We are living in an era of rapid and dramatic changes in land use and climate. The enormous economic growth and rapid increase of human demands on natural resources has deeply shaped the environment humans share with other living beings, and this is especially true in China. In order to achieve a more sustainable future, it is important and urgent to understand the changes of ecosystems and the mechanisms underlying those ecosystem processes through sound scientific research and management.

I focus on long-term ecological research to address the questions of how biophysical parameters and human activities structure the large animal communities in a changing landscape, how wildlife populations and communities respond to human disturbance, and how to develop effective conservation strategies accordingly. I am motivated by questions about population dynamics, distribution patterns, and habitat needs of vertebrate species (particularly large mammals and forest birds). I have recently extended my study to include permanent large forest dynamics plots to obtain a more holistic understanding of how mammals and birds interact with their forest habitats. My present and future research will address two main questions:

At the local scale, what are the driving mechanisms shaping the structure and pattern of large animal communities, the ecological function of large fauna (particularly ungulates and carnivores) in forests, and the impact of defaunation on forest structure and composition?

At the regional scale and beyond, what are the mechanisms determining the pattern and process of large animal communities (particularly large mammals and birds), and how will they be impacted by predicted changes in climate, human activities and land use?

Accordingly, my research will take a hierarchical approach ranging from DNA meta-barcoding, field-based studies to macroecological analyses. The results obtained from fine-scale studies will provide valuable insights to better understanding of both the observed and the predicted patterns at broader spatial and temporal scales. The main research topics include:

Local scale study: Identifying the underlying mechanisms shaping the structure and pattern of large animal communities in the targeted ecosystems, and exploring the interactions between large fauna (particularly ungulates and carnivores) and their habitats and their ecological function ;

Regional scale study: Examining the spatial distribution patterns of large fauna in China and revealing the potential drivers and mechanisms and the linkage between local and regional patterns;

Strategic study: Providing pragmatic solutions to promote biopersity conservation and the management effectiveness of protected areas.