Alex Dibnah

I am a PhD researcher working within the broader Myall Lakes Dingo/Dapin project. I am most interested in understanding and applying large carnivore behaviour and ecology within a management context, including the development of tools to mitigate impacts on threatened species and conflict with humans.

Supervised by: Neil Jordan and Benjamin Pitcher

Project Title: Advancing non-lethal dingo management by understanding social structure and communication, and directly testing deterrence tools

Project Description: My PhD project aims to inform and develop non-lethal strategies for managing dingoes. Firstly, it examines dingo social networks and leadership to assess affiliation and leadership patterns among packmates based on age, sex and dominance status. Secondly, it investigates the function of dingo howling from its temporal and spatial patterns, namely diel and seasonal trends and howling in core vs peripheral territory areas. Thirdly, it aims to reveal the role of raking and scraping behaviour at dingo scent marking sites. Lastly, it tests whether ultrasonic devices can deter dingoes from a food reward and from humans at campgrounds. My PhD is expected to impact wildlife research, management and conservation in three major ways: (i) Fill crucial knowledge gaps of wild canid social structure and communication in a vastly understudied species; (ii) Provide the foundation for leveraging natural signals as non-lethal tools to manage human-carnivore conflict; (iii) Directly test an underexplored acoustic deterrent to establish a wider and more effective management toolkit and therefore, conserve dingoes by reducing reliance on lethal control.