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Abstract
To better understand social and ecological factors surrounding wildlife conservation, I used a combination of comparative (meta-analysis), field, molecular, and interview techniques to, 1.) examine associations between genomic variation and disease in wild mammals, 2.) assess environmental context effects on stress and infection in an endangered equid, and 3.) examine how socio-cultural perceptions of wildlife conservation align across cultures. For goal 1, I performed a meta-analysis using empirical studies on the association between genomic variability and disease measures in mammalian wildlife species. Candidate (i.e., coding) genomic regions, but not putatively neutral (i.e., non-coding) regions of the genome, showed greater associations with disease measures, indicating that candidate regions may be more useful in predicting disease response and forces shaping disease response, than traditionally used microsatellite-based studies of genome-wide heterozygosity. For goal 2, I investigated how environmental and host factors contribute to differences in stress hormone levels and parasite infection rates in the endangered Grevy’s zebra. Stress and parasitism were affected by water, but not food, availability. Anthropogenic activity from tourism and pastoralism were correlated with increased stress hormones. Grevy’s zebra are arid-adapted, thus lack of water may indicate an overlooked factor important for their conservation. Pastoralism and sympatric livestock are often cited as causes of conservation concern; these findings shed light on the need to consider tourism as a source of environmental stress. For goal 3, I conducted interviews across three community conservancies in Samburu District, Kenya. International wildlife conservation program strategies typically reflect the ecological understandings and conservation motivations held by Western conservationists who design them. Socio-cultural factors, such as knowledge perceptions, locus of control, and motivations may not be shared by people who live alongside wildlife, but these factors are known to impact pro-environmental behavior. Incongruent with Western conservation ideas, knowledge perceptions regarding extinction and species’ rarity did not resonate with Samburu residents, however most residents did feel they had an influence on wildlife populations, which aligns to a core presumption of Western conservation. Regarding motivating factors, economic factors were listed as the primary reason to conserve among Samburu residents, however this could reflect influence of Western conservation actors.