is the central question in conservation biology and it is the core of my scientific work. A population of animals like giraffes is almost always made up of smaller groups of animals that we call subpopulations. The animals in the subpopulations are born and die at slightly different rates, and the movements of animals among the subpopulations connect them all into a metapopulation. I collect data and analyse those data with mathematics to understand these processes and figure out what exactly is causing the population to go extinct, so we can fix that problem and save the species.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.wildnatureinstitute.org\/uploads\/5\/5\/7\/7\/5577192\/lee___bolger_2017_movements___metapopulation.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">In my most recent study<\/a>, I looked at a giraffe population in the Tarangire Ecosystem in Tanzania to figure out exactly why there were fewer giraffes there now than in the past, and what people can do about it. First off, I had to see whether there were movements connecting all the subpopulations. I did that and discovered that even though the area has two big roads crossing it and there are farms and lakes that could be blocking movements, all five subpopulations are still connected by some movements of giraffes. That was great news because once a subpopulation is isolated and alone, it is much more likely it will go extinct. In fact, without movements linking the subpopulations in Tarangire, most of the landscape would not have any giraffes living there, and the overall population would be smaller. So, learning that there are still movements linking all the subpopulations into a metapopulation was encouraging that I could probably determine what needs to be done to save the Tarangire giraffes.<\/p>\n<p>Next, I analysed the data to learn what the exact birth and death rates are in each subpopulation, and exactly how much movement connects each pair of subpopulations. Once I had all those pieces of information, I could do another mathematical analysis to see which subpopulations were sources, and which were sinks. Sources are areas that are better for giraffes and are causing the metapopulation to increase versus sinks which are areas not so good and causing the metapopulation to decrease.<\/p>\n<p>I found that areas with fewer peoples\u2019 settlements and more vigorous anti-poaching activities, where rangers patrolled more often looking for people trying to kill giraffes for meat, were sources, and places with more houses and fewer ranger patrols were sinks. One area where lots of people come every day to graze their cattle and goats was a source, showing that even large numbers of people and livestock are not bad for giraffes, so long as people don\u2019t live there permanently and some anti-poaching patrols keep out people who kill giraffes.<\/p>\n<p>My results highlight the importance of identifying source\u2013sink dynamics among subpopulations for effective giraffe conservation and also emphasizes how protected areas play an important role in sustaining metapopulations. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wildnatureinstitute.org\/uploads\/5\/5\/7\/7\/5577192\/lee___bolger_2017_movements___metapopulation.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">You can download a copy of the paper here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How do you reverse a population decline and save an endangered species? This is the central question in conservation biology and it is the core of my scientific work. A population of animals like giraffes is almost always made up of smaller groups of animals that we call subpopulations. The animals in the subpopulations are &#8230; <a title=\"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":284,"featured_media":52,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[22,2,21,3],"tags":[5,8,6,7,4,23],"class_list":["post-51","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-animal","category-ecology","category-giraffe","category-wildlife-conservation","tag-animals","tag-derek-lee","tag-giraffe","tag-wild-nature-institute","tag-wildlife","tag-wildlife-conservation"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation - Derek Lee<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"How do you reverse a population decline and save an endangered species? This is the central question in conservation biology and it is the core of my scientific work. A population of animals like giraffes is almost always made up of smaller groups of animals that we call subpopulations. The animals in the subpopulations are ... Read more\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Derek Lee\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-05-08T06:36:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-05-08T06:45:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"4000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2666\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Derek Lee\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Derek Lee\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Derek Lee\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/41b42fba55c50c75d88b1a44c47d067c\"},\"headline\":\"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-05-08T06:36:44+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-05-08T06:45:58+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":497,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/05\\\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"animals\",\"derek lee\",\"giraffe\",\"wild nature institute\",\"wildlife\",\"wildlife conservation\"],\"articleSection\":[\"animal\",\"ecology\",\"giraffe\",\"wildlife conservation\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#respond\"]}],\"copyrightYear\":\"2017\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/\",\"name\":\"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation - Derek Lee\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/05\\\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-05-08T06:36:44+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-05-08T06:45:58+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/05\\\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/05\\\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1\",\"width\":4000,\"height\":2666,\"caption\":\"A group of Masai Giraffes in the Tarangire Ecosystem. Wild Nature Institute\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/51\\\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/\",\"name\":\"Derek Lee\",\"description\":\"Wild Nature Institute\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Derek Lee\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/cropped-WNI-Three-Line-Logo.jpg?fit=2303%2C1149&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/cropped-WNI-Three-Line-Logo.jpg?fit=2303%2C1149&ssl=1\",\"width\":2303,\"height\":1149,\"caption\":\"Derek Lee\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/41b42fba55c50c75d88b1a44c47d067c\",\"name\":\"Derek Lee\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/795f1f3e792a49d904ae6ad8e9f57bb1db46f9b16a8a56beb88756e38c9650ba?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/795f1f3e792a49d904ae6ad8e9f57bb1db46f9b16a8a56beb88756e38c9650ba?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/795f1f3e792a49d904ae6ad8e9f57bb1db46f9b16a8a56beb88756e38c9650ba?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Derek Lee\"},\"description\":\"Derek Lee\ufeff, PhD, is a quantitative wildlife biologist with expertise in conservation demography and population ecology. Current research investigates Masai Giraffe and other large mammal populations within a fragmented landscape in Tanzania. This work examines how births, deaths, and movements of ungulates are impacted by increasingly fragmented wildlife habitat, and what conservation actions are most effective. He spent 10 years researching the impacts of climate and ocean conditions on survival, reproduction, and population growth rates of marine predators such as northern elephant seals, Common Murres, and Cassin's Auklets at the South Farallon Islands, California. His work was included in a conservation and management plan for seabirds in the California Current. He also studied migration of Black Brant in Humboldt Bay as well as fire ecology of small mammals in California's oak woodlands and California Spotted Owls in the Sierra Nevada.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/www.wildnatureinstitute.org\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/dereklee\\\/author\\\/dereklee\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation - Derek Lee","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation","og_description":"How do you reverse a population decline and save an endangered species? This is the central question in conservation biology and it is the core of my scientific work. A population of animals like giraffes is almost always made up of smaller groups of animals that we call subpopulations. The animals in the subpopulations are ... Read more","og_url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/","og_site_name":"Derek Lee","article_published_time":"2017-05-08T06:36:44+00:00","article_modified_time":"2017-05-08T06:45:58+00:00","og_image":[{"width":4000,"height":2666,"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Derek Lee","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Derek Lee","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/"},"author":{"name":"Derek Lee","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#\/schema\/person\/41b42fba55c50c75d88b1a44c47d067c"},"headline":"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation","datePublished":"2017-05-08T06:36:44+00:00","dateModified":"2017-05-08T06:45:58+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/"},"wordCount":497,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1","keywords":["animals","derek lee","giraffe","wild nature institute","wildlife","wildlife conservation"],"articleSection":["animal","ecology","giraffe","wildlife conservation"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#respond"]}],"copyrightYear":"2017","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/","name":"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation - Derek Lee","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1","datePublished":"2017-05-08T06:36:44+00:00","dateModified":"2017-05-08T06:45:58+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1","width":4000,"height":2666,"caption":"A group of Masai Giraffes in the Tarangire Ecosystem. Wild Nature Institute"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/51\/new-study-will-help-giraffe-conservation\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"New Study Will Help Giraffe Conservation"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#website","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/","name":"Derek Lee","description":"Wild Nature Institute","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#organization","name":"Derek Lee","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/04\/cropped-WNI-Three-Line-Logo.jpg?fit=2303%2C1149&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/04\/cropped-WNI-Three-Line-Logo.jpg?fit=2303%2C1149&ssl=1","width":2303,"height":1149,"caption":"Derek Lee"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/#\/schema\/person\/41b42fba55c50c75d88b1a44c47d067c","name":"Derek Lee","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/795f1f3e792a49d904ae6ad8e9f57bb1db46f9b16a8a56beb88756e38c9650ba?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/795f1f3e792a49d904ae6ad8e9f57bb1db46f9b16a8a56beb88756e38c9650ba?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/795f1f3e792a49d904ae6ad8e9f57bb1db46f9b16a8a56beb88756e38c9650ba?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Derek Lee"},"description":"Derek Lee\ufeff, PhD, is a quantitative wildlife biologist with expertise in conservation demography and population ecology. Current research investigates Masai Giraffe and other large mammal populations within a fragmented landscape in Tanzania. This work examines how births, deaths, and movements of ungulates are impacted by increasingly fragmented wildlife habitat, and what conservation actions are most effective. He spent 10 years researching the impacts of climate and ocean conditions on survival, reproduction, and population growth rates of marine predators such as northern elephant seals, Common Murres, and Cassin's Auklets at the South Farallon Islands, California. His work was included in a conservation and management plan for seabirds in the California Current. He also studied migration of Black Brant in Humboldt Bay as well as fire ecology of small mammals in California's oak woodlands and California Spotted Owls in the Sierra Nevada.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.wildnatureinstitute.org"],"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/author\/dereklee\/"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/MRgangFunky.jpg?fit=4000%2C2666&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pgtNOJ-P","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":54,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/54\/its-been-a-fantastic-18-months-for-giraffe-science\/","url_meta":{"origin":51,"position":0},"title":"It&#8217;s Been A Fantastic 18 Months For Giraffe Science","author":"Derek Lee","date":"May 19, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"We\u2019ve had a fantastic 18 months of giraffe science publishing at the Wild Nature Institute, with 10 papers out in peer-reviewed scientific journals. These papers are all the product of our Masai Giraffe Conservation Demography Project, which is the largest individual-based study of giraffes in the world. We are grateful\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;animal&quot;","block_context":{"text":"animal","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/category\/animal\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Journal of Mammalogy cover image of Masai giraffe.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/Lee-2016-JoM-cover-pic.png?fit=612%2C792&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/Lee-2016-JoM-cover-pic.png?fit=612%2C792&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/05\/Lee-2016-JoM-cover-pic.png?fit=612%2C792&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":322,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/322\/giraffe-girl-gangs-are-important-to-giraffe-populations\/","url_meta":{"origin":51,"position":1},"title":"Giraffe Girl Gangs are Important to Giraffe Populations","author":"Derek Lee","date":"April 8, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Female Masai giraffes live in distinct social communities of up to 90 other friends, and although areas used by these \u2018girl gangs\u2019 often overlap, they have very different rates of reproduction and calf survival. This means the girl gang social units may be important to giraffe evolution. These findings were\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;animal&quot;","block_context":{"text":"animal","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/category\/animal\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/04\/DryGiraffes.jpg?fit=908%2C956&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/04\/DryGiraffes.jpg?fit=908%2C956&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/04\/DryGiraffes.jpg?fit=908%2C956&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/04\/DryGiraffes.jpg?fit=908%2C956&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":337,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/337\/the-best-way-to-save-giraffes-is-to-support-wildlife-law-enforcement-and-end-poaching\/","url_meta":{"origin":51,"position":2},"title":"The Best Way to Save Giraffes is to Support Wildlife Law Enforcement and End Poaching","author":"Derek Lee","date":"October 11, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Iconic animals such as giraffes can be flagship species for conservation because of their charisma and popularity among the public. A new study explored the various threats to giraffe populations, and how specific human actions can mediate those threats so that giraffes and people can thrive together in African savannas.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;animal&quot;","block_context":{"text":"animal","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/category\/animal\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"giraffes","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/02\/giraffesngo_orig.jpg?fit=1024%2C385&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/02\/giraffesngo_orig.jpg?fit=1024%2C385&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/02\/giraffesngo_orig.jpg?fit=1024%2C385&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/02\/giraffesngo_orig.jpg?fit=1024%2C385&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/48\/five-wildlife-protection-groups-petitioned-the-u-s-fish-and-wildlife-service-to-protect-giraffes-under-the-u-s-endangered-species-act\/","url_meta":{"origin":51,"position":3},"title":"Five Wildlife Protection Groups Petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to Protect Giraffes under the U.S. Endangered Species Act","author":"Derek Lee","date":"April 19, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"In response to recent scientific consensus on giraffes' vulnerability to extinction, five wildlife protection groups today petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect Earth's tallest land animal under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The legal petition, filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, Humane Society International, The Humane\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;animal&quot;","block_context":{"text":"animal","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/category\/animal\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Picture of Giraffes in Tanzania, WIld Nature Institute","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2016\/12\/giraffe01_funky_web.png?fit=878%2C490&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2016\/12\/giraffe01_funky_web.png?fit=878%2C490&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2016\/12\/giraffe01_funky_web.png?fit=878%2C490&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2016\/12\/giraffe01_funky_web.png?fit=878%2C490&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":163,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/163\/seeing-spots-new-study-reveals-the-giraffe-babies-inherit-spot-patterns-from-their-mothers-and-certain-spot-traits-improve-newborn-survival\/","url_meta":{"origin":51,"position":4},"title":"Seeing Spots: New Study Reveals the Giraffe Babies Inherit Spot Patterns from Their Mothers and Certain Spot Traits Improve Newborn Survival","author":"Derek Lee","date":"October 2, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"50-year-old Hypothesis Confirmed with Modern Techniques The beautiful coat patterns of giraffes are individually unique and don\u2019t change with age, but their origins and purpose were a mystery. A new study found wild giraffe spot pattern traits were heritable, passed down from mother to offspring, and certain spot traits improved\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;animal&quot;","block_context":{"text":"animal","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/category\/animal\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2018\/09\/INFORGRAPHICspots.jpg?fit=776%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2018\/09\/INFORGRAPHICspots.jpg?fit=776%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2018\/09\/INFORGRAPHICspots.jpg?fit=776%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2018\/09\/INFORGRAPHICspots.jpg?fit=776%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":29,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/29\/giraffes-declared-vulnerable-to-extinction-worlds-leading-giraffe-experts-react\/","url_meta":{"origin":51,"position":5},"title":"Giraffes declared vulnerable to extinction, world&#8217;s leading giraffe experts react","author":"Derek Lee","date":"December 8, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The giraffe is threatened with extinction, according to a new Red List assessment from the IUCN. The world\u2019s giraffe experts are actively working to conserve all subspecies of giraffes. Arusha, TANZANIA, 8 December 2016- The iconic giraffe, one of the world's most recognizable animals and the tallest land mammal, is\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/284"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/dereklee\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}