Researchers extract ancient DNA from a 2,900-year-old clay brick, revealing a time capsule of plant life

August 22, 2023

WildCRU research fellow Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen was part of a team that recently extracted ancient DNA from a 2,900-year-old clay brick. Her husband Troels Arbøll, was joint first author of the paper – published today in Nature Scientific Reports. Currently housed at the National Museum of Denmark, the clay ... Read full story

WildCRU conservation capacity building in action

August 1, 2023

WildCRU’s Postgraduate Diploma in International Wildlife Conservation Practice is designed to provide aspiring young conservationists with training in many aspects of practical conservation. Aiming to select the most talented and least privileged applicants, full scholarships are provided to eligible candidates. 120 students from 47 countries have completed the Diploma so far – almost all from the ‘Global South’ and nearly half from Africa. Graduates from ... Read full story

The tricky issue of photos with wild animals shared on social media – a new study published evaluating Instagram’s wildlife selfie alert

July 20, 2023

By Lauren A Harrington The recent phenomenon of ‘wildlife selfies’ shared on social media may seem harmless and is presumably well intentioned by the person taking, or in, the photo, but can involve animals illegally or unsustainably captured from the wild, kept in poor conditions, and/or subject to cruel treatment (such as having their claws ... Read full story

Lion Landscapes conservation impacts

August 10, 2023

“Translating the global value of wildlife into tangible benefits for people living alongside it will help ensure the long-term wellbeing of communities, wildlife, and their shared environment.” This belief underpins the work of Lion Landscapes – an organisation co-run by WildCRU’s Director, Prof Amy Dickman. With an emphasis on large carnivores, Lion Landscapes ... Read full story

Modelling tiger population numbers and genetic diversity in the context of translocations: New WildCRU research published

July 28, 2023

The persistence of tigers remains threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation, resulting in the reduction and isolation of key populations, particularly in Southeast Asia. Tigers require large tracts of habitat to survive and the recent isolation of many small populations may lead to reduced genetic diversity, potentially compromising their persistence and resilience. In similar species, ... Read full story

Re-wilding success: Dusky clearwing moth seen at Tubney

July 3, 2023

Not all charismatic species are large and dangerous. The dusky clearwing (Paranthrene tabiformis) is an unusual moth which until 2021 was thought to be extinct in the UK. A handful have since been seen in southern England.  After an interval of almost a hundred years, a single male was recorded at Tubney landscape on Sunday ... Read full story