- High Resolution geophysics - near surface multi-method geophysics, high-resolution marine geophysics for biological habitat appraisal, environmental geosciences and archaeological geosciences - Multi-component seismics - shear wave anisotropy, compressional wave AVA for fractured oil and gas reservoirs i in Rocky Mountain Basins, N. Africa and N. Sea

See Sedimentary Systems Research Unit for more information.

Behavioural dynamics of marine predators

The application of scale-based theoretical and statistical models to examine single- and multi-dimensional behavioural vectors of marine predators, particularly in relation to the distribution of food patches. The objective of this research is to :

- develop and test dynamic models of the way in which predator fitness varies in relation to the distribution and abundance of food and of how this ultimately influences the evolution of life-histories and the viability of predators in different environments;

- characterise the functional relationship (in terms of fitness) of animals to environmental variability and thereby to develop a predictive framework for population trajectories under different environmental conditions;

- examine the impact of marine predators on their food supply.

Recently, this research interest has focused upon the behavioural responses of highly cryptic marine mammals to sound sources, including anti-submarine sonars. This research has also involved extensive studies of bioenergetics and behaviour including the use of remote tracking and recording technology, often using high capacity data streams. The results from these studies are providing the foundation for the development of algorithms to calculate the direction and dynamics of energy flux through predators populations and for solving problems in behavioural optimisation in particular circumstances.

Development of ecosystem-based management procedures for the sustainable exploitation of marine resources. This interest lies at the interface between ecology, systems modelling and economics and applies risk-based modelling to decision-making in the context of environmental exploitation.

-use predators at the top of marine food chains as models of sustainable exploitation in marine ecosystems;

-through the use of signals from top food chain predators, to examine the underlying natural levels of variability from large-scale physical forcing of the ecosystem and to develop an appreciation of their role in marine resource management;

- to develop the conceptual and strategic models underlying ecosystem-based management

Ecological economics

This aims to bridge to gap between economics and ecology. Traditionally, ecological economics has stressed the importance of natural resources for commerce and conservation. In fact it covers the whole range of subjects from bioenergetics through to resource exploitation by commercial interests. The objectives are to:

- apply theory developed within economics to understanding the criteria used by animals when making investment decisions and also the evolutionary implications of those decisions.

- providing a better understanding of how we should place a value on natural resources (such as unexploited wildlife populations) which have no marketable value.

Behavioural dynamics of marine predators. The application of scale-based theoretical and statistical models to examine single- and multidimensional behavioural vectors of marine predators, particularly in relation to the distribution of food patches. The objective of this research is to :

* Develop and test dynamic models of the way in which predator fitness varies in relation to the distribution and abundance of food and of how this ultimately influences the evolution of life-histories and the viability of predators in different environments.

* Characterise the functional relationship (in terms of fitness) of animals to environmental variability and thereby to develop a predictive framework for population trajectories under different environmental conditions.

* Examine the impact of marine predators on their food supply. This research has involved extensive studies of bioenergetics and behaviour including the use of remote recording technology. The results from these studies are providing the foundation for the development of algorithms to calculate the direction and dynamics of energy flux through predators populations.

Current Projects

Life history optimisation and environmental variability in seals

The abundance of Mammals in the Deep Oceans

Behavioral responses of beaked whales and other deep-diving odontocetes to anthropogenic sounds

MPhil/PhD project opportunities:

• Potential students are welcome to contact me to discuss projects

We carry out research on the ecology and biology of zooplankton that live in the open ocean (the pelagic realm). We use combinations of acoustic (scientific echosounders) and netting techniques to sample zooplankton and gather data enabling us to estimate their abundance and map their distribution. We are seeking to understand processes that alter zooplankton abundance and distribution, and the consequences that changes in the zooplankton have for higher trophic levels (predators) and fisheries.

We are develping Bayesian Maximum Entropy techniques to reconstruct distributions of organisms from sparse acosutic survey data.

Publications in international, citation indexed, peer reviewed journals:

Quinn, J. L., Cole, E. F., Bates, J., Payne, R., & Cresswell, W. (2011) Personality predicts individual responsiveness to risk of starvation and predation. Proceedings of the Royal Society: Series B in press.

Couchoux, C. & Cresswell, W. (2011) Personality constraints versus flexible anti-predation behaviours: how important is boldness in risk management of redshanks (Tringa totanus) foraging in a natural system. Behavioral ecology doi: 10.1093/beheco/arr185.

Quinn, J.L. & Cresswell, W. (2011) Local prey vulnerability increases with multiple attacks by a predator. Oikos in press.

Cox, D.T.C, Brandt, M.J., McGregor, R., Ottosson, U., Stevens, M.C. & Cresswell, W. (2011) Patterns of seasonal and yearly mass variation in West African tropical savannah birds. Ibis in press.

Cresswell, W. (2011) Predation in bird populations. Journal of Ornithology 152 (Suppl 1):S251-S263.

Lord, A.M, McCleery, R. & Cresswell, W. (2011) Incubation prior to clutch completion accelerates embryonic development and so hatch date for eggs laid earlier in a clutch in the Great tit, Parus major. Journal of Avian Biology 42: 187-191.

Cresswell, W. & Quinn, J.L. (2011) Predicting the optimal group-size from predator hunting behaviour. Journal of Animal Ecology 80: 310-319.

Wilson, J.M. & Cresswell , W. (2010) Densities of Palearctic warblers and Afrotropical species within the same guild in Sahelian West Africa. Ostrich 81:225-232.

Cresswell, W. & Quinn, J.L. (2010) Attack frequency, attack success and choice of prey group size for two predators with contrasting hunting strategies. Animal Behaviour 80: 643-648.

Manu, S., Imong, I.S. & Cresswell W. (2010) Bird species richness and diversity at montane IBA sites in South Eastern Nigeria. Bird Conservation International 20:231-239.

Wilson, J.M. & Cresswell , W. (2010) The Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe in the Sahel of West Africa: distribution, seasonal variation in abundance and habitat associations. Ostrich 81:115-121.

Stevens, M.C., Sheehan, D.K., Wilson, J.M., Buchanan, G.M. & Cresswell, W. (2010) Changes in Sahelian bird biodiversity and tree density over a five year period in Northern Nigeria. Bird Study 57:156-174.

Cresswell, W., Lind, J. & Quinn, J.L. (2010) Predator hunting success and prey vulnerability: quantifying the spatial scale over which lethal and non-lethal effects of predation occur. Journal of Animal Ecology 79:556-562.

Jones, T. & Cresswell, W. (2010) The phenology mismatch hypothesis: Are declines of migrant birds linked to uneven global change? Journal of Animal Ecology 79:98-108.

Sansom, A., Lind, J. & Cresswell, W. (2009) Individual behaviour and survival: the roles of predator avoidance, foraging success and vigilance. Behavioral Ecology 20:1168-1174.

Cresswell, W., Clark, J. & Macleod, R. (2009) How climate change might influence the starvation-predation risk trade-off response. Proceedings of the Royal Society: Series B 276: 3553-3560.

W. Cresswell, W., Butler, S., Whittingham, M.J. &  Quinn. J.L. (2009) Very short delays prior to escape from potential predators may function efficiently as adaptive risk-assessment periods. Behaviour 146:795-813.

Brandt, M.J. & Cresswell W. (2009) Diurnal foraging routines in a tropical bird, the rock finch Lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis: how important is predation risk? Journal of Avian Biology 40:90-94.

Macleod, R., Clark, J. & Cresswell, W. (2008) The starvation-predation risk trade-off, body mass and population status in the Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris. Ibis 150 S1:199-208.

Cresswell W. & Whitfield D.P. (2008) How starvation risk in Redshanks results in predation mortality from Sparrowhawks. Ibis 150 S1:209-218.

Brandt, M.J. & Cresswell W. (2008) Breeding behaviour, home range and habitat selection in Rock Firefinches (Lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis) in the wet and dry season in central Nigeria. Ibis 150:495-507.

Sansom, S., Cresswell W., Minderman, J. & Lind, L. (2008) Vigilance benefits and competition costs in groups: do individual redshanks gain an overall foraging benefit? Animal Behaviour 75:1869-1875.

Cresswell, W. (2008) Non-lethal effects of predation risk in birds. Ibis150:3-17.

Garcia-del-Rey, E., Cresswell, W., Perrins, C.M. & Gosler, A.G. (2007). Evolutionary trends and extreme cases of life history traits in the Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus) on oceanic islands (Canary Islands). Ardeola 54:27-39.

Garcia-del-Rey, E., & Cresswell, W.  (2007). The breeding biology of the endemic Berthelot’s Pipit Anthus berthelotii in a harsh oceanic island environment (Tenerife, Canary Islands). Ostrich 78:583-589.
 
MacLeod, R., Lind,J., Clark J., & Cresswell W. (2007) Mass regulation in response to predation risk can indicate population declines. Ecology Letters 10: 945-955.

McGregor, R., Whittingham, M.J. & Cresswell, W. (2007) Survival rates of tropical birds in Nigeria, West Africa. Ibis 149:615-618.

Cresswell, W., Wilson, J.M., Vickery J., Jones, P. & Holt, S. (2007) Changes in densities of Sahelian bird species in response to recent habitat degradation. Ostrich 78:247-253.

Wilson, J.M. & Cresswell, W. (2007) Identification of potentially competing Afrotropical and Palearctic bird species in the Sahel. Ostrich 78:363-368.

McGregor, R.M., Ottosson, U. & Cresswell W. (2007) Moult of guinea savanna passerines in West Africa. Ostrich 78:287-290.

Manu, S. & Cresswell W. (2007) Addressing sampling bias in counting forest birds: a West African case study. Ostrich 78:281-286.

Cresswell, W., Lind, J., Quinn, J.L., Minderman, J. & Whitfield, D.P.  (2007) Ringing or colour-banding does not increase predation mortality in redshanks. Journal of Avian Biology 38:309-316.

Manu, S., Peach, W. & Cresswell, W. (2007) The effects of fragment size and degree of isolation on avian species richness in highly fragmented forest in West Africa. Ibis 149:287-297.

Watson, M., Aebischer, N.J. & Cresswell W. (2007) Vigilance and fitness in grey partridges Perdix perdix: the effects of group size and foraging-vigilance trade-offs on predation mortality. Journal of Animal Ecology 76:211-221.

Quinn, J.L., Whittingham, M.J., Butler, S.J. & Cresswell, W. (2006) Noise, predation risk compensation and vigilance in the chaffinch Fringilla coelebs. Journal of Avian Biology 37:601-608.

Wilson, J.M. & Cresswell, W. (2006) How robust are Palearctic migrants to habitat loss and degradation in the Sahel? Ibis 148:789-800.

Quinn, J.L. & Cresswell, W. (2006) Testing domains of danger in the selfish herd: sparrowhawks target widely spaced redshanks in flocks. Proceedings of the Royal Society: Series B 273:2521-2526.

Watson M., Wilson J. M., Koshkin M., Sherbakov B., Karpov F., Gavrilov A., Schielzeth, H., Brombacher M., Collar N.J. & Cresswell W. (2006) Nest survival and productivity of the critically endangered Sociable Lapwing Vanellus gregarious. Ibis 148:489-502.

Garcia-del-Rey, E., Cresswell, W., Perrins, C. & Gosler, A. (2006) Variable effects of laying date on clutch size in the Canary Island Blue Tits (group). Ibis 148:564-567.   

Minderman, J., Lind, J. & Cresswell W. (2006) Behaviourally mediated indirect effects: Interference competition increases predation mortality in foraging redshanks. Journal of Animal Ecology 75:713-723.

Lind, J. & Cresswell, W. (2006) Anti-predation behaviour during bird migration; the benefit of studying multiple behavioural dimensions. Journal of Ornithology 147:310-316.

MacLeod R., Barnett P., Clark J., Cresswell W. (2006) Mass-dependent predation risk as a mechanism for house sparrow declines? Biology Letters 2:43-46.

Butler,S.J., Whittingham,M.J., Quinn,J.L. & Cresswell,W. (2006) Time in captivity and individual differences influence experimental success: foraging trials on wild-caught chaffinches. Behaviour 143: 535-548.

Garcia-del-Rey, E. & Cresswell, W. (2006) Population size and habitat selection of the Feurteventura Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus degener). Ostrich 77:105-108.

Garcia-del-Rey, E. & Cresswell, W. (2005) Density estimates, microhabitat selection, and foraging behaviour of the endemic blue chaffinch Fringilla teydae teydae on Tenerife (Canary Islands). Ardeola 52: 305-317.

Manu, S., Peach, W., Bowden, C. & Cresswell W. (2005) The effects of forest fragmentation on the population density and distribution of the globally endangered Ibadan Malimbe Malimbus ibadanensis. Bird Conservation International 15: 275-285.

Quinn, J.L. & Cresswell, W. (2005) Personality and anti-predation behaviour in the chaffinch Fringilla coelebs. Behaviour 142: 1383-1408.

MacLeod, R., Gosler, A. & Cresswell, W. (2005). Diurnal mass gain strategies and perceived predation risk in the great tit, Parus major. Journal of Animal Ecology 74:956-964.

Lind, J. & Cresswell, W. (2005). Determining the fitness consequences of anti-predation behaviour. Behavioral Ecology 16:945-956.

Quinn, J.L. & Cresswell, W. (2005) Escape response delays in wintering redshank Tringa totanus flocks are explained by the perceptual limit and economic hypotheses. Animal Behaviour 69:1285-1292.

Githiru, M., Lens, L. & Cresswell W. (2005) Nest predation in a fragmented Afrotropical forest: evidence from natural and artificial nests. Biological Conservation 123:189-196.

MacLeod, R., Barnett, R.B., Clark, J. & Cresswell, W. (2005) Body mass change strategies in blackbirds Turdus merula: the starvation-predation risk trade-off. Journal of Animal Ecology 74:292-302.

Butler,S.J., Whittingham,M.J., Quinn,J.L. & Cresswell,W. (2005) Quantifying the interaction between food density and habitat structure in determining patch selection. Animal Behaviour 69:337-343.

Whittingham,M.J., Butler,S.J., Quinn,J.L. & Cresswell,W. (2004) The effect of limited visibility on vigilance behaviour and speed of predator detection. Oikos 106:377-385.

Cresswell, W., Holt, S., Reid, J.M., Whitfield, D.P., Mellanby, R.J., Norton, D., & Waldron, S. (2004) The energetic costs of egg heating constrain incubation attendance but do not determine daily energy expenditure in the Pectoral Sandpiper. Behavioral Ecology 15:498-507.

Catry, P., Campos, A., Almada, V. & Cresswell, W. (2004) Winter segregation of migrant European Robins Erithacus rubecula in relation to sex, age and size. Journal of Avian Biology 35:204-209.

Quinn, J.L. & Cresswell, W. (2004). Predator hunting behaviour and prey vulnerability. Journal of Animal Ecology 73:143-154.

Cresswell, W. & Quinn, J. (2004). Faced with a choice, predators select the most vulnerable group: implications for both predators and prey for monitoring relative vulnerability. Oikos 104:71-76.

Yasué, M., Quinn, J.L. & Cresswell, W. (2003). Multiple effects of weather on the starvation and predation risk trade-off in choice of feeding location in redshanks. Functional Ecology 17:727-736.

Cresswell, W., Lind, J., Kaby, U., Quinn, J.L. & Jakobsson, S. (2003). Does an opportunistic predator preferentially attack non-vigilant prey? Animal Behaviour 66: 643-648.

Cresswell,W. (2003). Testing the mass-dependent predation hypothesis: in European blackbirds poor foragers have higher overwinter body reserves. Animal Behaviour 65:1035-1044.

Cresswell, W., Quinn, J.L., Whittingham, M.J., & Butler, S. (2003). Good foragers can also be good at detecting predators. Proceedings of the Royal Society: Series B 270:1069-1076.

Cresswell W. & McCleery, R. (2003) How great tits maintain synchronisation of their hatch date with food supply in response to long term variability in temperature. Journal of Animal Ecology 72:356-366.

Cresswell, W., Holt, S., Reid, J.M., Whitfield, D.P. & Mellanby, R.J. (2003) Do the energetic demands of incubation constrain incubation scheduling in a biparental species. Behavioral Ecology 14:97-102.

Smith, R.D., Ruxton, G.D. & Cresswell, W. (2002) Do kleptoparasites reduce their own foraging effort in order to detect kleptoparasitic opportunities? An empirical test of a key assumption of kleptoparasitic models. Oikos 97: 205-212.

Reid, J.M., Cresswell, W., Holt, S., Mellanby, R.J., Whitfield, D.P. & Ruxton, G.D. (2002). Nest scrape design and clutch heat loss in Pectoral Sandpipers (Calidris melanotos). Functional Ecology 16:305-312.

McGowan, A., Cresswell, W. & Ruxton, G.D. (2002) The effects of daily weather variation on foraging and responsiveness to disturbance in overwintering Red Knot (Calidris canutus). Ardea 90:229-237.

Smith, R.D., Ruxton, G.D. & Cresswell, W. (2001) Patch choice decisions of wild blackbirds: the role of pre-harvest public information Animal Behaviour 61:1113-1124.

Smith, R.D., Ruxton, G.D. & Cresswell, W. (2001) Dominance and feeding interference in small groups of blackbirds Behavioral Ecology 12:475-481.

Cresswell, W. (2001). Relative competitive ability does not change over time in blackbirds. Journal of Animal Ecology 70:218-227.

Cresswell, W. , Smith, R.D. & Ruxton, G.D. (2001). Absolute foraging rate and susceptibility to interference competition in blackbirds varies with patch conditions. Journal of Animal Ecology 70:228-236.

Cresswell, W. Hilton, G.M.,& Ruxton, G.D. (2000) Evidence for a rule governing the avoidance of superfluous escape flights. Proceedings of the Royal Society: Series B 267:1069-1076.

Cresswell, W. (1999). Travel distance and mass gain in wintering blackbirds. Animal Behaviour 58:1109-1116.

Hilton, G.M., Ruxton, G.D. & Cresswell, W. (1999) Choice of foraging area with respect to predation risk in redshanks: the effects of weather and predator activity. Oikos 87:295-302.

Hilton, G.M., Cresswell, W. & Ruxton, G.D. (1999) Intra-flock variation in the speed of escape-flight response on attack by an avian predator. Behavioural Ecology 10: 391-395.

Whitfield D.P., Cresswell W., Ashmole N.P., Clark N.A. & Evans A.D. (1999) No evidence for Sparrowhawks selecting Redshanks according to size and condition. Journal of Avian Biology 30:31-39.

Cresswell, W., Yerokhov, S., Berezovikov, N., Mellanby, R., Bright, S., Catry, P., Chaves, J., Freile, J., Gretton, A., Zykin, A., McGregor, R. & McLaughlin, D. (1999). Important wetlands in northern and eastern Kazakstan. Wildfowl 50:181-194.

Vickery, J., Thomas D., Rowcliffe, M., Cresswell, W., Jones, P. & Holt, S. (1999) Habitat selection of whitethroats during spring passage in the Sahel zone of northern Nigeria. Bird Study 46: 348-355.

Cresswell, W., M. Hughes, R. Mellanby, S. Bright, P. Catry, J. Chaves, J. Freile, A. Gabela, H. Martineau, R. MacLeod, F. McPhee, N. Anderson, S. Holt, S. Barabas, C. Chapel & T. Sanchez (1999) Densities and habitat preferences of Andean cloud-forest birds in pristine and degraded habitats in northeastern Ecuador. Bird Conservation International 9:124-145.

Cresswell, W. (1998) Relative competitive ability changes with competitor density: evidence from foraging blackbirds. Animal Behaviour 56:1367-1373.

Cresswell, W. (1998) Variation in the strength of interference competition with resource density in blackbirds Turdus merula. Oikos 81:152-160.

Cresswell, W. (1998) Diurnal and seasonal mass variation in blackbirds Turdus merula: consequences for mass-dependent predation risk. Journal of Animal Ecology 67:78-90.

Cresswell, W. (1997) Interference competition at low competitor densities in blackbirds Turdus merula. Journal of Animal Ecology 66:461-471.

Cresswell, W. (1997) Nest predation rates and nest detectability at different stages of breeding in blackbirds Turdus merula. Journal of Avian Biology 28:296-302.

Cresswell, W. (1997) Nest predation: the relative effects of nest characteristics, clutch size and parental behaviour. Animal Behaviour 53:93-103.

Cresswell, W., Irwin, M., Jensen, M., Mee, A., Mellanby, R., McKean, M. & Milne, L. (1997) Population estimates and distribution changes of landbirds on Silhouette Island, Seychelles. Ostrich 68: 50-57.

Cresswell, W. (1996) Surprise as a winter hunting strategy in Sparrowhawks Accipiter nisus, Peregrines Falco peregrinus and Merlins F. columbarius. Ibis 138:684-692.

Jones, P., Vickery, J., Holt, S., & Cresswell, W. (1996) A preliminary assessment of some factors influencing the density and distribution of Palearctic passerine migrants wintering in the Sahel zone of West Africa. Bird Study 43:73-84.

Cresswell, W. (1995) Selection of avian prey by wintering sparrowhawks Accipiter nisus in southern Scotland. Ardea 83:381-389.

Cresswell, W. (1994) Age-dependent choice of redshank (Tringa totanus) feeding location: profitability or risk? Journal of Animal Ecology 63:589-600.

Cresswell, W. (1994) Flocking is an effective anti-predation strategy in Redshanks, Tringa totanus. Animal Behaviour 47: 433-442.

Cresswell, W. (1994) The function of alarm calls in redshanks, Tringa totanus. Animal Behaviour 47:736-738.

Cresswell, W. (1994) Song as a pursuit-deterrent signal, and its occurrence relative to other anti-predation behaviours of skylark (Alauda arvensis) on attack by merlins (Falco columbarius). Behavioural Ecology and Sociobiology 34:217-223.

Cresswell, W. & Whitfield, D.P. (1994) The effects of raptor predation on wintering wader populations at the Tyninghame estuary, southeast Scotland. Ibis 136:223-232.

Cresswell, W. (1993) Escape responses by redshanks, Tringa totanus, on attack by avian predators. Animal Behaviour 46:609-611.
 

Other peer reviewed publications:

Cresswell, W. (2010) Empirical studies of predator and prey behaviour. In Breed, M. D. & Moore, J., eds. Encyclopedia of Animal Behavior , pp 633-638. Oxford: Academic Press.

Cresswell, W., Boyd, M. & Stevens, M. (2009). Movements of Palearctic and Afrotropical bird species during the dry season (November–February) within Nigeria. pp. 18–28. In: Harebottle, D.M., Craig, A.J.F.K., Anderson, M.D., Rakotomanana, H. & Muchai. (eds). Proceedings of the 12th Pan African Ornithological Congress, 2008. Cape Town, Animal Demography Unit.

Cresswell, W. (2009) The use of mass and fat reserve measurements from ringing studies to assess body condition. Ringing & Migration 24: 227-232.

Manu, S., Peach, W. & Cresswell, W. (2005). Notes on the natural history of the Ibadan Malimbe Malimbus ibadanensis, a threatened Nigerian endemic. Malimbus 27:33-39.
Cresswell, W. (2004) Kleptoparasitism rates and aggressive interactions between raptors. In Raptors Worldwide: Proceedings of the 6th World Conference on Birds of Prey and Owls. Chancellor, R. D. & B.-U. Meyburg eds. pp 805 – 814.

Manu, S. & Cresswell, W. (2002). The effects of forest fragmentation on Palearctic migrants in south western Nigeria. In Wings Over Africa: Proceedings of the International Seminar on Bird Migration: Research, Conservation, Education and Flight Safety (Eds. Leshem, Y., Froneman, A., Mundy, P. Shamir, H.), pp 143 – 150. International Center for the Study of Bird Migration, Israel.

Cresswell, W., R. Mellanby, S. Bright, P. Catry, J. Chaves, J. Freile, A. Gabela, M. Hughes, H. Martineau, R. MacLeod, F. McPhee, , N. Anderson, S. Holt, S. Barabas, C. Chapel & T. Sanchez. (1999) Birds of the Guandera Reserve, Carchi province, northeastern Ecuador. Cotinga 11:55-63.

Cresswell, W. (1997). Carrion crows catching waders. British Birds 90:366.

Cresswell, W. (1997). Caching of prey by carrion crows. British Birds 90 366-367.

 

Ecology, physiology and life history of marine mammals.

Interactions between the foraging behaviour and diving physiology: Interactions between foraging ecology and reproductive success; parental investment; interactions between marine mammals and the exploitation of marine resources; use of telemetry and remote sensing to study marine mammals at sea.

Interactions between the foraging behaviour and diving physiology:Interactions between foraging ecology and reproductive success;parental investment; interactions between marine mammals and theexploitation of marine resources; use of telemetry and remotesensing to study marine mammals at sea.

Research group:

NERC Sea Mammal Research Unit

Research students:

Mr. David Thompson (with J. Parker, University of Liverpool)

Funded collaborations:

ELIFONTS (FRS Marine Laboratory, Aberdeen; Department of MarineSciences and Coastal Management, University of Newcastle; Institutefor Terrestrial Ecology, Banchory; Danish Institute for FisheriesResearch, Copenhagen); IBN-DLO, Netherlands; Australian AntarcticDivision.

Population dynamics and ecology

Foraging behaviour and diet of seals and cetaceans. Estimation of animal abundance. Statistical and mathematical modelling of marine mammal population parameters and processes. Interactions between marine mammals and man: management of whaling, cetacean bycatch in fisheries, seal-fishery interactions; conservation of vulnerable species.

Population dynamics and ecology

Foraging behaviour and diet of seals and cetaceans. Estimation of animal abundance. Statistical and mathematical modelling of marine mammal population parameters and processes. Interactions between marine mammals and man: management of whaling, cetacean bycatch in fisheries, seal-fishery interactions; conservation of vulnerable species.

Population and Conservation Biology

Effects of individual variation and spatial structure on the population dynamics, genetics and epidemiology of vertebrates, particularly marine mammals. Interactions between anthropogenic activities and ecosystem function.

Research Interests:

Marine mammal ecology (distribution & habitat use, species interactions, conservation of vulnerable species, polar regions),

Research Project:

Conservation ecology of small cetaceans in southern Chile

My principle academic interests are in the general area of animal behaviour and evolution, with a specific focus on animal social learning, cultural evolution and niche construction. I am engaged in empirical studies of animal social learning and innovation, including experimental work with fish, birds, non-human primates and humans. This laboratory work is complemented by theoretical investigations of the role of niche construction in evolution, the diffusion dynamics of learned behaviour and the co-evolution of genes and culture throughout human evolution.

Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

President of the European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association.

Editor, Animal Behaviour, 2005-2008.

Member of The Royal Society’s Dorothy Hodgkin fellowship scheme selection panel, 2004-2008.

Core member of EU-funded research network CULTAPTATION (NEST-PATH-043434).

Principal Investigator of the AHRC Centre for the Evolution of Cultural Diversity (CECD), UCL.

Principal Investigator on four current research council grants, with a combined value of nearly £3 million.

Recipient of ERC Advanced Grant (2,128,195 Euros)

Past recipient of a Royal Society University Research Fellowship, as well as postdoctoral fellowships from the Human Frontier Science Programme Organization and the BBSRC.

Research Group: Ms Nicola Atton (EU), Ms Alice Cowie (EU), Mr Lewis Dean (EU), Ms Laurel Fogarty (BBSRC), Dr William Hoppitt (BBSRC), Dr Anne Kandler (AHRC), Ms Katherine Meacham (EU), Mr Thomas Morgan (EU), Dr Luke Rendell (EU), Dr Mike Webster (NERC), Ms Birgit Weinman (NERC).

My research encompasses a range of topics related to animal behaviour and evolution, particularly social learning, cultural evolution and niche construction, employing both experimental and theoretical approaches.

Current Projects

Niche Construction

Organisms construct and select important components of their environment, in the process affecting both the selection acting on themselves and their descendants, and the availability of resources to other organisms. We investigate niche construction using population genetics models and in an experimental marine invertebrate system.

Social Learning Strategies

Animals learn from others selectively according to evolved rules, called ‘social learning strategies’. This project investigates such strategies, through experimental studies in monkeys (capuchins, callitrichids), birds (budgerigars) and fish (sticklebacks), and through evolutionary game theory modelling.

Predicting the Diffusion and Inheritance of Behavioural Innovations

A challenge for social learning researchers is to identify animal ‘traditions’ and to work out how novel behaviour and skills spread. We use experimental studies of budgerigars and mathematical / statistical methods to determine where animals have acquired their behaviour through social learning, and how novel behaviour spreads in animal populations. The methods are applied to isolate ‘culture’ in natural animal populations, including chimpanzees and dolphins.

Intelligence and Brain Evolution in Primates

We conduct comparative statistical analyses exploring the correlates and causes of the large primate brain and the evolution of intelligence. Social learning, innovation and tool use all co-vary with primate relative brain size and may have been drivers of brain evolution.

MPhil/PhD project opportunities:

• Social learning strategies
• Predicting the diffusion and inheritance of behavioural innovations
• Intelligence and brain evolution in primates
• Niche construction

My research is focused on methods for data which is collected on individuals over time. Due to the nature of the repeated-measures data most of my work involves mixed model methods -- most recently smooth mixed model methods. I am particularly driven by my most recent work developing spatially adaptive smoothing methods in collaboration with C. Walker (University of Auckland), C. Donovan (University of St. Andrews) and M. O'Sullivan (University of Auckland). Both the one dimensional and two dimensional spline work is being prepared for submission.

I am also involved in the application of smoothing and/or mixed model methods for spatially and temporally autocorrelated data. I (along with Erin Ashe and Rob Williams) am currently carrying out a hierachical mixed model analysis for Killer Whale data from British Columbia, I have worked closely with Aarts et al (2007) in modelling seal telemetry data and I (along with C. Donovan) have just recently finished the analysis of spatial/temporal data of fin whales and striped Dolphins in the Ligurian Sea (Panigada et al, 2008).

My Ph.D. supervision involves: mixed model clustering methods and spatially adaptive methods for complex spatial data (ie. data with internal exclusions zones such as lakes etc).

Anne with the model cormorant used to test the anti-predator response of piranhas.

Evolution of adaptive variation in fish communities; antipredator behaviour; speciation; species diversity and conservation of freshwater fish in the neotropics (Brazilian Amazon, Mexico and Trinidad) and UK.

Upper Aripo River, Trinidad

Much of my group's work is on the Trinidadian guppy, Poecilia reticulata, a species that has become a model system for investigating evolution in action. We are examining the evolution of reproductive isolation between fish in the Caroni and Oropouche drainages in Trinidad. These river systems have been separated for 1-2 million years. Although the guppies in them can still interbreed if given the opportunity, some post-mating reproductive barriers are already evident. For example, sperm from the female's own river system outcompete foreign sperm, and hybrid offspring formed when guppies from the two drainages are crossed are less viable than pure-bred fish. This research is being done with Anna Ludlow and Stephen Russell.

Northern Range, Trinidad.

Other investigations using the guppy concern aspects of mating behaviour (with Kit Magellan), the effect of thermal regime on behaviour and development (with Lars Pettersson), mutiple mating (with Alfredo Ojanguren) and interactions between guppies and their sister species Poecilia picta (with Indar Ramnarine of the University of the West Indies) .

Anne and Helder tagging piranhas prior to release back to the wild.

I am also interested in the evolution of schooling behaviour. Helder Queiroz (of the Mamirau· Sustainable Development Institute) and I are studying red-bellied piranhas, Pygocentrus nattereri, in the flooded forests of the Brazilian Amazon. Although piranhas are widely depicted as vicious, pack-hunting predators, in fact they are themselves preyed upon by river dolphins, caiman, piscivorous fish such as the pirarucu, and fish-eating birds including cormorants. Our work is showing that piranhas school as a defence against predation.
 

Esox lucius

In the UK I collaborate with Si‰n Grffiths (University of Cardiff), John Armstrong (FRS, Pitlochry) and Alfredo Ojanguren in a project on individual recognition and the benefits of associations between familiar groups of fish. We are using the European minnow, Phoxinus phoxinus, to test our ideas. The work is taking place in the artificial stream system at the Almondbank, FRS laboratory. A second project (with Lorraine Hawkins and John Armstrong) based at Almondbank is examining behavioural interactions between salmon, Salmo salar, and pike, Esox lucius - one of their most important natural predators.

My longstanding interest in the measurement of biological diversity and the structure of ecological assemblages is reflected in the recent publication of my book Measuring Biological Diversity.In addition, Peter Henderson (Pisces Conservation Ltd) and I are exploring changes in species abundance distributions over time.

Sigmoid display by male guppy.

Finally, I am interested in the conservation of biological diversity, particularly of freshwater fish assemblages. Constantino MacÌas Garcia (UNAM) and I are beginning to quantify the impact of introduced poeciliids on endangered fish in Mexico. I am continuing to investigate the biodiversity of freshwater assemblages in Trinidad with my colleagues there. Anuradha Bhat has recently joined the group. Her research is on fish assemblages in the Western Ghats region of India, one of the world's biodiversity hotspots. This will open up new challenges in biodiversity conservation.

Plant evolutionary biology, genealogical reconstruction and analysis (likelihood-based paternity and parentage analysis), quantitative genetics, sexual dimorphism, linkages between molecular variation and phenotypic evolution, ecological and genetic bases for population differentiation and speciation, conservation biology and biodiversity, risk assessment of gene flow and its consequences in genetically modified organisms, public understanding of science.

My research interests are in parentage analysis, quantitative genetics, phenotypic evolution, sexual dimorphism, evolutionary genomics of plants, and societal applications of science

Research Group

Doctoral Students

• 2007-present  Ms Malin Rivers. Conservation status and conservation genetics of Delonix in Madagascar.
• 2003-2007 Dr. Mark Looseley. A Comparative investigation of nuclear DNA content and its phenotypic impacts in Silene marizii and S. latifolia. 
• 1994-2000 Dr. Jessica Wright . The effects of positive and negative selection on floral characters in natural population of Silene latifolia. Currently a Conservation Geneticist, USFS, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
• 1990-1997 Dr. Elizabeth Elle. Sex allocation and reproductive success in a perennial hermaphrodite, Solanum carolinense. Currently Associate Professor, Department of Biology, Simon Fraser University
• 1989-1995 Dr. Deborah Sheely . The ecological impact of genetic diversity on seedling recruitment in a tropical tree Campnosperma brevipetiolata (Anacardiaceae). Currently a Program Officer with USDA Competitive Grants.
• 1998-1993 Dr. Diane Byers . The genetic consequences of rarity in Eupatroium resinosum. Currently an Associate Professor at Illinois State University.

Postdoctoral Fellows

• 2005-2006 Dr. Rebecca Yahr , Ph.D. Duke University (advisors Dr. R. Vilgalys and Dr P. Depriest) population biology and genetics of lichen symbioses. Research Fellow, RBGE.
• 2000-2004 Dr. Christine Vassiliadis , Ph.D. University of Lille (advisors Dr. P. Vernet and Dr Saumitou-Laprade) evolution and maintenance of androdioecy. Lecturer, University of Orsay
• 1990-1994 Dr. Denise E Costich , Ph.D. University of Iowa (advisor, Dr. H. F. Howe) evolution of dioecy in plants. Cornell University/Boyce Thompson Institute
• 1989 Dr. Lynda F. Delph . Ph.D. University of Canterbury, New Zealand (advisor Dr. D. G. Lloyd) gender specific resource allocation in plants Associate Professor, Indiana University.

Parentage analysis & quantitative genetics

I have a long-standing interest in the application of statistical methods of genealogical inference to the analysis of the structure and genetic dynamics of natural populations. Applying likelihood methods that originated in forensic analysis of human paternity, the assignment of male parentage in plant populations provides information on gene flow and impacts of specific phenotypic traits on male reproductive success. Specific contributions in this area have included development of likelihood models for paternity analysis, application of such models to understating the structure of a range of plant populations, and the delelopment of a Windows-based software package, PatQuest, for conducting such analyses. Present work in this area includes development of statistical methods for the integration of likelihood-based paternity inference with REML estimation of quantitative genetic parameters, to be applied to natural populations where standard multigenerational quantitative genetics experiments are not practical. In addition, models for investigating gene flow, based on approaches derived from paternity analyses, have been applied to investigation of gene flow in transgenic cultivars.

• Meagher TR (1986) Analysis of paternity within a natural population of Chamaelirium luteum . I. Identification of most-likely male parents. American Naturalist . 128: 199-215.
• Meagher TR, Thompson EA. (1987) Identification of parentage for seedlings within a natural population of Chamaelirium luteum . Ecology 68: 803-812.
• Thompson EA, Meagher TR (1998) Genome sharing and the estimation of pairwise relationship. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 97: 857-864.
• Smouse PE, Meagher TR, Kobak CJ (1999) Parentage analysis in Chamaelirium luteum (L.) Gray (Liliaceae): why do some males have disproportionate reproductive contributions. Journal of Evolutionary Biology 12: 1069-1077.
• Elle E, Meagher TR (2000) Sex allocation and reproductive success in the andromonoecious perennial, Solanum carolinense (Solanaceae). II. Paternity and functional gender. American Naturalist 156: 622-636.
• MeagherTR, Vassiliadis C (2003) Spatial geometry determines gene flow in plant populations. Hails RS, Beringer JE, Godfray HCJ (eds.) Genes in the environment. Pp. 76-90.
  Oxford, UK, Blackwell Science Ltd. Meagher T., Belanger FC, Day PR (2003) Using empirical data to model transgene dispersal. Trans. Royal Society (London) B 358: 1157-1162.

Sexual dimorphism and sex-specific selection

Reproductive success as male or female parents in plants is based on very different pathways, subject to sex-specific processes of selection. In dioecious species, long-term consequences of such sex-specific selection can lead to sexual dimporphism in a wide range of traits, from the molecular level to the ecological. My interest in this area began with an investigation of resource allocation and life history impacts of such in Chamaelirium luteum (Liliaceae, pictured above), a flowering plant that exhibits extreme sexual dimorphism in inflorescence structure. More recent work on this phenomenon has focused on floral dimorphism in the dioecious Silene latifolia , which has a well-established genetic basis for sex determination, and a shorter life-span that is more amenable to genetic investigation.

• Meagher TR (1984) Sexual dimorphism and ecological differentiation of male and female plants. Annals Missouri Botanical Garden 71: 254-264.
• Meagher TR (1994) The quantitative genetics of sexual dimorphism in Silene latifolia . II. Responses to sex-specific selection. Evolution 48: 939-951.
• Delph LF, Meagher TR (1995) Sexual dimorphism masks life history trade-offs in the dioecious plant Silene latifolia . Ecology 76: 775-785.
• Meagher TR, Delph LF (2001) Individual flower demography, floral phenology, and life history in Silene latifolia . Evolutionary Ecology Research 3: 845-860.
• Costich DC, Meagher TR (2001) Impacts of floral gender and whole-plant gender on floral evolution in Ecballium elaterium (Cucurbitaceae). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 74: 475-487.
• Wright JW, Meagher TR (2004) Selection on floral characters of natural Spanish populations of Silene latifolia . Journal of Evolutionary Biology , in press.
   

Evolutionary genomics and phenotypic evolution

My investigations into the genetic basis of floral dimorphism in flower size in Silene latifolia have inexorably led to a more detailed analysis of the genetic basis of flower size in general. As this is a quantitative trait, initial investigations involved quantitative genetics approaches. More recently, a link has been established between quantitative variation in flower size and genome size/organization. This latter discovery has led to a phylogenetic investigation of the relationship between genome size and flower size evolution across related taxa, and a joint QTL analysis of flower size and DNA content.

Present work in this area is exploring the possible role of specific repetitive sequences, such as retrotransposons, in DNA content variation associated with flower size evolution. We are also investigation the role of such DNA content variation in contributing to reproductive isolation between species.

• Meagher TR, Costich DE (1994) Sexual dimorphism in nuclear DNA content within and between populations of Silene latifolia . American Journal of Botany 81: 1198-1204.
• Meagher TR, Costich DE (1996) Nuclear DNA content and floral evolution.Proceedings of the Royal Society (London), Series B 263: 1455-1460.
• Meagher TR (1999) The quantitative genetics of sexual dimorphism. In Sexual dimorphism in plants , M. Geber, T. Dawson, and L. Delph, eds. Springer-Verlag New York.

Societal applications of science

Science is conducted within a broader societal context, and indeed is based on support derived from that context in the form of government financing. As a practicing scientist, one has an obligation to identify connections between basic research and potential application to societal needs. My activities in this area have been several fold. First, I have applied methods of paternity analysis and other analytical tools from evolutionary biology to the issue of gene flow from transgenic cultivars to adjacent ruderal populations. On a science policy level, I was a co-chair of a US national initiative on Evolution, Science and Society, which was directed towards outlining the importance of scientific contributions of evolutionary biology, I have served as a founding and current member of the Society for the Study of Evolution 's Education Committee, and I am presently a member of the Science Advisory Council of the UK Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

• Meagher TR (1999) Evolution and today's society. BioScience 49: 923-925.
• Meagher TR, Futuyma DJ (eds) (2001) Evolution, Science and Society: evolutionary biology and the national research agenda. California Journal of Science Education 1: 19-32.
• Meagher TR, Futuyma DJ (2001) Executive document: Evolution, science, and society - Foreword: Evolution in the century of biology. American Naturalist 158: 1-46 Suppl. S.
   

Ecology and dynamics of coastal depositional systems

Research on the functional ecology and dynamics of coastal systems. Research into the primary productivity of coastal systems and the infuence of the catchment use on coastal areas and the importance of ecosystem fuction. The resiliance of these systems to global change. The interdisciplinary study of "biogenic stabilisation", defined as an increase in the critical threshold force for sediment re-suspension brought about by biological activity. The development of techniques to measure the stability of sediments in situ. Development of freeze fracture and HPLC techniques to allow microspatial discrimination (1005m scale) of the physical (density, porosity, mineralogy) and biological (pigments, organics, polymeric substances, microbes) properties of cohesive sediments. Structural analysis of sediments by low-temperature scanning electron microscopy. Modelling of biogenic effects on sediment erosion and transport. Light climate and primary productivity in cohesive sediments using fluorescence and light microsensor systems. Influence of pigment distribution of spectral reflectance properties of sediments and the potential of using reflectance data for the remote sensing and modelling of biomass distribution on mudflat systems.

For more information, please visit my research pages: Complex Biological Neworks.

My research uses computational methods to analyse complex biological networks, and evaluates the computational methods through both computer simulation and biological intervention. I concentrate on networks in three types of biological systems: neuronal networks, gene regulatory networks, and species interaction networks.

Current Projects

Neural information flow

We have for the first time applied and validated a Bayesian network (BN) inference algorithm for recovering neural information flow. BNs are an advance over prior methods, as they can handle the known non-linearity present in neural systems. We applied a BN to multi-unit electrode array recordings from the songbird auditory system, and found that recovered networks were appropriately constrained to anatomical connections, matched physiological features of the system, and were consistent with measure dynamics of the system.  As part of the CARMEN (Code Analysis, Repository, and Modelling for e-Neuroscience) neuroinformatics consortium, we are expanding Bayesian network theory to enable recovering neural information flow from single-unit neural recordings. We are analysing place cells recorded from the rat hippocampus, to understand network-level information coding of location and other variables.

Gene regulation

We develop BN inference algorithms for recovering gene regulatory networks from gene expression data, with special attention paid to overcoming the difficulty of handling biologically realistic small amounts of data.  Yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, is used as a model system to develop and test these algorithms.  As regulation  occurs at the step of protein translation as well as mRNA transcription, the genes which code for proteins involved in this type of regulation also have a part in the gene regulatory network. We also focus on methods to incorporate this type of regulation into the network inference task.

Ecological systems

We are pioneering the use of BN algorithms for the analysis of interspecific and species-habitat interactions within ecosystems, using species abundance and habitat data.

MPhil/PhD project opportunities:

• PhD projects - PhD projects are available in (1) Bayesian network analysis of neuronal networks and information coding, (2) incorporation of additional genomic information to recover gene regulatory networks, and (3) development of Bayesian network techniques for ecological analysis.
   
• MPhil projects - Proposals for MPhil projects in any of the above areas are welcome; particular projects may include: simulation based studies of Bayesian networks for revealing neural information flow, investigation of Bayesian networks' representation of ecological networks, and recovery of gene regulatory networks using publicly available data.

 I am a biogeochemist and ecosystem ecologist studying the terrestrial carbon cycle. My research focusses on the ecological and environmental controls on trace gas exchange. I study both greenhouse gases and stratospheric ozone-depleting substances at field sites distributed around the globe. I have worked in tropical Caribbean rain forests, Mediterranean grasslands in California, arid and semiarid grasslands in the western US, high Arctic tundra, and peatlands in California, Scotland and Wales. In recent years, I have become increasingly interested in understanding how human activities influence terrestrial ecosystems, given the increasing size of the human footprint on the globe. To this end, I have studied the effects of tropical deforestation on plant communities, carbon stocks and nutrient pools. I have also investigated the implications of water management, restoration and agricultural practices on peatland carbon cycling in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta in northern California, the highlands of Scotland, and in Wales. My research is interdisciplinary in nature, drawing from  microbial ecology, plant physiological ecology, environmental aqueous geochemistry, isotope geochemistry, soil science and atmospheric chemistry.

Our research interests embrace a variety of marine ecological topics, ranging from the development and dynamics of hard substratum epifaunal ("fouling") communities, to responses of invertebrate larvae at metamorphosis and the population genetics of marine molluscs and crustaceans

My postgraduate research concerned various aspects of the ecology of intertidal nudibranch molluscs. Subsequently, I became especially interested in the evolution of differing reproductive 'strategies' among marine invertebrates, and continued to use nudibranch molluscs as an experimental model system. This topic has been investigated by us both from functional energetic, conceptual and population genetics standpoints. In addition, however, I have also more general interests in benthic community ecology. This latter has concerned especially the development and dynamics of intertidal and sublittoral marine epifaunal ('fouling') assemblages on natural hard substrata on the west coast of Scotland and the applied importance of artificial reefs.
Our recent interests have focused on epifaunal larval settlement responses to specific substratum-associated biofilm cues and the presence of previously settled post-larvae. With specific reference to the intertidal barnacle, Semibalanus balanoides, we have developed an effective and very simple laval trap for deployment on rocky shores and we are now also assessing the importance of wave crash and wind strength/direction on the larval input to benthic intertidal substrata.

Ecological Genetics of Parasitic Sea Lice

Inducible Morphology in Marine Bryozoans

Larval Dispersal

Biofilms and Larval Settlement

Bryozoans

Salmonid Parasites

My main research interests lie in the application of magnetic measurements to environmental systems. This includes the use of magnetic properties (eg magnetic susceptibility; remance measurements) of sediments for establishing their likely provenance orunderstanding their weathering history. I have worked on materials from a varierty of field environments including mainland UK, Isle of Man, Iceland, Namibia, Indonisia, Tunisia and Australia. My current work is focused on marine sediment sequences (funded by the Leverhulme Trust) and, in particular, sourcing IRD within Heinrich layers but I also have ongoing work on glacial, desert and fluvial sediment systems.

The environmental magnetic measurements I use allow a mineralogical 'fingerprint' of a sediment to be established (ratherlike other geochemical or mineralogical techniques which also establish a compositional signal for a soil, sediment or rock sample). I currently carry out these analyses in a purpose built laboratory here at St Andrews.

For further information, see the Environmental Change Research Group

A. Environmental Physiology of Invertebrates.

Water balance and osmoregulation in insects. Thermal physiology in relation to microclimate and behaviour, especially in bees and other terrestrial and littoral invertebrates.

B. Insect-Plant Interactions.

Pollination ecology. Interactions between pollinators, pests and predators.

Insects as pests on crop plants, and interactions with crop microclimates. Ant deterrence in flowers.

C. Animal behaviour, especially social insects.

Ecology and behaviour of insects, specifically insect-plant interactions and pollination ecology. The constraints acting on pollinators, especially bees, in temperate and arid systems.

D. Invertebrate Evolution and Convergent Evolution.

Invertebrate morphology and fossils; the evolution of basic body plans, and the prevalence of convergent evolution; implications for phylogenetic approaches.

A. Environmental Physiology of Invertebrates.

Water balance and osmoregulation in insects. Thermal physiology in relation to microclimate and behaviour, especially in bees and other terrestrial and littoral invertebrates.

B. Insect-Plant Interactions.

Pollination ecology. Interactions between pollinators, pests and predators.

Insects as pests on crop plants, and interactions with crop microclimates. Ant deterrence in flowers.

C. Animal behaviour, especially social insects.

Ecology and behaviour of insects, specifically insect-plant interactions and pollination ecology. The constraints acting on pollinators, especially bees, in temperate and arid systems.

D. Invertebrate Evolution and Convergent Evolution.

Invertebrate morphology and fossils; the evolution of basic body plans, and the prevalence of convergent evolution; implications for phylogenetic approaches.