Location: 304 Environment Centre Wales

Tel: 01248 382318

Website: www.wildliferesearch.co.uk

My research and teaching centres on the fields of animal behaviour, ecology and conservation, with particular focus on the effects of human activities on wildlife, animal cognition and the behavioural ecology of large herbivores. I have studied African elephants over the past two decades, addressing questions on foraging and movement ecology as well as investigating the detailed social and ecological knowledge of elephant family groups and the role of the matriarch. The research that I have conducted on elephant cognition has involved extensive use of acoustic playbacks, whereby animal vocalisations are broadcast to study the responses of elephants to social and ecological threats. More recently, I have applied these playback techniques to understand the effects of anthropogenic noise - a growing source of environmental disturbance - on animal behavior and wildlife ecology. I am also interested in the role that large herbivores play in ecosystem function and structure in natural and human altered habitats. This has led to the development of a project exploring fallow deer behaviour and habitat utilisation in the Elwy Valley, North Wales.

Module organiser

• Behavioural Ecology (BSX2018) - second year
• Practical Skills 2 (BSX1031) - first year

Module contributor

• Advances in Behaviour (BNS3004) - third year
• Bioscience skills (BSX2021) - second year
• Invertebrates (BSX2017) - second year

I supervise third (BSX3070) and fourth year (BSM4000) undergraduate project students with a focus on topics in animal behaviour, ecology and conservation.

Postgraduate research students

Rhea Burton-Roberts (PhD) - Exploring how resource availability affects elephant movement across spatiotemporal scales

Owain Barton (PhD KESS II) -Environmental and human drivers of fallow deer movement and habitat use: Implications for disease and natural resource management

Amy Gresham (PhD Envision) - Quantifying the effects of fallow deer (Dama dama) on woodland structure in a human-altered landscape

Jenny Amphaeris (PhD) - Reconceptualising past models which portray language as a phenomenon distinct from communication across species

Bethan Pugh (MSc-Res KESS II) - Mink in Welsh waterways: The efficacy of invasive species control

Ellie Roylance-Casson (Msc-Res) - The Drivers of Sexual Dimorphism in Ungulates: Do Ungulates Follow Rensch’s Rule?

Alex Harcourt (Msc-Res) - Exploring the effects of artificial light at night on amphibian emergence behaviour

Jess Baggott (Msc-Res) - The effects of anthropogenic noise on foraging and vigilance in songbirds

I am keen to take on postgraduate students who are interested in exploring the effects of human activity on the ecology and behaviour of wildlife. More specifically, this includes projects: 1) Exploring how large herbivores adapt to human transformed habitats. 2) Understanding the habitat and ecosystem-level effects of expanding large herbivore populations. 3) Investigating the impacts of anthropogenic noise and artificial light at night on animal behaviour using lab and field-based studies. 4) Exploring the behavioural ecology of African elephants with a focus on movement ecology and cognition. More details at http://www.wildliferesearch.co.uk/Wildlife_Research/Research.html

2023

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2022

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2021

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2020

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2019

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2017

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2016

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2015

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2014

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2022

• Using remote activated cameras to estimate relative abundance and habitat preference of red squirrels

  Population estimates are essential for the conservation of wildlife. However, accurate estimates can be labour-intensive, particularly for small and medium-sized mammals where capture and handling of individuals is often required. Our study aimed to provide a robust and standardised method of determining red squirrel abundance using remotely activated cameras, while also quantifying how red squirrel abundance relates to key habitat characteristics. Fifty sample points were selected in four habitat categories in forests across Anglesey. We found a strong correlation (r = 0.78) between the number of red squirrels live-trapped over ten-days with the number of camera images recorded during a five-day period. Red squirrel abundance was negatively related to stand canopy openness, while the presence of Scots pine and increased tree species diversity were positively related to squirrel abundance. Our results demonstrate that remotely activated cameras can provide a suitable tool for surveying red squirrel abundance and guiding habitat management.

  19 Rhag 2022

  Gweithgaredd: Cyflwyniad llafar (Siaradwr)

• iDeer: An Integrated Deer Management Platform

  12/08/2022 – 30/09/2024 (Wrthi'n gweithredu)

• Red Squirrel survey

  01/09/2021 – 30/11/2022 (Wedi gorffen)

• KESS II MRes with British Association for shooting and conservation- BUK2193

  01/02/2020 – 31/10/2021 (Wedi gorffen)

• KESS II Phd with The Deer Initiative- BUK2145

  01/11/2017 – 30/11/2022 (Wedi gorffen)

• KESS II MRes with The Deer Initiative- BUK281

  01/11/2016 – 28/02/2020 (Wedi gorffen)