CONSERVATION and BEHAVIOUR
Lucy Archer
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PhD student Royal Holloway and Institute of Zoology
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I started my PhD in March 2018, you can read it here. My research focussed on assessing the ability of different monitoring methods to gather conservation-relevant data for the endangered and elusive Philippine pangolin. The Philippine pangolin is arguably the least known of all eight pangolin species and we have little knowledge on the threats to this species, or the effectiveness of different research methods to gather baseline data to inform its conservation. I have used interviews to establish the distribution, status and threats to the Philippine pangolin, and patterns of trade on Palawan Island. This PhD was funded by NERC and the Zoological Society of London. Lucy went on to work at the Zoological Society of London as their Environmental and Social Safeguarding specialist.
Camilla Blasi-Foglietti
PhD Student in Biological Sciences Royal Holloway 2020
I started my PhD in September 2016. My PhD focussed on the effect of hunting pressures on primate behaviour in the Gola Forest of Liberia and Sierra Leone. I investigated spatial variation in hunting pressure and monkey behaviour, and used simulations to determine the effect of behavioural changes on estimates of primate densities. My PhD thesis can be found here. After graduating in 2020, I went to work for UNEP-WCMC on the UKRI GCRF Trade Development and the Environment hub and the Development Corridors Partnership. Click on my image to find out more about me and my project!
Luke Collins
MSc in Biological Sciences by Research Royal Holloway 2020
I started my MSc in September 2019. I investigated vocal behaviour of pygmy marmosets near Tahuayo Lodge, an ecotourism site in the Peruvian Amazon. I analysed vocalisations from Audiomoth passive acoustic monitoring devices. After finishing my MSc, I went to work with capuchin monkeys in Costa Rica.
Polly Curtin
Research assistant on the imaginary animals project
I joined CABLab in April 2019 to work on the imaginary animals, but before my MSc I did my undergraduate degree at Royal Holloway, and you can read the publication which resulted from my third year project here, or watch a short video here. After the imaginary animals project ended, I went on to work as a graduate consultant for Atkins.
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Rosa Gleave
PhD Student Royal Holloway
I started my PhD in April 2018. My research focussed on the critically endangered blue-crowned laughingthrush in south-east China, looking at why this range-restricted bird breeds at some sites and not others. This was being studied in terms of this species' ecology, land use and other human pressures. I used interviews to understand the species distribution and threats. I also conducted analyses of habitat variation, using ecological surveys and satellite imagery. You can read my PhD here. This PhD was partially funded by Waddesdon Aviary, Chester Zoo and Riverbanks Zoo. I went on to work for Natural England as an Earth Observation Senior Advisor.
Millie Hawkins
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MSc in Biological Sciences by Research Royal Holloway 2019
I started my MSc in September 2018. I used playback experiments to investigate the response of pygmy marmosets to anthropogenic noise at an ecotourism site, Tahuayo lodge, in the Peruvian Amazon, and also investigated whether informing tourists of the effects of noise changed their behavioural intentions. I went on to work for the Clean Heat Government Department.
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Lizzie Jones
PhD Student Royal Holloway
I started my PhD in September 2017. I investigated the causes and impacts of Shifting Baseline Syndrome, a phenomenon by which individuals or whole generations have incorrect perceptions of the ecological baseline. This moved point of reference can erode the usefulness of local knowledge for conservation. I have demonstrated that not only are there age-related differences in perceptions of past ecological conditions, but also older people perceive greater need for conservation action for declining species. I also showed there was little evidence of shifting baseline syndrome in environmental mangers. My PhD thesis can be found here. After graduation, I worked for the Children's Commissioner's Office. Click on my picture for more information!
Sorrel Jones
PhD Student Royal Holloway
I started my PhD in September 2016. My PhD focused on monitoring hunting around the Gola Forest, Liberia to support the implementation of the GolaMA project. I used market segmentation techniques to identify different groups of hunters, household surveys and hunter interviews to understand the Liberia bushmeat system. I also used the bean method to measure bushmeat hunting and trading, and contrasted estimates of offtake when using different monitoring methods. During my PhD I worked with, and was partially funded by RSPB Liberia. My PhD thesis can be found here. After graduating in 2020, I went to work the RSPB as a social scientist for Gola Forest in Sierra Leone.
Beth Lord
MSc student 2021 Royal Holloway
I started my MSc in September 2021. I am interested in hazel dormice and am working to census them at sites in Surrey.
Heidi Ma
PhD student Royal Holloway
I started my PhD in February 2017, investigating the extent to which low-income communities near nature reserves in China utilize and rely on the reserve's resources. My project provided a robust understanding of community usage and perceptions of local biodiversity and human disturbance, and recall of conservation activities within and around nature reserves on Hainan Island, China, and informed conservation management decisions at a broader level. My PhD thesis can be found here. The PhD was partially funded by Arcus Foundation and the Zoological Society of London’s Hainan Gibbon Project. I am now working as a PDRA / Project coordinator for ZSL.
Erin Mason
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MSc in Biological Sciences by Research Royal Holloway 2019
I started my MSc in September 2018. I investigated the vocalisations and other behavioural responses of saki monkeys when they encounter humans near an ecotourism site, Tahuayo lodge, in the Peruvian Amazon.
Chloë Metcalfe
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MSc in Biological Sciences by Research Royal Holloway 2018
I started my MSc in September 2017, after completing my undergraduate degree in Zoology at Royal Holloway. For my MSc project, I studied the impact of humans on the behaviour of large-headed capuchin monkeys in the Pacaya-Samiria Nature Reserve in the Peruvian Amazon, which has been published in the International Journal of Primatology. In September 2019, I started my PhD with the London NERC doctoral training program.
Alice Samuel
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MSc in Biological Sciences by Research Royal Holloway 2018
I started my MSc in September 2017. My project investigated how captive ring-tailed lemurs interacted with humans in walk-through enclosures at four different zoos.
Rebecca Sheehan
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MSc Biological Sciences by Research Royal Holloway 2017
My MSc project investigated the behavioural responses of pygmy marmosets to anthropogenic noise through the use of a playback experiment playing recordings of human speech at different volumes and lengths. My research showed that pygmy marmosets spent less time feeding and resting after playbacks of human speech. As the volume of the playbacks increased, individuals were more likely to move out of sight. These results were published in the American Journal of Primatology. I hope the results can inform ecotourism operators on the level of noise that is “acceptable” from tourist groups when viewing wild primates.
Rosa Singh
MSc Biological Sciences by Research Royal Holloway 2023
My MSc project explored the role of charisma in ecology, looking at it's potential to be used as a way to describe landscapes. I then investigated nature volunteer motivations, focusing on understanding current, past and potential volunteers for Surrey Wildlife Trust using the COM-B behaviour change model and a mixed-methods design.