Welcome to the Loss Lab! We study multiple aspects of global change ecology and management, including effects of climate change on wildlife and habitats, distributions and effects of invasive species, the role of wildlife and land cover change in vector-borne disease transmission, and direct sources of human-caused wildlife mortality like predation by free-ranging cats and bird collisions with structures (e.g., buildings, energy infrastructure & vehicles). Birds are the focus of much of our work, but we also study plants, invertebrates, and wildlife more broadly.

Research Interests:

My lab studies multiple aspects of global change ecology and management. Global change consists of climate change as well as other large-scale human-related impacts on the environment. The spread of invasive species, the emergence of infectious diseases, the habitat alteration due to urbanization and other land use and land cover changes, and incidental wildlife mortality associated with human activities are all types of global change.

Our research is question, issue, and concept driven and applies principles of conservation biology, urban ecology, invasion biology, disease ecology, and landscape ecology. Birds are the focus of much of our work, but we also study plants, invertebrates, and wildlife in general.

We currently lead and collaborate on projects addressing: (1) human-caused wildlife mortality, including cat predation, and bird collisions with buildings and energy infrastructure, (2) impacts of invasive earthworms on soil microbes, plants, and animals in forests and grasslands, (3) the ecology of olfaction as it relates to animal habitat selection and foraging, (4) the urban landscape ecology of tick-borne diseases, and (5) the habitat ecology and effects of climate change on the endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker.

More details about our teaching, research, and extension activities can found on the Loss Lab web page (http://scottrloss.wix.com/losslab) or by following us on Twitter at @LossLabOSU