POP Talks 2025: Unlocking hidden messages in animal movement

How can animal tracking help us understand the changing natural world?

In this POP Talk, Simona Picardi, assistant professor in Fish and Wildlife Sciences at University of Idaho, explores how new tracking technologies are decoding the secret language of animal movement. By studying where animals go and why, her research uncovers hidden patterns that help us understand migration, habitat change and the future of our wild ecosystems.  

Simona Picardi, Ph.D., wildlife ecology and conservation

Picardi wants to know where animals go, why they go there and what their movements can tell us about the future of wild ecosystems. As a wildlife ecologist, she uses GPS tracking, data science and behavioral modeling to decode how species respond to shifting habitats, global change and human disruption.

Picardi blends gritty fieldwork with high-powered computation, helping conservationists make faster, smarter decisions rooted in real data. Whether she’s mapping migration routes or teaching reproducible science, she’s all about building tools that protect wildlife and the science behind the scenes.

POP Talks — Power of Possibility

University of Idaho research reaches far beyond our campuses — it shapes the world. POP Talks — Power of Possibility Talks — annually spotlights eight faculty whose discoveries address global challenges in health, sustainability, technology and society. These presentations reveal how innovative ideas born in Idaho ripple across continents, improving lives and inspiring change. The audience joins the presenters for an hour of bold thinking and transformative research that proves possibility knows no borders.