Events for SOC members
We’re delighted to present the 2023/2024 programme of monthly Zoom meetings for all Club members, which are arranged in conjunction with the excellent local meetings organised by branches. To receive the Zoom joining link, you must be an SOC member and be signed up to the Branch News & Events – Talks & Workshops mailing list.
Can’t make it on the night? Don’t worry, a link to the talk recording will be circulated afterwards to members on the mailing list. Unfortunately, sometimes our emails end up in spam/junk folders. If you can’t locate anything from us, please contact admin@the-soc.org.uk or call us on 01875 871 330.
Tracking bird's movements with Ros Green, Claudia Tapia Harris & Jethro Gauld
| Talks | Q&A |
“There and back again – A Shelduck’s migration tale, and their adventures with offshore wind farms”, with Ros Green
For five years, Ros and her team have been tracking Shelduck on their moult migration, and assessing how and when these protected birds interact with offshore wind farms. Tens of thousands of Shelduck migrate across the North and Celtic Sea each year on migration between breeding, moulting and wintering grounds. They will interact with offshore wind farms on route, but there have been insufficient data available to quantify the severity of these interactions at either an individual or population level. Ros will share stories of tracking Shelduck from around the UK and Europe, and show you what has been learnt through her PhD so far.
"Where do (Nigerian) Whitethroats go?", with Dr Claudia Tapia Harris
Many Afro-Palearctic migrants are in rapid decline. Understanding general migration characteristics and how breeding and non-breeding sites are connected is crucial for successfully predicting the response of long-distance migratory bird populations to recent global changes. In this presentation, I will discuss my PhD project, where I studied the migration and wintering ecology of the Common Whitethroat during three wintering seasons (2017–2020) in Jos, Nigeria. The main focus of this talk will be to describe the complete annual cycle, including migratory routes and stopover and breeding locations, of five Common Whitethroats attached with light-level geolocators.
"Tracking studies and reducing conflicts with development", with Dr Jethro Gauld
Jethro will be talking about how data from tracking studies can help us identify collision risk hotspots where new wind energy and power line developments should be minimised and where measures to reduce risk at existing developments should be installed to reduce conflicts which may already exist. This work highlights the importance of including collision risk and other ecological impacts early on in the spatial planning of renewable energy developments to produce the best outcomes for birds and people. He will also talk about his role in helping test and develop a new type of low power, light weight GPS-LoRa tracking device which has potential to help reduce the data costs associated with tracking studies and allow some smaller species than is currently possible using energy hungry GPS-GSM tags which send data via the mobile phone network.
About your speakers:
Ros Green is conducting a part-time PhD at the University of Liverpool studying shelduck migration in relation to offshore wind farms, whilst also continuing her job as a Research Ecologist at the BTO. She has a decade of GPS tagging experience with a range of seabirds, waders and wildfowl, and is a BTO ringing trainer and cannon-net licence holder too. She’s a skilled birder, fieldworker and all round nature enthusiast. If you want to know more about the PhD, check out her website.
Claudia Tapia Harris completed her PhD at the University of St Andrews in 2022 where she studied the ecology of Common Whitethroats in Nigeria. Prior to that, she undertook her undergraduate degree where she studied bird communities in avocado orchards and temperate forests in Mexico, and a master’s degree where she slipped to studying seals. Currently, she is a Conservation Scientist with the RSPB working on the impacts of offshore windfarms on seabirds.
Jethro Gauld works for the RSPB as a Senior GIS Technician in the Business Conservation Advice team and works to advise business partners on how they can better manage their sites for wildlife. Prior to this he completed a PhD from the University of East Anglia on the topic of “Improving the detection and estimation of birds’ collision risk with energy infrastructure using new and emerging tracking technologies” which included field work in Portugal and Spain to deploy tracking devices on White Storks, Griffon Vultures, Kestrels and Little Bustard. Previously he worked for Direct Ecology as an ecological consultant and he’s currently working toward his C-permit for ringing with Wicken Fen ringing group.
