Lindsey Mitchell

Lindsey Mitchell - "Assessing Niche Partitioning of Squirrels and Their Potential as Indicators of Rainforest Condition in Malaysian Borneo"

"I’m incredibly grateful and honored to receive support for my project from the Biodiversity Institute and the Haub School through the Graduate Student Research Enhancement Grant. This funding will play a key role in advancing my research on the diverse and important squirrel species of Malaysian Borneo. This research not only fills a significant knowledge gap but also supports broader conservation efforts in one of the world’s most threatened and biodiverse ecosystems. I look forward to sharing these meaningful findings with the University of Wyoming community and beyond."

Graduate Advisor: John Koprowski

Department of Zoology and Physiology

Master's Student

When thinking about important rainforest species, squirrels may not be the first animal to come to mind. However, small mammals like squirrels play a crucial role in maintaining the health of the entire ecosystem, through services like seed dispersal! Malaysian Borneo hosts around 15 squirrel species, from Bornean pygmy squirrels, weighing just ~7g, to the Thomas flying squirrel, weighing ~1.4kg. Despite their ecological importance, these species remain understudied. This project aims to fill this knowledge gap in the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary by collecting baseline data and assessing whether any species can serve as indicators of rainforest health—providing valuable tools for conservation and broader biodiversity protection in a threatened ecosystem.

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