Diana Schmies
WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY & STORIES
My
Projects
Behind every species reintroduction, every protected site, and every hard-earned conservation success, there are people: scientists, volunteers, rangers, and sometimes entire communities. This section of my work explores human involvement in nature conservation — not as outsiders, but as active participants in the ecosystems we’ve shaped and, at times, endangered.
From hopeful stories of coexistence to unresolved human–wildlife conflicts, these projects highlight the complexity, fragility, and persistence at the heart of conservation.
The Runway Enclave – Where Ground Squirrels Take Off
The European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) has become a symbol of both loss and adaptation. Once widespread, the species has been pushed to the edge by habitat fragmentation and land-use change. But in recent years, carefully coordinated breeding and reintroduction efforts have offered new hope — often in surprising places like golf courses and airfields.
This project-in-progress follows conservation teams, rewilding sites, and the animals themselves in their semi-natural, semi-urban return.
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Monitoring, ringing, and weighing young Barn Owls is part of a broader conservation effort that helps this once widespread species recover.
