Dr. Felisa Smith & A Special PNAS Issue: Understanding The Decline Of Large-Bodied Mammals

News

Posted: Oct 15, 2015 - 12:00pm

An artists' creation of the Pleistocene Era at White Sands, N.M.

UNM Professor Dr. Felisa Smith is co-organizer of a special issue released online today in the prestigious journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science USA. The issue is designed to understand the decline of megafauna and consequences of large-bodied mammals around the world.

The effort includes several research papers in an effort that stemmed from a conference titled Megafauna and ecosystem function: from the Pleistocene to the Anthropocene, Smith co-organized at Oxford University, which also resulted in a special feature in the journal Ecography.

“Understanding the role of megamammals in contemporary ecosystems and the consequences of their continued decline is essential for effective management of the remaining wild areas on Earth” said Smith. “Everywhere, large mammals are in trouble because of a disastrous combination of hunting, poaching, habitat alterations, and loss of habitat.”

Read the full story at UNM Newsroom.