[1][2] Pringle's research combines field and laboratory methods to understand biological interactions and biodiversity loss in terrestrial ecosystems, chiefly African savannas.

[3] One major focus of Pringle's work has been understanding the ecological impacts of armed conflict and the dynamics of postwar ecosystem restoration in Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park.

[14][15] Pringle's early research experimentally documented the keystone roles played by large herbivores, carnivores, and subterranean termites in regulating biodiversity and ecosystem function in savannas.

[18][19][20][21] Pringle also worked with Princeton colleagues Corina Tarnita and Juan Bonachela to develop new theories about the formation of large, regular vegetation patterns, such as the Namib Desert fairy circles.

[22][23] Pringle's work in Gorongosa has focused on measuring the ecological and evolutionary impacts of losing large herbivores and carnivores, as well as the dynamics of community reassembly as these species have been restored.