Davies Lab

LiDAR Sensors

Welcome to the Davies Lab!

Our research examines how animals interact with the environment and each other to affect ecosystem processes at landscape scales. We draw on the fields of community and ecosystem ecology, animal behavior, and remote sensing to explore multiple facets of animal-ecosystem interactions in a spatially explicit manner. 

A key component of our work investigates how global change, including climate and land-use change, alter animal-driven processes and influence the direction of their effects. We integrate field measurements, GPS telemetry, and remote sensing products (including LiDAR, hyperspectral, and satellite data) to answer questions ranging from the role of animals in shaping vegetation and modifying nutrient cycles, to how land-use changes that alter habitat heterogeneity affect animal behavior and subsequent ecosystem impact. 

Please use the tabs above to learn more about who we are and what we do, and feel free to contact us if you have questions or want to get involved. 

Image courtesy of Evan Hockridge.

Recent Publications

2025

Bradford EM, Hockridge EG, Gibbon GEM, Kibongui G, Mouamana A, Ngama G, Osner N, and Davies AB. 2025. “Natural Forest Clearings Enable the Persistence of Stable Spotted Hyena Populations in Congo Basin Rainforests”. Biotropica, 57, 5
Bradford EM, Hockridge EG, Gibbon GEM, Kibongui G, Mouamana A, Ngama G, Osner N, and Davies AB. 2025. “Natural Forest Clearings Enable the Persistence of Stable Spotted Hyena Populations in Congo Basin Rainforests”. Biotropica, 57, 5
Wang Z, Singh J, and Davies AB. 2025. “Consistent Patterns of LiDAR-Derived Measures of Savanna Vegetation Complexity Between Wet and Dry Seasons”. Ecological Indicators, 170
Wang Z, Singh J, and Davies AB. 2025. “Consistent Patterns of LiDAR-Derived Measures of Savanna Vegetation Complexity Between Wet and Dry Seasons”. Ecological Indicators, 170
Coverdale TC, Boucher PB, Singh J, and Davies AB. 2025. “Quantifying Aboveground Herbaceous Biomass in Grassy Ecosystems: A Comparison of Field and High-Resolution UAV-LiDAR Approaches”. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation
Coverdale TC, Boucher PB, Singh J, and Davies AB. 2025. “Quantifying Aboveground Herbaceous Biomass in Grassy Ecosystems: A Comparison of Field and High-Resolution UAV-LiDAR Approaches”. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation

2024

Wang Z, Huben R, Boucher PB, Van C, Zeng J, Chung N, Wang J, King J, Knecht RJ, Ng’iru I, Baraza A, Baker CCM, Martins DJ, Pierce NE, and Davies AB. 2024. “Automated Detection of an Insect-Induced Keystone Vegetation Phenotype Using Airborne LiDAR.”. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 15, Pp. 978-93
Wang Z, Huben R, Boucher PB, Van C, Zeng J, Chung N, Wang J, King J, Knecht RJ, Ng’iru I, Baraza A, Baker CCM, Martins DJ, Pierce NE, and Davies AB. 2024. “Automated Detection of an Insect-Induced Keystone Vegetation Phenotype Using Airborne LiDAR.”. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 15, Pp. 978-93
J Singh, JE Donaldson, S Archibald, CL Parr, MD Voysey, and AB Davies. 2024. “Small-Scale Fires Interact With Herbivore Feedbacks to Create Persistent Grazing Lawn Environments”. Journal of Applied, 61, 7, Pp. 1531-45
J Singh, JE Donaldson, S Archibald, CL Parr, MD Voysey, and AB Davies. 2024. “Small-Scale Fires Interact With Herbivore Feedbacks to Create Persistent Grazing Lawn Environments”. Journal of Applied, 61, 7, Pp. 1531-45
SD Allison, SJ Law, AB Davies, H Flores-Moreno, BJ Wijas, AR Yatsko, Y Zhou, AE Zanne, and Eggleton. 2024. “The Challenge of Estimating Global Termite Methane Emissions”. Global Change Biology, 30, 6, Pp. e17390
SD Allison, SJ Law, AB Davies, H Flores-Moreno, BJ Wijas, AR Yatsko, Y Zhou, AE Zanne, and Eggleton. 2024. “The Challenge of Estimating Global Termite Methane Emissions”. Global Change Biology, 30, 6, Pp. e17390