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Long distance drone tracking of key pollinators in agricultural and natural landscapes

Long distance drone tracking of key pollinators in agricultural and natural landscapes

Many plant species, including numerous agricultural ones, depend on pollinator services; yet agricultural intensification and urbanisation have caused habitat loss and fragmentation, leading to substantial declines of some pollinators. Any forecasts, risk assessments and remedies thus hinge crucially on understanding how pollinators use space; however, most studies of pollinator spatial movements have taken place over […]

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Species4Services – Which Species and Traits Best Indicate Ecosystem Services?

Species4Services – Which Species and Traits Best Indicate Ecosystem Services?

*******Application deadline – Friday 29th June 2018******* Background: Ecosystem services (ES; the goods humans get from nature) such as crop production, carbon capture and livestock grazing are produced by complex interactions among biological species, human activities and the abiotic environment. Primary data characterising ES are rare and the biological component is poorly understood. Thus, ES […]

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Ice-ocean interaction: effects of climate change on Antarctic ice-shelf dynamics

Ice-ocean interaction: effects of climate change on Antarctic ice-shelf dynamics

In summer 2017 the Larsen C ice-shelf in Antarctica calved a 6000 km2 iceberg, and the Halley research station closed over winter 2017 due to nearby crevasses opening up, potentially calving another massive iceberg. When these large volumes of ice drift equatorwards they eventually melt and can influence key pathways in the Earth System, including changing ocean heat transports […]

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Effects of electromagnetic noise on the orientation of migratory birds

Effects of electromagnetic noise on the orientation of migratory birds

Animals face many challenges as increased urbanization impacts their ability to survive and reproduce. Nowhere is this more evident than in migratory birds. Throughout Europe evidence indicates that populations of migratory birds are declining. Many anthropogenic influences are implicated, such as land use and climate change. However, recently, a new and surprising potential hazard to bird migration has emerged. […]

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Using western boundary currents to generate electricity: resource characterisation, technical & practical constraints

Using western boundary currents to generate electricity: resource characterisation, technical & practical constraints

To reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, it is crucial that we continue to explore renewable energy resources and technologies. It is possible to convert the kinetic energy that resides in ocean currents into electricity by installing arrays of turbines, and the global potential of this energy resource is vast. In contrast to (twice daily) tides that are characterized […]

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Quantifying the effects of deer on woodland structure in a human-altered landscape

Quantifying the effects of deer on woodland structure in a human-altered landscape

The last century has seen a rapid increase in populations of deer species across Europe due to altered land use, improved wildlife management, reduced predation and more favourable climatic conditions. High deer densities have the potential to restructure vegetation, reduce woodland productivity and impact biodiversity. Sustainable management of these species is therefore crucial, but it relies on a detailed understanding […]

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Pushing the limits: Life in extreme desert environments

Pushing the limits: Life in extreme desert environments

Hyper-arid hot deserts experience some of the most severe climatic conditions on Earth, and are often used to understand the potential for life on exoplanets such as Mars. In addition, studying the biology in these environments helps us to understand how ecosystems will respond to future climate change (e.g. extreme drought events). This project aims to define the critical […]

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Living with human disturbance: conservation physiology of a wild African primate

Living with human disturbance: conservation physiology of a wild African primate

In a world of increasing anthropogenic influence, understanding how rare and specialised species adapt to human-modified landscapes is essential for conservation. Primates face many threats including direct pressure from hunting, human-wildlife conflict and loss of habitat. Increasingly, the new field of conservation physiology is recognising that such threats can also have indirect role through their effect on metabolic markers […]

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The greening of the Arctic Ocean: Are increased nutrient fluxes responsible?

The greening of the Arctic Ocean: Are increased nutrient fluxes responsible?

This exciting project, which is jointly supervised by scientists from the National Oceanography Centre, Liverpool and Bangor University, focuses on a key question in Climate Change Science; i.e. is the greening of the Arctic Ocean, which is being observed as sea ice retreats, a result of increased mixing up of nutrients from depth? To the answer this question the […]

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Developing environmentally sustainable forestry value chains

Developing environmentally sustainable forestry value chains

Forests play a key role in climate regulation, water purification and biodiversity conservation, whilst providing renewable wood-based resources critical for the circular economy. Forest cover in the UK is one third of the European average, and possible post-Brexit reform of agricultural subsidies could create substantial impetus for forestry expansion. There remains an incomplete evidence base […]

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