GPS and cellphone data show wildlife respond to human presence, not just habitat loss
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Researchers combined GPS tracking of 4,581 mammals and birds with anonymized cellphone location data across the United States to measure how wildlife respond to human presence. The study, published in Science, found that animal movement changes with nearby human activity, independent of landscape alteration. The COVID-19 lockdowns provided a rare natural experiment to separate human presence from habitat modification.
Key Facts
- The study analyzed weekly GPS records from 4,581 individual mammals and birds across the continental U.S. during matching periods in 2019 and 2020.
- Researchers used anonymized cellphone geolocation data with neighborhood-level resolution, marking the first time such data have been used to examine how human presence affects animal movement.
- The research was led by scientists from UC Santa Barbara, the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, and Yale University, and published in Science.
- Wildlife responses to humans differ substantially depending on the species and how heavily a landscape has already been altered.
Study Design
The team examined weekly GPS records from 4,581 individual mammals and birds across the continental U.S. during matching periods in 2019 and 2020. To measure human presence, researchers used anonymized cellphone geolocation data with neighborhood-level resolution, which they said marks the first such use in wildlife movement studies. Co-lead author Scott Yanco, a research ecologist at the Smithsonian's National Zoo, noted that the cellphone data were made available to researchers during the pandemic to help reveal the impacts of COVID-19 shutdowns. Typically, private companies hold onto such data, making this a rare opportunity to quantify how human presence impacts wildlife.
Key Findings
The study found that wildlife responses to humans differ substantially depending on the species and on how heavily a landscape has already been altered. Co-lead author Ruth Oliver, an assistant professor at UC Santa Barbara's Bren School, said humans have complicated effects on wildlife, from physical presence to habitat reshaping. The researchers concluded that understanding the full human impact requires information on both human presence and landscape modification.
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GPS and cellphone data show wildlife respond to human presence, not just habitat loss
