He has worked exclusively with wild animals in the field and in the lab to address questions in behavioral and evolutionary ecology. Sikes has worked with mammal species ranging from shrews to giant pandas and has dabbled with reptiles and fish. He serves as Professor of Biology and Director of the Basic Animal Services Unit at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Sikes is currently president of the American Society of Mammalogists and was senior author on the last two revisions of the Guidelines of the American Society of Mammalogists for the use of Wild Mammals in Research (2011 and 2016). With regard to oversight of animal use, he has long been interested in the fit of wild animals to guidelines and regulatory landscapes designed for domesticated species.