BDN features Mortelliti and animal personality research
The Bangor Daily News wrote a profile about Alessio Mortelliti, wildlife biology professor at the University of Maine, and his research into how animal personalities impact forest ecosystems. Mortelliti has a number of other projects he’s working on, including a new statewide project to track larger mammals like lynx, bobcats, fishers and martens using camera traps and a science education project in which high school students across New England learn about small mammal personality traits, and then go out with one of Mortelliti’s students and catch a squirrel for themselves. “Everyone in the country has a story about a squirrel in their backyard. But they’re just kind of there, and they can fade into the background. When you see one up close, and hold it in your hands, it can all kind of come alive. As scientists, we need to do a better job communicating science to people. Putting it right into their hands is a big part of that,” Mortelliti said.