Cumulative effects of predation and bycatch in northern fulmar metapopulation dynamics

拟议的博士学位包括QUADRAT的职权范围和战略重点，特别是生物多样性和环境管理研究领域。这个项目的重点是提高我们的能力，捕捉现实的量化和随后的预测北方fulmar（Fulmarus glacialis）集合种群动态。这项工作将推进我们的理解的优先物种，其保护，通过了解不同来源的干扰和扰动如何影响集合种群动态的集合种群建模的改进。最终，该项目旨在促进我们的理解，和方法，模拟集合种群动态。这将通过向决策者、自然保护顾问和行业提供严格的证据，为海洋管理政策提供信息，并消除实施海鸟保护战略的障碍。此外，这些进展将减少预测潜在的副渔获物缓解可能如何影响优先物种时的不确定性，如在英国脱欧后英国海鸟副渔获物缓解倡议和英国清洁渔获物的背景下的管鼻蝠。同样，拟议的博士项目符合NERC的职权范围和战略重点，特别是以下研究领域：生态学生物多样性和系统学以及工具，技术和方法。生态生物多样性和系统学：拟议的博士学位旨在更好地了解英国北方管鼻蝠的大时空集合种群动态（种群生态学）。该项目还将了解管鼻蝠所使用的策略，以最大限度地提高面对累积效应的适应性，例如与渔业的相互作用，捕食者的存在或密度依赖（行为生态学）。最终，这里产生的研究成果将用于通过与JNCC和MSS（保护生态学）等相关利益相关者的核心合作伙伴关系，为在其自然栖息地保护管鼻蝠提供信息。工具，技术和方法：博士项目将调整现有的远程监测技术（相机陷阱）与环境应用（环境应用技术），以及开发远程环境监测fulmar种群（及其捕食者）（调查和监测），可能应用于其他海鸟和类似的后勤密集型物种。

The proposed PhD encompasses QUADRAT remit and strategic priorities specifically with the Biodiversity and Environmental management research areas. This project focuses on improving our ability to capture realism in the quantification and subsequent forecasting of Northern fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis) metapopulation dynamics. This work will advance our understanding of a priority species, and its conservation, through improvements in metapopulation modelling by understanding how different sources of disturbance and perturbations affect metapopulation dynamics. Ultimately, the project aims to advance our understanding of, and methodologies available for, modelling metapopulation dynamics. This will be important for informing marine management policy by providing rigorous evidence to decision makers, nature conservation advisors and industry, and remove barriers to the delivery of Seabird Conservation Strategies. Moreover, such advances would reduce uncertainty when forecasting how potential bycatch mitigation may affect priority species such as fulmars in the context of the post-Brexit Uk Seabird Bycatch Mitigation Initiative and Clean Catch UK'. Likewise, the proposed PhD project aligns with the NERC remit and strategic priorities specifically with the following research areas: Ecology biodiversity and systematics and Tools, technology and methods. Ecology biodiversity and systematics: The proposed PhD aims to better understand large spatio-temporal metapopulation dynamics of Northern fulmars in the UK (Population ecology). The project will also develop an understanding of the strategies used by fulmars to maximise fitness in the face of cumulative effects such as interactions with fisheries, presence of predators or density dependence (Behavioural ecology). Ultimately the research outputs produced here will be used to inform the conservation of fulmars in their natural habitat through its core partnerships with relevant stakeholders such as JNCC and MSS (Conservation ecology). Tools, technology & methods: The PhD project will adapt existing remote monitoring technology (camera traps) with environmental applications (Technology for environmental applications) as well as developing remote environmental monitoring of fulmar populations (and their predators) (Survey and monitoring), with likely applications to other seabirds and similarly logistically intensive species.