Using applied social science disciplines to implement creative outdoor cat management solutions and avoid the trap of one-size-fits-all policies.

In the United States, policy conflicts have prevented successful population-level management of outdoor cats for decades. Wildlife conservation professionals have sought widespread use of humane dispatch (i.e.

Evaluating the Risk Landscape of Hawaiian Monk Seal Exposure to Toxoplasma gondii.

Toxoplasmosis is a disease of primary concern for Hawaiian monk seals (Neomonachus schauinslandi), due to its apparently acute lethality and especially heavy impacts on breeding female seals. The disease-causing parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, depends on cats to complete its life cycle; thus, in order to understand how this pathogen infects marine mammals, it is essential to understand aspects of the terrestrial ecosystem and land-to-sea transport. In this study, we constructed a three-tiered model to assess risk of Hawaiian monk seal exposure to T.

TERRESTRIAL PATHOGEN POLLUTANT, TOXOPLASMA GONDII, THREATENS HAWAIIAN MONK SEALS (NEOMONACHUS SCHAUINSLANDI) FOLLOWING HEAVY RUNOFF EVENTS.

Toxoplasmosis is a major threat to Hawaiian monk seals (Neomonachus schauinslandi) in the main Hawaiian Islands where seal habitat overlaps with substantial human and domestic cat populations. As the definitive hosts, members of the Felidae are the sole sources contaminating the environment with infectious oocysts; these oocysts can be transported into the marine environment, thereby threatening marine mammals. To understand environmental factors influencing Hawaiian monk seal exposure to Toxoplasma gondii, we examined monk seal strandings from toxoplasmosis in relationship to location and rainfall patterns throughout the main Hawaiian Islands.