Mark Wilson - biography

I am an ecological researcher with broad interests in animal behaviour, bird biology, forest ecology and conservation. I am passionate about the conservation of birds, for people. By working in the BTO, I hope that I can contribute to conservation and to wider, worthy aims by helping to make high quality data on bird populations and their ecology available to the public, the state, and other decision-makers in society.

During my PhD at the University of Sheffield I studied the genetic and provisioning contributions of male Willow Warblers to their offspring, and consequences of variation in both of these for female reproductive and parental behaviour. Towards the end of my PhD (in 2000) I worked for the RSPB as one of a team of four field workers who organised and carried out surveys of breeding upland waders in the north of Scotland - one of the most rewarding fieldwork experiences I have ever had.

From 2001 to 2013 I worked as a postdoctoral researcher in University College Cork. During my time there I was involved in several large, cross-disciplinary projects on forest-related biodiversity and also Hen Harrier ecology. The first of these was BIOFOREST, a 5 year project investigating biodiversity of plantation forests in Ireland. This work helped to identify a number of knowledge gaps requiring further study, and I was subsequently involved in establishing follow-up programmes of research, including work on Hen Harrier breeding ecology and projects on forest and native woodland biodiversity. In 2012, I began working on a new project which aimed to investigate the impact of wind energy developments on Hen Harriers in Ireland, and I carried on in this role before moving to BTO Scotland.

In my role at BTO I will be focussing on terrestrial birds in Scotland, particularly raptors and birds associated with forests and woodlands. My first task has been to help to plan and organise the imminent 2014 Peregrine Survey, which at the time of writing is almost upon us. The ability that Peregrines have to capture our imagination can be rivalled by few other species in Britain, and the chance to work on such an iconic bird of prey, and to collaborate with all the dedicated, expert and enthusiastic volunteers coordinating and contributing to the survey, is the best start to my new role that I could have asked for.

In addition to all things bird-related, I enjoy photography (OK, mostly of birds…), teaching (yes, yes, often about birds), remote tracking (of… you can probably guess) and occasionally playing and writing fiddle music. You can see a few of my wildlife photos below.

 

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