Fredrik Widemo

I work in an integrated manner with research, environmental monitoring, and teaching on the co-management of ungulates, agricultural land, and forests in Swedish production landscapes. My research encompasses both natural and social science questions and methods, focusing both on ecological processes and on understanding  the attitudes and behaviours of different stakeholders toward wildlife and the effects of wildlife on the landscape.

I currently conduct research mainly within the following areas:

Multi-species management of ungulates

Red deer, fallow deer, and wild boar are currently expanding their ranges in Sweden. Mouflon sheep are also locally established. In part, this creates new ungulate communities, with different grazing and browsing pressures and altered competition for forage. This expansion can be expected to increase under ongoing climate change, while more cold-adapted species such as moose appear to be disadvantaged.

Ungulate species therefore affect one another, but wildlife management has so far largely had a “single-species focus.” Within the completed research programme Beyond Moose (2016–2022), we analysed how intra- and interspecific competition affects different ungulate communities in Swedish production landscapes, and evaluated and developed inventory methods to monitor ungulate populations and their impacts on the landscape.

I am now continuing this work by studying how different ungulate communities use forage resources and affect the landscape, partly by using data from the environmental monitoring programme Balanced Ungulate Populations, which I lead. The project is funded by the Forest Damage Centre at SLU. In parallel, I lead the projects Moose Quality in the North and Moose Forage in the North, where we study how forage availability, climate, and wildlife management affect moose condition. These projects are carried out in collaboration with the County Administrative Boards in northern Sweden, the Swedish Association for Hunting and Wildlife Management, and large-scale forestry companies.

Co-management of ecosystem services from ungulates, agriculture, and forestry

Ungulates provide various ecosystem services, such as game meat from hunting or recreational values from hunting and wildlife watching. At the same time, ungulates limit ecosystem services from agriculture and forestry through their browsing pressure. This may in turn lead to wildlife-adapted measures in farming, for example changes in crop choice or tree species selection during replanting. Ungulates thus influence the landscape and the possibilities for land use, while land use simultaneously affects ungulates. Since different ecosystem services limit one another, it is necessary to find trade-offs between them.

I lead ecological research on how ungulates limit opportunities for agricultural and forestry production, while also studying different stakeholders’ attitudes toward wildlife, wildlife damage, and wildlife management systems.

Among other projects, I lead Future Yields – impacts of browsing on stand structure, forest growth and revenue in forestry, where we study the effects of ungulates on the possibilities for forestry. The project is funded by the SLU Forest Damage Centre. In several of my projects, the Heureka decision support system is used to examine the effects of different management actions and damage on future forest stands and their potential to deliver ecosystem services.

Effects of grazing & browsing pressure on biodiversity

There is broad consensus in conservation biology that grazing by domestic livestock has positive effects on biodiversity, both in open landscapes and in forests. Moderate grazing pressure often produce habitat heterogeneity and positive effects, in line with the “intermediate disturbance hypothesis.” However, knowledge and understanding are less developed regarding the extent to which grazing and browsing from wild ungulates compensate for declining grazing pressures from domestic animals in the landscape, and how the composition of ungulate communities influences these effects.

My research aims to address these questions through observational and experimental studies of the effects of ungulates on plants and invertebrates.

I lead the project Effects of Ungulates on Biodiversity in Swedish Production Forests, in which we investigate these issues. The project is funded by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency.

Delivery of ecosystem services from different forms of forest management

Private forest owners own approximately half of Sweden’s forest land and often have diverse objectives for their ownership. Despite this, Swedish forestry is largely conducted according to standardized practices, with conifer monocultures as the goal and clear-cut forestry as the dominant management regime. Why is this the case? Can we achieve a more diverse landscape if individual forest owners gain better knowledge of how to reach their own objectives, while at the same time generating general knowledge about the different values produced by various management approaches?

I lead the project Multiple choice of goals in forestry- voluntary transition of Swedish forest ecosystems to increase multifunctionality & sustainability. The project is funded by Formas.

Reproductive biology of small mammals in relation to hunting seasons

The periods during which game species may be hunted are determined partly by management needs and partly by ethical considerations. The ethical considerations required are, in turn, largely governed by the reproductive biology of the species. Currently, we investigate the timing of reproduction in red fox (Vulpes vulpes), Eurasian badger (Meles meles), pine marten (Martes martes), European polecat (Mustela putorius), mountain hare (Lepus timidus), European hare (Lepus europaeus), and Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber), as well as when and how these species are currently hunted.

I lead the programme Reproductive Timing in Small Mammals in a Changing World, which is funded by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency inn preparation for the next review of hunting seasons.

Successful co-management of multi-species systems will require increased monitoring efforts and methods adapted to a greater number of species than is currently the case. There is a clear need for close interaction between research, environmental monitoring, and management. In my role as coordinator of the environmental monitoring programme Wildlife (Vilt), I work to ensure purpose-driven and high-quality monitoring of wildlife and its effects on the landscape. This work largely involves coordinating activities within SLU and between SLU and government authorities, often by acting as a catalyst; here, there are strong synergies with my role as senior lecturer with extension responsibilities in wildlife–forest interactions. I view the increasing focus on citizen science as important for the development of the environmental monitoring programme Wildlife (Vilt), and as an important component of democratization processes in wildlife management.

I also lead the environmental monitoring programme Balanced Ungulate Populations, where we track the distribution of ungulate populations, forage availability, and how ungulates utilize forage across twelve reference areas distributed throughout Sweden. The project is funded by the Forest Damage Centre.

I have many years of experience teaching in ecology and zoology, as well as serving as course coordinator for both introductory and advanced-level courses. 

Since 2019, I have been the course leader and principal lecturer for the course Wildlife Management & Implementation (BI1417). The course focuses on adaptive wildlife management in relation to other natural resources, particularly ecosystem services from agriculture and forestry. I am also responsible for the ungulate module within the master’s programme Fish & Wildlife Management (BI1299). Furthermore, I teach every year in the courses Ecological Disturbances in Forests - Silviculture Challenges Under Climate Change and Biodiversity & Ecosystem Services within SLU, as well as the course in Conservation Biology given by Lund University.