Profile

Dr Theoni Photopoulou
Newton International Fellow

I am a quantitative ecologist with a background in marine and environmental biology and statistics. I am interested in the movement ecology of animals - mainly swimming, diving and flying animals. More generally, I like using statistical methods to learn about pattern and process in the ecology and biology of animals.

During my Newton International Fellowship at the University of St Andrews I will be looking at the effects of ocean properties on the movement ecology of Weddell seals under the project title EMEWS. There is a strong methods development and implementation focus for this project, particularly time series models for animal movement.

For more information on my news, latest publications, and research projects please see my personal webpage.

Research Overview:

I am a quantitative ecologist with a background in marine and environmental biology and statistics. I like using statistical methods to learn about pattern and process in the ecology and biology of animals in general, but my main interest is the movement ecology of animals – mainly flying, swimming and diving animals.

For my Newton International Fellowship I am working on adapting and developing methods for better understanding the diving ecology of a truly Antarctic, ice dependent species, the Weddell seal. Using statistical methods for information collected through time, I am looking at how diving behaviour changes over time in individual seals, and how that relates to the oceanographic features they are experiencing in the Weddell Sea, a part of the Southern Ocean that is regarded as a sentinel for climate change.