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Behaviour, Ecology, and Physiology at Bangor

We conduct research relevant to a broad range of subjects and biological systems to understand the behaviour, ecology, and physiology of animals.

On this page:
A grayling butterfly sitting on a human finger, with the view of Conwy/Pen from the Great Orme in the background
Credit:Benjamin Jarrett

Our research

Our research addresses both fundamental questions about how and why animals do what they do. We seek to explore how animals respond and interact with their environment, to better understand how they cope with environmental change. With this approach, we can also ask applied questions relevant to the conservation and welfare of animals. Our research is interdisciplinary and global,  and we use both laboratory and field-based methods to study the behaviour, ecology, and physiology of animals.

Topics we study

Our research topics include:

  • animal behaviour
  • climate change effects
  • navigation and migration
  • biomechanics of animal movement
  • reproductive physiology
  • sensory ecology

We cover a diversity of research topics. Each staff member has a blurb outlining their research below, so please click on to their profiles to learn more about what each of us is currently researching.

Meet the team

A bird feeding from the hand of Dr Nikole Freeman

Dr Nikole Freeman

Koley is a ecophysiologist interested in how the environment shapes physiology and behaviour of birds and mammals

Headshot of Nia Whiteley

Prof. Nia Whiteley

Nia is an environmental physiologist with an interest in studying how aquatic organisms adjust to environmental change focusing on respiration, acid-base balance, metabolism, protein synthesis and growth.

male standing in forest bird approaching to eat from his hand

Dr Alex Sutton

Alex is a global change ecologist interested in understanding the drivers of differential responses to climate change.

Alex standing with palm trees and vegetation in the background

Dr Alexander Georgiev

Alex is a primatologist and evolutionary anthropologist studying how the Zanzibar red colobus monkey is coping (or not) with anthropogenic change.

Kat Jones in a bird hide

Dr Katherine Jones

Kat is interested in how animals respond to danger from predators and humans.

Dr Mark Mainwaring on the coast with binoculars around his neck

Dr Mark Mainwaring

Mark examines how environmental conditions influence avian reproduction and life histories in the Anthropocene.

Benjamin Jarrett on the Great Orme with the view of Conwy behind him

Dr Benjamin Jarrett

Benjamin is an evolutionary ecologist who uses insects to answer evolutionary questions about social behaviour and invasive species.

Dr Darren Parker with a net collecting insects in a field

Dr Darren Parker

Darren is an evolutionary biologist interested in the causes and consequences of different reproductive strategies in insects.

Dr James Hicks looking at a lizard he is holding in his hand

Dr James Hicks

James is a herpetologist interested in how reptiles and amphibians adapt to changing environments

Will holding an eagle with vegetation in the background

Dr Will Schneider

Will has a background in electronic engineering, and now utilises it to answer a wide range of questions related to animal behaviour.

Dr Kristen Crandell holding a bird

Dr Kristen Crandell

Kris is a biomechanist interested in how animals move through their environments, using basic engineering principles to answer questions about ecology and evolution across taxa

Lady standing holding cameras on a boat in the sea

Dr Ewa Krzyszczyk

Ewa is a marine zoologist interested in behaviour and conservation of marine mammals, fish, and a variety of marine ecosystems (reefs, mangroves, seagrass).

Daniela De Angeli Dutra standing on a beach with sea and mountains behind

Dr Daniela De Angeli Dutra

Daniela is a parasite and disease ecologist investigating what drives parasite/disease transmission, spread, and emergence and their link with environmental degradation and global change.

Caroline standing in the African savannah with a herd of zebra in the background

Dr Caroline Bettridge

Caroline is a behavioural ecologist interested in the ecology and evolution of social systems, and reproductive and mating strategies in primates.

Dr Kirsty MacLeod measuring a lizard

Dr Kirsty MacLeod

Kirsty is interested in the intersection between behaviour and physiology, particularly relating to social behaviour, parental care, maternal effects and stress, primarily but not exclusively in reptiles

Dr Amy Ellison

Dr Amy Ellison

Amy studies host-microbiome-pathogen interactions and co-evolution, with a particular interest in circadian rhythms in relation to disease dyanmics.

Dr Graeme Shannon with three elephants in the background

Dr Graeme Shannon

Graeme's research focuses on large herbivore ecology and the effects of anthropogenic disturbance on wildlife behaviour.

Pete Haswell standing on a hill holding a radio antenna

Dr Pete Haswell

Pete is a wildlife biologist working to conserve, restore, and understand biodiversity and ecological processes.

Dr Tyler Hallman standing in a stream surrounded by trees with a scope and binoculars in his hands

Dr Tyler Hallman

Tyler is a wildlife ecologist interested in modelling the spatial and temporal effects of anthropogenic environmental change on wildlife, using remotely sensed and community science data.

Luci Kirkpatrick in a hard hat sitting under a tree

Dr Luci Kirkpatrick

Luci is a disease ecologist, researching how landscape changes influence animal movement, behaviour and key population processes such as population fluctuations and zoonotic disease spillover.

Man climbing to viewing tower, surrounded by trees

Dr Farnon Ellwood

Farnon is an entomologist specialising in community ecology, trying to understand ecological interactions in Malaysian Borneo.

Professor George Turner standing in the river with a fishing net

Prof. George Turner

George Turner studies the biodiversity and evolution of African freshwater fish, especially Lake Malawi cichlids and tilapias.

Charles Bishop holding a large bird of prey in Mongolia

Dr Charles Bishop

Charles is interested in the morphological and physiological adaptations that underlie inter- and intra-specific differences in animal locomotor abilities and their energetic costs.

Richard holding a bird

Prof. Richard Holland

Richard's research questions focus on the cognitive processes and sensory mechanisms by which animals navigate and migrate.

Svenja standing on the coast with a cliff and the sea behind

Dr Svenja Tidau

Svenja is a global change biologist interested in how natural and anthropogenic changes in the environment affect (marine) animals in their behaviour, interactions, development, and physiology.

John Mulley standing next to a dinosaur

Dr John Mulley

John is an evolutionary developmental biologist interested in how changes at the genome-level impact embryonic development, and how this contributes to the generation of morphological diversity.

Whitney Fleming with a valley in the background

Dr Whitney Fleming

Whitney is a researcher with expertise in environmental psychology, human-nature interactions, and well-being, exploring how biodiversity, social factors, and accessibility shape experiences in natural environments.

Rhea Burton holding a radio antenna in the African savannah

Dr Rhea Burton

Rhea focuses on the influence of resource variability on the movement behaviour of African elephants, across spatiotemporal scales.

Our PhD students

Penny Downes standing in the savannah with three elephants in the background

Penny Downes

Penny is a conservation biologist studying human-wildlife interactions using interdisciplinary techniques in social sciences and animal behaviour.

Patrick Allsop looking at trees through binoculars

Patrick Allsop

Patrick is a primatologist interested in how patterns of natal dispersal differ between forests and anthropogenic habitats.

Miary Raselimanana holding a chameleon

Miary Raselimanana

Miary is a herpetologist, ecologist, and conservation biologist studying winter climate change effects on temperate reptiles.

Charlotte Bendell next to some flowers, measuring something

Charlotte Bendell

Charlotte is studying microenvironmental effects on hole nesting birds in North Wales and the Netherlands.

Joe Roy standing on a beach with the sunset behind him

Joe Roy

Joe explores how natural soundscapes influence human emotions and well-being, with a focus on auditory experiences, multi-sensory integration, and their potential applications in therapeutic, urban, and public engagement contexts.

Recent Publications

A selection of recent publications from BEPS researchers is listed here, but for all the latest publications, please check individual researcher pages linked above.

  • A continuous feast of bramble: Rubus fruticosus agg. is a key cross-seasonal dietary resource for a fallow deer population Gresham, A., Pillay, K., Healey, J., Eichhorn, M., Ellison, A., Lowe, A., Cordes, L., Creer, S. & Shannon, G., 2025, Ecological Solutions and Evidence. 6, 1 10.1002/2688-8319.70008
  • Wood trait-decay relationships vary with topography and rainfall seasonality in a subtropical forest in China Wu, D., Chen, Y., Ellwood, M. D. F., Shao, Z., Wang, Y., H. C. Cornelissen, J. & Chu, C., 2025, Journal of Ecology. 113, 3, p. 763-777 10.1111/1365-2745.70006
  • Knowledge transmission, culture and the consequences of social disruption in wild elephants Bates, L., Fishlock, V. L., Plotnik, J., de Silva, S. & Shannon, G.,  2025, Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 380, 1925, 20240132 10.1098/rstb.2024.0132
  • Adjustable wind selectivity in shearwaters implies knowledge of the foraging landscape Harris, S., Bishop, C. M., Bond, S., Fernandes, P. G., Guilford, T., Lewin, P. J., Padget, O., Robins, P., Schneider, W., Waggitt, J., Wilmes, S.-B. & Cordes, L., 2025, Current Biology 10.1016/j.cub.2024.12.017
  • Meta-analysis reveals that phenotypic plasticity and divergent selection promote reproductive isolation during incipient speciation Jarrett, B. J. M., Downing, P. A. & Svensson, E. I., 2025, Nature Ecology and Evolution. 9, p. 883-844 10.1038/s41559-025-02687-7
  • A Newly Discovered Symbiotic Relationship Between Giant Cowbirds (Molothrus oryzivorus) and South American Tapirs (Tapirus terrestris) in Suriname Backshall, S., Dunn, C. & Mainwaring, M. C., 2025, Austral Ecology. 50, 1, e70020 10.1111/aec.70020
  • Dynamics of X chromosome hyper-expression and inactivation in male tissues during stick insect development Djordjevic, J., Tran Van, P., Toubiana, W., Labédan, M., Dumas, Z., Aury, J.-M., Cruaud, C., Istace, B., Labadie, K., Noel, B., Parker, D. J. & Schwander, T., 2025, PLoS Genetics. 21, 3, p. e1011615 10.1371/journal.pgen.1011615
  • Elevating local perspectives for equity in ecological research. de Angeli Dutra, D., Erikson, A., Genes, L., Dirzo, R. & Venturini, A. M., 2025, Trends in Ecology and Evolution. 40, 5, p. 415-418 10.1016/j.tree.2025.03.006

Opportunities

If you are interested in completing postgraduate research (MRes or PhD) with us please contact individual staff members to discuss.