Dr Christopher O'Bryan
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
School of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Researcher biography
I have a background in spatial ecology, landscape-scale conservation, and decision science ranging from studying reptile movement patterns and habitat selection to working on private land management practices and making structured environmental decisions. I received my PhD at the University of Queensland in 2020 investigating the exposure and contribution of carnivores to humans. I have studied the unrecognised benefits of predators and scavengers in human-dominated landscapes and the unique contribution of apex scavengers to ecosystems and human health. Since the completion of my PhD, I have worked as a postdoctoral researcher focusing on helping government make decisions to maximise their resources for effective conservation.
Journal Articles
de Andrade Junior, Milton A. U., Watson, James E. M., Williams, Brooke A., Allan, James R., O'Bryan, Christopher J. and Maxwell, Sean L. (2021). How to halve the carbon and biodiversity impacts of biofuel-driven land-use change in Brazil. Biological Conservation, 260 109214, 109214. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109214
O’Bryan, Christopher J., Patton, Nicholas R., Hone, Jim, Lewis, Jesse S., Berdejo‐Espinola, Violeta, Risch, Derek R., Holden, Matthew H. and McDonald‐Madden, Eve (2021). Unrecognized threat to global soil carbon by a widespread invasive species. Global Change Biology gcb.15769, 1-6. doi: 10.1111/gcb.15769
Braczkowski, Alexander, Fattebert, Julien, Schenk, Ralph, O'Bryan, Christopher, Biggs, Duan and Maron, Martine (2020). Evidence for increasing human-wildlife conflict despite a financial compensation scheme on the edge of a Ugandan National Park. Conservation Science and Practice, 2 (12). doi: 10.1111/csp2.309
O'Bryan, Christopher J., Garnett, Stephen T., Fa, John E., Leiper, Ian, Rehbein, Jose, Fernández‐Llamazares, Álvaro, Jackson, Micha V., Jonas, Harry D., Brondizio, Eduardo S., Burgess, Neil D., Robinson, Catherine J., Zander, Kerstin K., Venter, Oscar and Watson, James E.M. (2020). The importance of indigenous peoples’ lands for the conservation of terrestrial mammals. Conservation Biology, 35 (3) cobi.13620, 1002-1008. doi: 10.1111/cobi.13620
O'Bryan, Christopher J., Braczkowski, Alexander R., Magalhães, Ricardo J. Soares and McDonald-Madden, Eve (2020). Conservation epidemiology of predators and scavengers to reduce zoonotic risk. The Lancet Planetary Health, 4 (8), e304-e305. doi: 10.1016/S2542-5196(20)30166-2
O'Bryan, Christopher J., Allan, James R., Holden, Matthew, Sanderson, Christopher, Venter, Oscar, Di Marco, Moreno, McDonald-Madden, Eve and Watson, James E.M. (2020). Intense human pressure is widespread across terrestrial vertebrate ranges. Global Ecology and Conservation, 21 e00882, e00882. doi: 10.1016/j.gecco.2019.e00882
Allan, James R., Watson, James E M, Marco, Moreno Di, O'Bryan, Christopher J., Possingham, Hugh P., Atkinson, Scott C. and Venter, Oscar (2019). Erratum: Correction: Hotspots of human impact on threatened terrestrial vertebrates (PLoS biology (2019) 17 3 (e3000158)). PLoS Biology, 17 (12) e3000598. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3000598
Braczkowski, Alexander, Ruzo, Andrés, Sanchez, Fatima, Castagnino, Romi, Brown, Chip, Guynup, Sharon, Winter, Steve, Gandy, Devlin and O'Bryan, Christopher (2019). The ayahuasca tourism boom: an undervalued demand driver for jaguar body parts?. Conservation Science and Practice, 1 (12). doi: 10.1111/csp2.126
O'Bryan, Christopher J., Holden, Matthew H. and Watson, James E.M. (2019). The mesoscavenger release hypothesis and implications for ecosystem and human well‐being. Ecology Letters, 22 (9) ele.13288, 1340-1348. doi: 10.1111/ele.13288
Allan, James R., Watson, James E. M., Di Marco, Moreno, O’Bryan, Christopher J., Possingham, Hugh P., Atkinson, Scott C. and Venter, Oscar (2019). Hotspots of human impact on threatened terrestrial vertebrates. PLOS Biology, 17 (3) e3000158, e3000158. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3000158
Braczkowski, Alexander, Holden, Matthew H., O'Bryan, Christopher, Choi, Chi-Yeung, Gan, Xiaojing, Beesley, Nicholas, Gao, Yufang, Allan, James, Tyrrell, Peter, Stiles, Daniel, Brehony, Peadar, Meney, Revocatus, Brink, Henry, Takashina, Nao, Lin, Ming-Ching, Lin, Hsien-Yung, Rust, Niki, Salmo, Severino G., Watson, James Em, Kahumbu, Paula, Maron, Martine, Possingham, Hugh P. and Biggs, Duan (2018). Reach and messages of the world's largest ivory burn. Conservation Biology, 32 (4), 765-773. doi: 10.1111/cobi.13097
O'Bryan, Christopher J., Braczkowski, Alexander R., Beyer, Hawthorne L., Carter, Neil H., Watson, James E. M. and McDonald-Madden, Eve (2018). Author correction: The contribution of predators and scavengers to human well-being. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 2 (5), 911-911. doi: 10.1038/s41559-018-0527-1
Braczkowski, Alexander R., O'Bryan, Christopher J., Stringer, Martin J., Watson, James E. M., Possingham, Hugh P. and Beyer, Hawthorne L. (2018). Leopards provide public health benefits in Mumbai, India. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 16 (3), 176-182. doi: 10.1002/fee.1776
O’Bryan, Christopher J., Braczkowski, Alexander R., Beyer, Hawthorne L., Carter, Neil H., Watson, James E. M. and McDonald-Madden, Eve (2018). The contribution of predators and scavengers to human well-being. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 2 (2), 229-236. doi: 10.1038/s41559-017-0421-2
O'Bryan, C. J., Homyack, J. A., Baldwin, R. F., Kanno, Y. and Harrison, A. -L. (2016). Novel habitat use supports population maintenance in a reconfigured landscape. Ecosphere, 7 (3) e01228, e01228. doi: 10.1002/ecs2.1228
Homyack, Jessica A., O'Bryan, Christopher J., Thornton, Jamie E. and Baldwin, Robert F. (2016). Community occupancy of herpetofauna in roadside ditches in a managed pine landscape. Forest Ecology and Management, 361, 346-357. doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2015.11.037
O'Bryan, Chris J., Hamed, M. Kevin, Coffey, J. Wallace, Rowell, Brent and Laughlin, Thomas F. (2015). Apalone spinifera (Spiny Softshell). Herpetological Review, 46 (3), 214-214.
Homyack, Jessica A., O'Bryan, Christopher J., Thornton, Jamie E. and Baldwin, Robert F. (2014). Anuran assemblages associated with roadside ditches in a managed pine landscape. Forest Ecology and Management, 334, 217-231. doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2014.08.035
O'Bryan, Christopher J., Gray, Matthew J. and Brooks, Chad S. (2012). Further presence of ranavirus infection in amphibian populations of Tennessee, USA. Herpetological Review, 43 (2), 293-295.
O'Bryan, Christopher J., Jones, Andrew W. and Coffey, J. Wallace (2008). Southwest Virginia's first winter nest record of barn owl (Tyto alba). The Raven, 79 1, 3-4.
Thesis
O'Bryan, Christopher Joel (2020). The exposure and contribution of predators and scavengers to humans. PhD Thesis, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland. doi: 10.14264/uql.2020.204
Newspaper Articles
Braczkowski, Alexander Richard, O'Bryan, Christopher, Biggs, Duan, Fattebert, Julien and Maron, Martine (2021, 01 12). Why paying people to tolerate wildlife is not the magic bullet for conservation The Conversation
Braczkowski, Alexander Richard , O'Bryan, Christopher J., Biggs, Duan and Jansen, Raymond (2020, 06 07). Un esfuerzo pionero para salvar al pangolín de la extinción The Conversation
O'Bryan, Christopher J. and Watson, James (2020, 02 27). ‘Intense’ human pressure is widespread among terrestrial vertebrates, study finds Mongabay
Allan, James , O'Bryan, Christopher J. and Watson, James (2019, 03 13). Guns, snares and bulldozers: new map reveals hotspots for harm to wildlife The Conversation
O'Bryan, Christopher, McDonald-Madden, Eve, Watson, James and Carter, Neil (2018, 04 23). Helping farmers and reducing car crashes: the surprising benefits of predators The Conversation
O'Bryan, Christopher J. and Watson, James (2018, 03 09). We should embrace scavengers and predators Scientific American
O'Bryan, Christopher and Braczkowski, Alexander Richard (2018, 03 08). Leopards in a city park in India may help lower human injuries and deaths from stray dog bites The Conversation