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Name: Alice Trevail
Organisation: University of Liverpool and South West Fulmar Project
Role: PhD student and Instigator, respectively
Nationality and main countries worked: British; UK and Antarctica
Why are bioindicators an important tool in applied ecology?
Bioindicators offer a unique insight into ecosystem health and change in a range of different parameters, from fish stocks to plastic pollution. Through biomonitoring we can learn a great deal about environments that would otherwise be inaccessible, or that are inherently patchy.
In-situ direct observations offer valuable snapshots, however, these can be limited both spatially and temporally and it is not possible to extrapolate to infer broad scale changes over space and time. This is where indicator species come in. Seabirds, for example, are relatively easy to study, forage over a wide range of environments, and are charismatic thus popular with the general public, campaign organisations and funding bodies. This makes them perfect bioindicators.
What is your day to day job?
I am studying for my PhD in seabird ecology and oceanography at the University of Liverpool. My PhD aims to investigate the interactions between marine top predators and their environment. Widespread evidence is mounting that individual animals display consistent behavioural differences. I am interested in the role of environmental stability in shaping these behaviours, and hope to investigate how this will, in turn, influence the response of different populations and species to our changing climate. I am also interested in how seabirds can be used to monitor plastic pollution. I work together with researchers around Europe to quantify plastic ingestion by northern fulmars both in the North Atlantic and the Antarctic to inform international policy.
What is your most interesting recent project and why?
I set up the South West Fulmar Project as a geographic expansion of an existing North Sea collaboration to use seabirds as monitors of marine litter. We study northern fulmars Fulmarus glacialis because they forage solely at sea and feed ubiquitously on anything floating at the ocean surface, including plastic. Marine litter is broken down inside the stomach after approximately one month, and therefore quantifying ingested plastic can provide an interesting and current snapshot of oceanic pollution levels. Furthermore, fulmars are widely distributed and extensively monitored across the northern hemisphere, and consequently any new data can instantly form part of spatial and temporal comparisons.
What are the most satisfying parts of this project?
There are two elements of the project that I find most satisfying. Firstly, the South West Fulmar Project has direct policy implications. The number of fulmars with plastic in their stomachs is written into EU environmental targets that our government is committed to achieving. Therefore, every bird found and dissected from our beaches can influence government action on marine litter mitigation.
Secondly, volunteers are inherent to the project as they collect the beached birds. I love being able to talk to passionate local people and conservation groups about the project as well as their ongoing marine conservation work.
What's next for you, and why?
I’ve got three years left of my PhD, during which I am hoping to maximise my field seasons to collect as much valuable data as possible. I hope that my project will reveal insights into the origins of individual animal behaviour, as well as having conservation implications in the context of our changing climate and requirement for additional marine protected areas. Alongside this, I continue to run the South West Fulmar Project because long term studies are most valuable for marine monitoring.
What do you see as the main challenges in your field and how can they be overcome?
Studies consistently show that individuals display behavioural responses to change, however the degree of adaptability can vary at the individual, population and species level. Understanding variation in the response of individuals to change will aid both our understanding of how to use particular species as ecological indicators as well as their conservation.
Regarding policy, studies of indicator species are often directed towards achieving targets that signify ‘good environmental status’. The challenge is thus defining what we actually mean by good environmental status. It is also imperative that once reached, targets are re-evaluated, and the actual negative effects of anthropogenic activity on the environment are defined.
Finally, how did you get into species monitoring and what advice would you give to others?
For me, the application of my research towards an aim that I feel passionate about is important. This is reflected in my research projects from undergraduate onwards, that have incorporated species monitoring for policy and conservation. My advice to others would be to choose projects that interest you as you will be much more motivated to pursue them to a high level.