Papers by Suzanne E MacDonald
Ecological Solutions and Evidence, 2026
1. Background: Climate change and human disturbance are accelerating desertification in drylands,... more 1. Background: Climate change and human disturbance are accelerating desertification in drylands, which cover approximately 41% of the Earth's surface. Fine-scale microclimatic refuges may help buffer resident wildlife from increasing thermal and hydric stress in these ecosystems.
Optimal Group Size
Springer eBooks, 2022
A Non-Invasive Wireless Respiratory Monitoring System for Animals' Behavioural Studies
This paper presents a novel non-invasive wireless device for animal breathing measurement. A flex... more This paper presents a novel non-invasive wireless device for animal breathing measurement. A flexible sensor is used to convert the berthing rate into a parodic resistive change. An interface circuit is designed to accurately measure the resistive signal, detect the breathing rate and transfer the recorded data to the computer wirelessly. Herein we demonstrate and discuss the functionality of the proposed system on a dog. Based on this result, the proposed system can reliably be used for animal behavioural studies.
Frontiers in Conservation Science, 2025
Human-wildlife conflicts (HWCs) are becoming increasingly common in landscapes altered by human a... more Human-wildlife conflicts (HWCs) are becoming increasingly common in landscapes altered by human activity, often threatening both livelihoods and wildlife conservation. We investigated HWCs in two communities: Bbaale village near Nabugabo Research Site in Uganda (73 households surveyed in 2019) and Manyangalo village near the Lewa-Borana Conservancy in Kenya (50 households surveyed in 2022) using descriptive statistics. We assessed how socioeconomic factors influenced household responses to HWCs using ordinal logistic regression models and explored community perceptions of living near a research site or conservancy. Our results showed that HWCs at Bbaale were reported as more severe (62%), often involving crop damage and livestock losses, while encounters near Manyangalo occurred more frequently (86%) but caused less damage. Households in Bbaale used a range of management strategies, including banging tins (86%), using dogs (60%) and scarecrows (59%), whereas Manyangalo residents primarily relied on noisemaking (100%). Larger cultivable areas were associated with more reported conflicts, and individuals with secondary education reported less severe impacts. Despite differences in HWC experiences, most respondents (Bbaale: 88%, Manyangalo: 86%) in both villages expressed positive views of the research site or conservancy, suggesting local support for conservation initiatives. These findings emphasize the importance of tailoring HWC management strategies to local conditions and community needs.
is a researcher on the wind energy stakeholder engagement and outreach team at NREL, where she co... more is a researcher on the wind energy stakeholder engagement and outreach team at NREL, where she conducts research and engagement related to the social, equity, and policy and planning aspects of offshore and land-based wind energy. She holds a master's degree in environmental justice and environmental behavior from the University of Michigan and a bachelor's degree in political communication from George Washington University.
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 2025
Foundational shrub species can support vertebrate communities within desert ecosystems. These shr... more Foundational shrub species can support vertebrate communities within desert ecosystems. These shrubs provide thermal refuge to aid in temperature amelioration and to escape predation. Within Southern California, USA, harsh abiotic conditions influence the frequency of these shrub-animal interactions. We tested the hypothesis that increasing shrub density will positively influence local vertebrate communities across a variety of arid ecosystems within Southern California. We used a combination of camera trapping and temperature pendants across a 2-year field study to assess the effects of shrub density and near-surface air temperature on vertebrate community composition. Sites were established across Southern California, each consisting of four 20 m radius microsites, with shrub densities ranging from 0 to 14 individuals. Increasing shrub densities significantly increased the frequency of observation and richness of local vertebrate communities. Relatively higher near-surface air temperatures (NSAT) significantly decreased vertebrate observations, richness, and evenness. Sites with relatively higher annual aridity negatively influenced vertebrate species observations and richness, but could be offset by increasing shrub densities. While shrub encroachment in many ecosystems may have negative impacts on species biodiversity, our findings suggest that increasing densities of foundational shrub species positively influences vertebrate community measurements and composition across varying arid ecosystems. Understanding how these foundational shrub species can be used to assess vertebrate communities can provide key insight into vertebrate-shrub interactions and how these densities can shape the biodiversity of an ecosystem.
Animal Welfare, 2025
The COVID-19 pandemic led to unprecedented lockdowns with rippling impacts on the lives of humans... more The COVID-19 pandemic led to unprecedented lockdowns with rippling impacts on the lives of humans and animals alike. Since zoos were among the first institutions to close during the pandemic, the lockdowns presented the opportunity to conduct a natural experiment examining the relationship between visitor presence and the welfare of zoo-housed animals. In this study, we assessed the welfare of six Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii) at Toronto Zoo both during and following the pandemic lockdowns. We compared behavioural and physiological indicators of welfare during a lockdown and after visitors were reintroduced. Specifically, if the orangutans' welfare was affected by the visitor re-introduction phase we predicted there would be an increase in the following measures: (1) use of exhibit areas away from visitors; (2) behavioural measures (hiding, self-directed behaviours, agonistic behaviours, agitated movement, and idiosyncratic object-directed behaviours [head slamming, and fabric tearing]); and (3) physiological measures (faecal consistency and glucocorticoid metabolites) when compared to the lockdown. We also measured changes in activity levels such as foraging and inactivity. We found that orangutan exhibit space use did not change when visitors were reintroduced. In fact, the orangutans hid less when visitors were introduced than during the lockdown. Foraging, inactivity, and other behavioural indicators of stress did not change when visitors were introduced. Similarly, neither faecal consistency nor glucocorticoid metabolites changed across the study phases. Our data show that visitor re-introduction did not negatively affect the welfare of the Toronto Zoo orangutans. However, the presence of keepers was found to affect the behaviour of the orangutans and warrants further study.
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Papers by Suzanne E MacDonald