Within the field of animal behaviour we are especially interested in the mechanisms that enhance and stabilise social interactions in mammals. We aim to understand the adaptive significance of social behaviour, as well as how interactions with conspecifics structure groups and populations. The knowledge gained from our behavioural ecology studies on threatened species is used to advise on their conservation. We use ethological, ecological, physiological and molecular genetic methods in our studies on wild populations and lab animals. Currently, we work on small rodents, bats, carnivores, and also domestic cats and dogs.