Author: plydtanthera

Ecology

We impersonated predators and prey to study trophic interactions. It was quite fun, but mostly, it worked

Post provided by David Bolduc and Frederic Dulude-de Broin Most people have played some form of tag during childhood – games where certain players try to catch others, who in turn may be able to take refuge in designated areas, or who must collect a flag or another item to win the game. These games are fun and engaging perhaps because they tap into some … Continue reading We impersonated predators and prey to study trophic interactions. It was quite fun, but mostly, it worked

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Statistical methods

Modelling approaches in meta-analysis: from sandwich estimators to correlated hierarchical models

Post provided by Coralie Williams Conducting a meta-analysis involves a series of decisions, from choosing what data to extract to selecting the outcome measure. But then comes the model specification – how should it be formulated? At its simplest, a meta-analysis can be expressed as a simple linear regression model where the outcome is an effect size (yi), which is a quantitative measure derived from … Continue reading Modelling approaches in meta-analysis: from sandwich estimators to correlated hierarchical models

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Ecology

What’s That Sound? A New Way to Explore Freshwater Soundscapes

Post provided by Katie Turlington I’m Katie Turlington, a soundscape ecologist and PhD candidate at the Australian Rivers Institute, Griffith University. My research explores how we can use sound to monitor freshwater ecosystems, which are incredibly diverse but often under-surveyed. I’ve spent the last few years working on rivers in South-East Queensland, trying to make sense of the many sounds these systems produce—from insect stridulations … Continue reading What’s That Sound? A New Way to Explore Freshwater Soundscapes

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Ecology, Practical Tools

Smart cameras in the wild: A centralised solar-powered Raspberry Pi system for automated animal observation and environmental monitoring

Post provided by Marçal Pou-Rossell Many studies of animal behaviour – especially parental care – rely on short, fragmented observations. Whether due to battery limitations, human resources, or remote field conditions, collecting continuous data throughout an entire reproductive cycle is often just not feasible. As a result, key behaviours can go undocumented, and our understanding of how animals make decisions across time remains incomplete. We … Continue reading Smart cameras in the wild: A centralised solar-powered Raspberry Pi system for automated animal observation and environmental monitoring

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Ecology

False Causes, Meet Attractor Dimension

Post provided by Yair Daon Who am I? I’m Yair Daon, a mathematician-turned-epidemiologist at Bar-Ilan University’s Faculty of Medicine. Most days I stare at time-series curves that claim one thing “drives” another. When those claims are wrong, public-health decisions can drift off course. Our new Methods in Ecology & Evolution paper introduces a fast way to shout “no!” before that happens. A two-minute primer for … Continue reading False Causes, Meet Attractor Dimension

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Conservation and management, Ecology

Practical tools to advance Image-Based bio-logging in marine ecosystems

Post provided by Marianna Chimienti My name is Dr Marianna Chimienti, and I am a lecturer in Marine Top Predator Ecology at the School of Ocean Sciences at Bangor University (UK). I’m fascinated by animal movements. My main research focuses on understanding how, where, when, and why animals move, using bio-logging technology (devices attached to animals that can record location, depth, acceleration, orientation, environmental conditions, … Continue reading Practical tools to advance Image-Based bio-logging in marine ecosystems

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Ecology, Statistical methods

Simple, intuitive tool for population management decision-making

Post provided by Izzy McCabe Predictions of insect populations from phenology models and sampling can help growers manage pests and beneficial insects on their farms. Phenology models relate accumulated heat units after winter to pest development and thereby inform timing of control actions, while sampling relies on regular on-site data collection (daily, weekly, etc.) to measure pest population densities and estimate potential damage. A drawback … Continue reading Simple, intuitive tool for population management decision-making

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Conservation and management, Ecology, Field Methods

The Ground Beneath Their Feet: Listening in on Africa’s wildlife using seismic sensors

Post provided by René Steinmann Hi, I’m a geophysicist by training, but I’ve recently shifted my focus from studying the solid Earth to some of its living inhabitants. I now work at the intersection of geophysics, wildlife biology, and machine learning. My recent research brings together these seemingly distant worlds in a project that’s all about listening—not to singing birds, but to the subtle vibrations … Continue reading The Ground Beneath Their Feet: Listening in on Africa’s wildlife using seismic sensors

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Field Methods, Practical Tools

From Kenya to Ohio – the inspiration for WildWing: an open-source, autonomous and affordable unmanned aerial system for animal behavioural video monitoring

Post provided by Jenna Kline, PhD Candidate, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA The story of the WildWing project began in 2022 when I enrolled in the Experiential Introduction to Imageomics course. For the fieldwork component of the course, I travelled to the Mpala Research Centre in Laikipia, Kenya. My course project advisors, Dr Tanya Berger-Wolf and Dr … Continue reading From Kenya to Ohio – the inspiration for WildWing: an open-source, autonomous and affordable unmanned aerial system for animal behavioural video monitoring

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Ecology

From a frustrated undergraduate to a motivated PhD: The story of YOLO-Behaviour for automated behavioural coding from videos

Post provided by Alex Chan Hoi Hang, PhD student, Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz The story of this project can be traced back to 2019, as a second-year undergraduate in biological sciences at Imperial College London, UK, where I took an animal behaviour course. For one of the hands-on sessions, Dr. Julia Schroeder (who later became my undergraduate and … Continue reading From a frustrated undergraduate to a motivated PhD: The story of YOLO-Behaviour for automated behavioural coding from videos

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