Everyone in our lab attended the 2024 Student Conference on Conservation Science, at the American Museum of Natural History’s Center for Biodiversity & Conservation. We presented one poster on the pro-environmental behaviours (PEBs) of People of Colour. The lead author, Dimitri Mimy, did a fantastic job engaging attendees, including Naveen David (from the University [...]
In this latest social-science paper, led by Dr Tanja Straka, of Berlin's Freie University, we challenged the almost dogmatic notion that bats are objects of biophobia. Yes, abundant evidence suggests that bats are undeservedly maligned in many contexts. And our personal experience as bat experts supports that—tell people you study bats and many will [...]
1. The spathe—a 5th floral structure. Most flowers have a four-part anatomical arrangement. The two central whorls (layers) of reproductive parts include a pistil (a sticky stigma borne on a style leading down to the ovary) surrounded by stamens (filaments bearing anthers, which hold pollen grains). The outer whorls are [...]
In this collaborative paper by 59 co-authors, we asked how the community traits for diverse animals (amphibians, bats, bees, birds, carabid beetles and reptiles) shift with increasing urban land cover in 379 cities around the world. The traits are diverse, with shifts in body size and mobility seemingly driven by changes in dietary and [...]
Just out - a paper with my former undergraduate honours students Deon LUM and YAO Xinyi, whose data were used. We worked along pedestrian footpaths (3.5m tall luminaires) in Singapore and found that shifting from sodium-vapour to LED lights is not detrimental to most insects in most sites (meaning, the LEDs are no more attractive [...]
As a teen & young adult, the only magazine I ever subscribed to (and amassed quite a collection of) was National Geographic (NatGeo). Each month, the latest issue would arrive, and I would pore over it, marveling at the incredible photography and engrossing text and, perhaps more than anything, learning about the natural and cultural [...]
What a great start to the new year - our book is out, showcasing many diverse facets of the urban ecology of bats, with chapters co-authored by > 40 diverse authors based in many different countries. What an honour to work with all these wonderful people !
As you may know, bats are, in many cultures and contexts, undeservedly maligned. The COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated that. Most likely, a species of horseshoe bat was the original reservoir for the viral ancestor to SARS-CoV2, which causes COVID. But the media and even the scientific literature have widely misrepresented the role of bats [...]
Introducing our newest lab member, Taylor Rubin, who will do her PhD research with us. Taylor comes with a slightly unconventional and super appealing background. She obtained her master’s degree in neuroscience and animal behaviour in 2012 from Emory University. Her research subjects were tufted capuchins – am I the only one who wonders if [...]
If you read the description of the work by LIM Kai Ning, my former honours student, then you know that work in my lab at NUS investigated the impacts of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones) on bats in Singapore (SG), and you know why it matters. Well, this summer, in NYC’s less restrictive landscape [...]
