Christina Winters

There’s a pattern to when bear, mountain lion conflicts worsen in California A California study finds that human conflicts with bears, coyotes and mountains lions rise during distinct periods.

A California study finds that human conflicts with bears, coyotes and mountains lions rise during distinct periods.

✨ Little Life Update ✨

In March 2024 I accepted a position at UC Berkeley with the Middleton and Brashares labs. Since, we’ve worked to launch a statewide research project, known as The California Wolf Project.

I’m currently an MS student on the project and I’m excited to see what we can learn!

Wild canids and felids differ in their reliance on reused travel routeways | PNAS Diverse factors, including environmental features and cognitive processes, can drive animals’ movements and space use, with far-reaching implicatio...

Fun to be a tiny part (cougar & coyote data from Utah) of this research by Fagan & team! 🐱🐺🧪
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Yellowstone-area wolves observed moving pups to follow elk — upending scientific assumptions - WyoFile Study refutes widespread understanding that gray wolves, anchored by young offspring, don’t move during spring denning season.

Scientific research has long assumed gray wolves are non-migratory during springtime, staying put to tend to litters of nearly helpless pups.

A new study on wolves and elk near Cody upends that notion.

📣I’ve spent the last 3.5y in this program tracking wolves while getting to know the communities who’ve been crucial to wolf recolonization in CA. Read what we accomplished and stay tuned for updates on my MS research looking at where wolves go and why!

*Animals handled under appropriate guidelines*

TWS Journals We developed predictive models of pup-rearing habitat (i.e., den and rendezvous sites) that could help guide future population monitoring efforts of Mexican wolves. Mexican wolves selected den sites ...

‼️New 🐺 paper‼️We developed models to predict highly suitable den & rendezvous site habitat for Mexican wolves in AZ & NM. These models will be used to guide future monitoring as the population continues to grow. #OpenAccess #JournalOfWildlifeManagement wildlife.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

The Human Shield Hypothesis: Does Predator Avoidance of Humans Create Refuges for Prey? The human shield hypothesis posits that predators avoid areas of human disturbance due to perceived risk from humans, and prey therefore seeks refuge in these areas of perceived safety. Our systemati....

Have you ever cited or come across a mention of the 'human shield hypothesis' and wondered: what is the evidence for this hypothesis, and what is the quality of that evidence? Wonder no more!
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Opportunities There are no graduate student opportunities to join the Young lab at this time.  Julie anticipates advertising for a PhD student to start ~Jan 2026 to work on an urban mesocarnivore study with...

We're hiring a part-time field tech in California! Hoping to find someone local to help us out! Check it out on the opportunities tab of my website: drjuliekyoung.weebly.com/opportunitie...

JOB ALERT! We are hiring two seasonal field technicians for mid July - mid October to conduct research on mule deer in the Santa Monica Mountains, CA. The project is a collaboration between UC Davis and NPS. Ungulate capture experience preferred. Please share! jobs.rwfm.tamu.edu/view-job/?id...

Mountain lion deterrents to be studied in foothill region A study of the efficacy of different nonlethal mountain lion deterrents is set to start in January, and local livestock owners are asked to get involved.

Nice, short piece about our about-to-start study on testing ways to reduce depredations by mountain lions and increase coexistence! www.mtdemocrat.com/news/mountai...

Definitely good. Wonder if it was the county I was in! They weren’t included but their neighboring county was so they were really wanting to be. Either way, can’t wait to see the work you all get into!

Thank you! Loveee to see all these starter packs being put together 🙌🏼 makes me feel like I don’t have to start from scratch over here to rebuild community.

One of your flyers was passed around at a F&G commission meeting I was just at! There were definitely questions and people wanting to talk about it!

I’d love to be on the list you’re putting together. Thanks for doing this! This is awesome!

Thank you! Still figuring out how this place works 😅

This is great! I would love to be added! I’m a masters student at UC Berkeley studying wolves currently and would love to connect with other grad students and early career peeps 😊

Hi there! I’d love to be added and I’m super excited you put this together! I’ve been feeling a bit disconnected from everyone after making the switch so I’m super excited about this 😊 thanks!

Exactly what is was looking for! Thanks for doing this for those of us following along at home!

Understanding Wolves - Dispersal https://dfw.state.or.us/wolvesThis short video explores the dispersal of gray wolves from Idaho into Oregon and eventually into California. Follow along as w...

A fun video from OR Dept Fish and Wildlife for the last day of wolf week (I missed the rest of the week🤦🏼‍♀️)

Dispersal is such an important part of wolf population expansion but hard to do justice explaining to people. ODFW nailed it though and in cinematic style 😍

Give it a quick watch!

I would love to be added!

A female wolf is sedated following proper protocols for collaring to monitor movement. *Photo by Kent Laudon

Hi! My name is Christina Winters and I’m an aspiring wildlife biologist who currently works for CDFW on a small team monitoring the gray wolf population in the state as it evolves and expands. I’m always open to learning and would love to connect and continue to grow!