Climate change has brought with it wildfires that are larger, more intense, and more frequent than historically typical. Though species living in wildfire-prone areas are well-adapted to handle wildfires in general, the new "megafires" emerging across the American West are novel challenges that wildlife may not be equipped to handle, especially smaller mammals with lower mobility. The Chiricahua fox squirrel was rarely seen before the Horseshoe II fire, and hasn't been seen since.

The rapid change of our planet induced by humans and our activities affects species ecology, habitat and their life history. When we study how environmental changes may threaten the future of single species we gain knowledge to protect these species and make them survive. The Eurasian red squirrel in the Italian Alps and the endangered American red squirrel of Mt. Graham (AZ, USA) are two similar tree squirrel species that live in high-elevation mountain conifer forests.

Effective species conservation is of crucial importance because human activities have had a profound impact on the natural world. Animal species around the globe are increasingly affected by changes in climate and habitat loss The Mt. Graham red squirrel, a small North American red squirrel sub species that exists only in the Penaleno Mountains of Southern Arizona, is critically endangered with an estimated population of ~100 individuals.

As urban populations expand into wildland interface, negative interactions between people and wildlife, particularly medium-to-large mammals like coyotes, become a growing concern. Wildlife offer important benefits to humans and their environment and add intrinsic value to residential communities, but may come into conflict with residents over space and resources. Our project aims to address these concerns by identifying effective solutions that minimize human-wildlife conflict and nurture a mutually beneficial relationship between residents and wildlife.

One of Japan's leading wildlife conservation programs has joined with us through a formal international memorandum of agreement. We look forward to extending this agreement to develop additional collaborative efforts and student/faculty exchanges.

Phoenix Zoo partners with researchers like us to improve their captive breeding program and increase the chances of survival when threatened and endangered species, like the narrow-headed garter snake and the Mt. Graham red squirrel, are released back into the wild. They provide funding for our researchers to monitor animals post-release and better understand the conditions needed for survival and reproduction.

The World Wildlife Fund provides funding for students across the globe to train in wildlife conservation and research. With help from WWF, we have recruited Nepalese researchers studying the Ganges river dolphin and red pandas in Nepal.

We continue to develop our partnership with this southern Japanese university with opportunities for researcher exchanges and collaborative projects on mammalian ecology and conservation.