Broadly, my research focus is categorised by the following themes -
Ecological restoration - global and local outlook
Globally, ecological restoration could help achieve people's natural resource needs, carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation goals. My research combines several nationally and globally available datasets to understand the enabling conditions of successful restoration projects and the social and ecological outcomes of different kinds of restoration.
At a local scale, natural regeneration of forests is considered the most cost effective restoration method to achieve forest restoration targets. However, when left to naturally regenerate, what grows and why? Using a mixed deciduous forest in central India as a study system, my research aims to understand forest growth dynamics under different anthropogenic pressures and degrees of invasion by an invasive species, Lantana camara.
Representative publications:
Choksi, P., Kotian, M.*, Burivalova, Z., DeFries, R. Social and ecological outcomes of tropical dry forest restoration through invasive species removal in Central India. 2023. Ecological Indicators 155(111054).
Choksi, P., Agrawal, A., Bialy, I., Chaturvedi, R., Frankel, K.D., Dhyani, S., Fleischman, F., Lechner, J., Nagendra, H., Srinivasan, V., Defries. R. Combining socioeconomic and biophysical data to identify people-centric restoration opportunities. 2023. npj Biodiversity 2 (7).
DeFries, R., Agarwala, M., Baquie, S., Choksi, P., Khanwilkar, S., Mondal, P., Nagendra, H. & Urpelainen, J. 2021. Improved Household Living Standards can Restore Dry Tropical Forest. Biotropica 00:1–11.
At a local scale, natural regeneration of forests is considered the most cost effective restoration method to achieve forest restoration targets. However, when left to naturally regenerate, what grows and why? Using a mixed deciduous forest in central India as a study system, my research aims to understand forest growth dynamics under different anthropogenic pressures and degrees of invasion by an invasive species, Lantana camara.
Representative publications:
Choksi, P., Kotian, M.*, Burivalova, Z., DeFries, R. Social and ecological outcomes of tropical dry forest restoration through invasive species removal in Central India. 2023. Ecological Indicators 155(111054).
Choksi, P., Agrawal, A., Bialy, I., Chaturvedi, R., Frankel, K.D., Dhyani, S., Fleischman, F., Lechner, J., Nagendra, H., Srinivasan, V., Defries. R. Combining socioeconomic and biophysical data to identify people-centric restoration opportunities. 2023. npj Biodiversity 2 (7).
DeFries, R., Agarwala, M., Baquie, S., Choksi, P., Khanwilkar, S., Mondal, P., Nagendra, H. & Urpelainen, J. 2021. Improved Household Living Standards can Restore Dry Tropical Forest. Biotropica 00:1–11.
Bioacoustics and soundscape ecology
Faunal diversity differs as a response to vegetative composition, anthropogenic disturbances and landscape management. Thus, does a change in vegetation lead to change in different aspects of faunal vocalisations? My research examines the spatial and temporal variation in the vocalisations of fauna over a period of 5 years as a response to forest structure and composition in central India. While I study the soundscapes of central India, I collaborate with scientists studying bioacoustics in other corners of the country. Read more about Project Dhvani, a long term bioacoustics monitoring project in collaboration with other Indian scientists.
Representative articles
Choksi, P., Kotian, M.*, Biniwale, S., Mourya, P., Korche, D., Agarwala, M., Khanwilkar, S., Ramesh, V. & Defries, R. Listening for Change: Using acoustics to evaluate the impact of ecological restoration of a tropical dry forest. 2023. Restoration Ecology.
Kotian, M., Sundar, P., Sangwan, T., & Choksi, P. Passive acoustic data yields insights into bird vocalization behavior associated with invasive shrub removal. 2024. Biotropica, 00, e13330.
Representative articles
Choksi, P., Kotian, M.*, Biniwale, S., Mourya, P., Korche, D., Agarwala, M., Khanwilkar, S., Ramesh, V. & Defries, R. Listening for Change: Using acoustics to evaluate the impact of ecological restoration of a tropical dry forest. 2023. Restoration Ecology.
Kotian, M., Sundar, P., Sangwan, T., & Choksi, P. Passive acoustic data yields insights into bird vocalization behavior associated with invasive shrub removal. 2024. Biotropica, 00, e13330.
Rural livelihoods and the environment
Seasonal migration from rural landscapes to cities and towns is a common rural livelihood strategy in India. Migration as a response to climatic events is variable, based on several factors, such as the economic constraints of an individual. My research quantifies the relative sensitivity of a decision to migrate for the first time to climate and socio-economic variables and how the sensitivities vary for different segments of the population.
Further, as rural livelihoods change, traditional agriculture, which was once the only option available to many in rural landscapes, is also changing. I study the fate of traditional agricultural lands and a household's changing socio-economic condition, when traditional millet agriculture falls out of favour.
Representative publications:
Choksi, P., Singh, D., Singh, J., Mondal, P., Nagendra, H., Urpelainen, J. & DeFries, R. 2021. Sensitivity of Seasonal Migration to Climatic Variability in Central India. Environ. Res. Lett. 16:06.
Further, as rural livelihoods change, traditional agriculture, which was once the only option available to many in rural landscapes, is also changing. I study the fate of traditional agricultural lands and a household's changing socio-economic condition, when traditional millet agriculture falls out of favour.
Representative publications:
Choksi, P., Singh, D., Singh, J., Mondal, P., Nagendra, H., Urpelainen, J. & DeFries, R. 2021. Sensitivity of Seasonal Migration to Climatic Variability in Central India. Environ. Res. Lett. 16:06.
Urban green spaces and human well being
An idea that arose from an informal discussion about noise pollution in Mumbai is now a small scientific passion project to determine the value of the soundscapes of green spaces in a bustling city. We are currently using a private forest and nearby neighbourhood as pilot sites to collect acoustic data and characterize the soundscapes. We also use acoustics to determine the effect of anthropogenic noise on urban soundscapes and avian species in Mumbai. This study aims to inform the city’s development policy, especially with respect to traffic and sound level management to conserve soundscapes in the city.
Representative publications:
Choksi, P., Variyar, P., Kotian, M., Rao, A., Shirodkar, G. In review. Urban forests are important reserves for biophony-rich soundscapes in hyper-urbanized environments.
Representative publications:
Choksi, P., Variyar, P., Kotian, M., Rao, A., Shirodkar, G. In review. Urban forests are important reserves for biophony-rich soundscapes in hyper-urbanized environments.