Research group · TCE, IBED, University of Amsterdam

Ecological Inference for Conservation

Movement, demography and animal-borne monitoring for conservation under uncertainty.

We study how animals move, survive and reproduce in changing environments, and how ecological uncertainty can be turned into better conservation decisions.

Led by Eldar Rakhimberdiev at Theoretical and Computational Ecology (TCE), Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), University of Amsterdam .

Research

From animal movement to conservation decisions

Conservation demography and annual-cycle limitation

We estimate demographic processes that cannot be observed directly, such as survival, recruitment, reproductive status and life-history stages that shape population trajectories.

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Movement ecology and behavioural inference

We use tracking and biologging data to infer behavioural modes, movement decisions, resource use and exposure to environmental conditions.

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Animal-borne monitoring and sentinel indicators

We explore how animal-borne data can reveal environmental exposure, behavioural change and vulnerability in ways that complement conventional monitoring.

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Developing direction: ecological inference for conservation decisions

We are developing ways to connect demographic models, movement-based indicators and uncertainty-aware forecasts more directly to conservation and monitoring decisions.

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Collaborate

Work with us

We work with researchers, conservation organisations, public bodies and students on questions where animal movement, demographic data and ecological uncertainty matter for conservation or monitoring.

Common ingredients

  • Animal tracking and movement data
  • Demographic and capture-recapture models
  • Ecological indicators and dashboards
  • Monitoring and management relevance

Publications

Recent publications

Recent papers from the last three years, with the full publication list available separately.

All publications
Global Change Biology 2025

Demand‐Resource Mismatch Explains Body Shrinkage in a Migratory Shorebird

Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2025

Eurasian Spoonbill Chicks Receive Parental Care up to Several Months after Fledging, but Not into Migration

Behavioral Ecology 2024

Sex-Specific Nest Attendance Rhythm and Foraging Habitat Use in a Colony-Breeding Waterbird

Global Change Biology 2024

Global Temperature Homogenization Can Obliterate Temporal Isolation in Migratory Animals with Potential Loss of Population Structure

Updates

Recent news

New website launched

We launched a new research-group website for Ecological Inference for Conservation. The site brings together current research themes, people, projects, publications, resources and collaboration opportunities around movement ecology, conservation demography and animal-borne monitoring.