Matt Kauffman was at an Italian conference and talking over coffee with fellow ecologists when he got to thinking that the challenges facing Wyomingâs migratory deer, elk and pronghorn are shared by wildlife around the world.
The University of Wyoming researcher knew from his experience leading the Wyoming Migration Initiative that the migratory paths of ungulates from Scandinavia to Eastern Africa could benefit by being documented with precision scientifically. And if migration maps were produced, that could be the catalyst for conservation.
âWe just spontaneously got together, nine or 10 of us who work on migrations around the world,â Kauffman told the News&Guide. âWe realized that a lot of the same things we were trying to address by mapping migrations in Wyoming were applicable globally.â