2011-present, Independent Research Group Leader, University of Zurich
2002-present, Scientific Collaborator at Koordinationsstelle für Amphibien- und Reptilienschutz in der Schweiz (www.karch.ch)
2003-2011, Postdoc in the group of Prof. Uli Reyer, University of Zurich
1999-2002, PhD in evolutionary biology (“Predator-induced phenotypic plasticity in larval newts”; supervisor: Josh Van Buskirk), University of Zurich, Switzerland
1996-1999, Collaborator at the Amt für Raumplanung, Abteilung Natur und Landschaft, Kanton Basel-Landschaft
1995-1995, MSc in population biology (“On the maintenance of the genetic polymorphism at the locus LDH-B in the pool frog, Rana lessonae“; supervisors: Hansjürg Hotz, Brad R. Anholt, Uli Reyer, Stephen C. Stearns)
1988-1995, Studies in Biology, University of Basel, Switzerland
Series of congratulations to Dominik on three wonderful achievements!
First and foremost, he managed to persuade a wonderful lady, Regula, to tie the knot. We wish them a long and happy life together. May they grow old on one pillow!
Secondly, he successfully attracted third-party funding to support his PhD study on wild dog dispersal in Botswana, and started his PhD work. He is currently out and about, gps-collaring wild dogs together with Gabriele.
Last but not the least, he just received the Albert Heim Foundation’s 2016 Science Award, with his MSc work on the Swiss wolves. This award is given annually to outstanding work by young researchers in Swiss universities. The broad spectrum of research includes various disciplines around canines, including interdisciplinary issues such as the human-wolf relationships, which Dominik has nicely studies during his MSc. He sure will be a promising contender again with his new canine sp. in the upcoming years.
This year, our group retreat was in Ticino. It involved ten group members, climbing up 1000m from Mergoscia to Cimetta, staying overnight at the top, and coming back down the next day. A great escape from “winter” in M̶o̶r̶d̶o̶r̶ Zurich. Thanks to Gabriele for organising the retreat and Chris for putting together this video summary:
I am an ecologist interested in exploring how predictions of animal populations can be improved by accounting for dispersal processes, species interactions, and environmental change. My motivation lies in developing reliable population forecasts, enabling the assessment of extinction risks for endangered species under various scenarios. By identifying key factors that drive these dynamics and exploring different intervention strategies, I aim to support effective wildlife management and conservation practices.
In my research career, I have acquired in-depth knowledge in dispersal and movement ecology, specifically examining how these factors influence the demography and spatial connectivity of individual populations. My primary focus has been on the African wild dog, through which I have gained valuable skills in demographic analyses, individual-based modeling, and mark-recapture analyses. More recently, my work has expanded to other species including meerkats in South Africa, giraffes in Tanzania, mouse lemurs in Madagascar, and both roe deer and wolves in Switzerland. With an interdisciplinary background in ecology and engineering, I strive to combine my understanding of ecological systems with quantitative modeling to support the long-term persistence of wildlife populations.
Research interests
Population ecology, movement ecology, conservation biology, population viability analysis, mark-recapture analysis, Bayesian statistics, decision science
2021–present, Postdoctoral scientist | Population Ecology Research Group, University of Zurich
2014–present, Tour guide | Zoo Zurich
2016–2021, PhD in ecology | Population Ecology Research Group, University of Zurich in collaboration with Botswana Predator Conservation (Maun, Botswana)
2014–2015, MSc in Environmental Sciences | University of Zurich
2014, Nature field guide qualification | Field Guide Association of Southern Africa (Limpopo, South Africa)
2008–2009, Various internships as an operations engineer in the private sector (USA & Switzerland)
2006–2009, MSc in Management, Technology and Economics | Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich
2005–2006, Research assistant & teaching assistant | Institute of Environmental Engineering, ETH Zurich
2003–2006, BSc in Environmental Engineering | ETH Zurich
Publications
Hofmann DD, Behr DM, McNutt JW, Ozgul A, Cozzi G (2024) Dispersal and connectivity in increasingly extreme climatic conditions. Global Change Biology➤
Cozzi G, Reilly M, Abegg D, Behr DM, … McNutt JW (2023) An AI-based platform to investigate African large carnivore dispersal and demography across broad landscapes: A case study and future directions using African wild dogs. African Journal of Ecology➤
Behr DM, Hodel FH, Cozzi G, McNutt JW, Ozgul A (2023) Higher mortality is not a universal cost of dispersal: a case study in African wild dogs. American Naturalist ➤
Tucker MA, Schipper AM, … Behr DM, … Cozzi G, … Mueller T (2023) Behavioral responses of terrestrial mammals to COVID-19 lockdowns. Science➤
Hofmann DD, Cozzi G, McNutt JW, Ozgul A, Behr DM (2023) A three-step approach for assessing landscape connectivity via simulated dispersal: African wild dog case study. Landscape Ecology ➤
Hodel F*, Behr DM*, Cozzi G, Ozgul A (2023) A hierarchical approach for estimating state-specific mortality and state transition in dispersing animals with incomplete death records. Methods in Ecology and Evolution ➤
Jordan NR, Golabek KA, Behr DM, … , McNutt JW (2022) Priority of access to food and its influence on social dynamics of an endangered carnivore. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology➤
Hofmann DD*, Behr DM*, McNutt JW, Ozgul A, Cozzi G (2021) Bound within boundaries: Do protected areas cover movement corridors of their most mobile, protected species? Journal of Applied Ecology ➤
Behr DM, McNutt JW, Ozgul A, Cozzi G (2020) When to stay and when to leave? Proximate causes of dispersal in an endangered social carnivore. Journal of Animal Ecology ➤
Cozzi G, Behr DM, Webster H, Claase M, Bryce CM, Modise B, McNutt JW, Ozgul A (2020) African wild dog dispersal and implications for management. Journal of Wildlife Management ➤
Behr DM, Ozgul A, Cozzi G (2017) Combining human acceptance and habitat suitability in a unified socio-ecological suitability model: a case study for the wolf in Switzerland. Journal of Applied Ecology ➤
We just got the keys to our new headquarters. Too clean and empty… let’s see how long it will take us to transform it from this hospital-like look to a ‘proper’ population ecology lab.
