The J. E. Smith Lab is a research group led by Jennifer E.

Smith at the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire. Its inclusive, interdisciplinary work explores the evolutionary ecology of social mammals, bringing together animal behavior and physiology to investigate how natural selection and present-day conditions influence animal decisions and social life. The lab studies species including California ground squirrels, baboons, dolphins, elephants, beavers, and wolves.

Its research combines long-term field observations and experiments with genetic and endocrine analyses, social-network methods, phylogenetics, and other quantitative tools. This approach supports investigations into topics such as cooperation, predator responses, social learning, microbiomes, reproductive inequality, and the effects of human activity and conservation interventions on animal societies. The lab publishes its findings in scientific journals and shares research through talks, outreach, and media coverage.

It also provides teaching, mentorship, and research opportunities for students, including collaborative field projects and support for undergraduate scholarship. Through partnerships with researchers and institutions, the group contributes to scientific understanding of mammalian behavior and to efforts to protect social structures that matter for conservation