Amber Cowans

I’m a wildlife lover from Cornwall, who has always enjoyed spending my time surrounded by nature. I previously studied Biological Sciences at Oxford, before moving to St Andrews to develop my interests in Statistical Ecology. Now, I am applying statistical models to unravel the way ecological communities interact across time and space, with a focus on how human recreational activity may alter this. I am very lucky to be researching the relationship between people and nature to ultimately benefit both parties.

How do recreational activities alter spatiotemporal species interactions networks, and can this knowledge assist in promoting pro-environmental behaviour?

PhD aim:

  • To investigate how recreational activity alters spatiotemporal species interaction networks.

PhD objectives:

  • Collect and synthesise data to reliably quantify levels of recreational activity across natural landscapes.
  • Develop and apply joint species distribution models to better understand interactions in avian and mammalian communities in Cairngorms National Park.
  • Collect and analyse individual movement data to quantify real-time responses to recreational activity.
  • Conduct surveys of landscape users to gain insight on motivations for human behaviour, informing effective conservation and management.

Contact details:
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @AmberCowans