Supervisory Team:
Dr Michelle Jackson – University of Oxford
Dr Tim Szewczyk – Scottish Association for Marine Science / University of the Highlands and Islands
Dr Louise Lactivore – Freshwater Biological Association
Marine and freshwater wetlands support exceptionally high biodiversity, especially for invertebrates. This diversity is threatened by extreme events, including drought, heatwaves, and chemical spills (e.g., in sewage from storm overflows). This PhD will quantify how these pulsed multiple stressor events interact over time and space to affect wetland invertebrates using a range of techniques (including experiments and population modelling). You will then use this information to develop a species conservation and recovery programme for some of the most at-risk invertebrates in the UK. Field work in both floodplains and marine wetlands (lagoons, dunes) will be a key part of this project.
You will be supervised by Dr Michelle Jackson at the University of Oxford (the host institute), Dr Louise Lactivore (Freshwater Biological Association in the Lake District), and Dr Tim Szewczyk (Scottish Association for Marine Science).
This supervisory team has expertise in multiple stressors, conservation, and quantitative ecology. The student will develop broad field biology, laboratory, experimental, and data analysis skills. There will include invertebrate sampling, chemical testing, experimental design, demographic modelling, and meta-analyses. They will learn how to apply these skills to real-world conservation plans and gain hands-on experience in both academic and NGO settings.