As climate change increases the frequency of droughts, UCLA and UC Davis researchers found one overlooked side effect: People report more conflicts with wildlife during drought, when resources are scarce.
As climate change increases the frequency of droughts, UCLA and UC Davis researchers found one overlooked side effect: People report more conflicts with wildlife during drought, when resources are scarce.
For every inch that annual rainfall decreases, scientists found a 2% to 3% increase in reported clashes with a variety of carnivores during drought years, according to a paper published today, Nov. 12, in the journal Science Advances.
The researchers pored through seven years of data from the Wildlife Incident Reporting database, run by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The results are likely broadly applicable outside of California, said lead author Kendall Calhoun, a postdoctoral researcher and conservation ecologist affiliated with both UCLA and UC Davis.
Read more at: University of California Davis
A coyote passes a trail camera in Quail Ridge Nature Reserve in Napa County, California. (Photo Credit: Kendall Calhoun, UCLA/UCDavis)
