B.S., Natural Resources and Environment Science, China University of Geosciences
M.S., Geography, University of Georgia
Movement Ecology, Rangeland Ecology, Conservation Biology, GIS & remote sensing, Science communication
"The first man who fenced a piece of land and claimed 'it is mine,' is believed to be the true founder of civil society." History has extended the use of fencing vastly and variedly across the world. The dual purposes of this invention, to fence in desirable resources and/or to fence out intruders or disturbance, have been applied to land, animals, and our own species as humans. Although fences are usually constructed with a defined purpose, they are likely to bring about unintended consequences: people, animals, and land interact with each other in such profound ways that dividing one from another should inevitably induce impacts on the actors and the interactive processes among them. Every fence-in has an equal fence-out orthogonal to it.
My experience working on the Tibetan plateau results in my interest in fences and mobility. My dissertation research attempts to connect fencing with land practices (the social aspect) and animal movement (the ecological aspects). I utilize methods of geospatial science, landscape ecology, and movement ecology. My long-term goal is to offer evidence-based information on the social and ecological impacts of linear infrastructure and to contribute to the discussion on how to keep landscapes working for both humans and nature in this increasingly fragmented world.
Xu, W., Barker, K., Shawler, A., Van Scoyoc, A., Smith, J. A., Mueller, T., ... & Middleton, A. D. (2021). The plasticity of ungulate migration in a changing world. Ecology, e03293.
Xu, W., Dejid, N., Herrmann, V., Sawyer, H., & Middleton, A. D. Barrier Behaviour Analysis (BaBA) reveals extensive effects of fencing on wide‐ranging ungulates. (2021). Journal of Applied Ecology.
McInturff, A., Xu, W., Wilkinson, C. E., Dejid. N., Brashares, J. S., Fence Ecology: Frameworks for Understanding the Ecological Effects of Fences, BioScience, biaa103, https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biaa103
Pei, J., Wang, L., Xu, W., Kurz, D. J., Geng, J., Fang, H., Guo, X., & Niu, Z. (2019). Recovered Tibetan antelope at risk again. Science, 366(6462), 194-194.
Sawyer, H., LeBeau, C. W., McDonald, T. L., Xu, W., & Middleton, A. D. (2019). All routes are not created equal: an ungulate's choice of migration route can influence its survival. Journal of Applied Ecology 56(8): 1860-1869.
Xu, W., Huang, Q., Stabach, J., Hoshino, B., & Leimgruber, P. (2019). Railway Underpass Location Affects Migration Distance in Tibetan Antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii). PLoS ONE 14.2 (2019).
Xu, W., Bernardes S., Bacchus, S., & Madden, M. (2018). Management Implications of Aquifer Fractures on Ecosystem and Habitat Suitability for Panthers in Southern Florida. Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection, 6, 184-208.
Xu, W., Fayrer-Hosken, R., Madden, M., Simms, C., Mu, L., & Presotto, A. (2017). Coupling African Elephant Movement and Habitat Modeling for Landscape Availability-suitability-connectivity in Kruger National Park, South Africa. Pachyderm, 58(2017): 97-106.
Xu, W., Bernardes, S., Bacchus, S. T., & Madden, M. (2016). Mapped Fractures and Sinkholes in the Coastal Plain of Florida and Georgia to Infer Environmental Impacts from Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) and Supply Wells in the Regional Karst Floridan Aquifer System. Journal of Geography and Geology. 8.2(2016):76
