Road ecologist and our first La Kretz postdoc, Eric Abelson went on to work as a research wildlife biologist for the Pacific Southwest Research Station—the research branch of the US Forest Service—in Davis, CA. In his new position in the Conservation of Biodiversity Program, Eric worked to identify locations where wildlife cross roads, and how to mitigate for the danger of car strikes on wildlife. This work continued Eric’s postdoctoral research at UCLA, where the focus of his research was to discourage wildlife from areas that put animals and humans at the greatest risk (e.g. curving roads with low visibility) and encourage wildlife crossing at safe locations (e.g. wildlife underpasses). Additionally, he examined how climate change might influence wildlife movement and alter their interactions with humans into the future. Eric is now a Research Scientist at the University of Texas at Austin.
