Understanding the rules behind animal movement; a CAASE study for select species from the Red Sea

Project Supervisors:
Professor Rory Wilson
Dr Emily LC Shepard
Associate Professor Luca Borger

This PhD fits within the broader remit of a multi-million dollar project to use both robotic remote-sensing platforms and animal-mounted logging systems to examine ecosystem functioning within the Red Sea (CAASE - Coupled Animal and Artificial Sensing for Sustainable Ecosystems). CAASE aims to develop a revolutionary approach to animal-borne sensing technology that will be coupled with evolving artificial platforms to observe and monitor the marine environment and its inhabitants in a ground-breaking manner. As part of this, CAASE will examine the way animals move, behave and react to variability in the marine environment, using breakthroughs in sensor and tag technology, to transform the way the ocean is observed, understood and ultimately managed.

The PhD will involve testing and field-use of new animal-attached systems such as ‘Daily Diary tags’1 and jaw sensors (based on magnetic field sensors2) on select marine animals within the Red Sea (the full CAASE project encompasses fishes, reptiles, mammals and birds). Data will then be analysed using new and developing computational tools3,4, including state-of-the-art visualisations, to reconstruct animal movement trajectories and behaviours and examine the factors that affect them.

This studentship is paired with a post-doc position, to begin at the same time, and the post-doctoral researcher will interact with the doctoral student and help guide the research, both in the UK and Saudi Arabia. The student will be part of a dynamic group examining animal movement based at Swansea University (Swansea Lab for Animal Movement) and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia. The student will be expected to undertake fieldwork in the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia. He/she will receive training in techniques in the use of the animal-attached technology and in the analysis of animal movement data. The project would particularly suit those with appropriate competence or capacity in maths.

Applicant requirements:
Candidates must have a first, upper second class honours or a Masters degree, in a relevant discipline. Informal enquiries before the deadline for formal applications are welcome by emailing [Email Address Removed]