Niall Burton
Head & Principal Ecologist
Niall manages a team of seven staff undertaking pure and applied research on the UK’s waterbirds and seabirds.
Interests & Responsibilities
As Head of the Wetland and Marine Team, Niall oversees BTO’s research into waterbirds and seabirds, working closely with Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) staff in the BTO's Monitoring Team. The team's research explores the wide range of factors that may affect waterbird and seabird population dynamics, including climate change, habitat change and loss and the impacts of coastal and offshore developments. Niall's personal research work has focussed on assessing how waterbirds (from individuals to groups) respond to disturbance, habitat change and habitat loss.
Other Information
Niall is currently chair of the British Ornithologist's Union (BOU) Meetings Committee and has been a member of the BOU's Council since 2011. He is also an Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia.
Qualifications
BSc in Physical Geography, Reading University, 1986-1989 MSc in Ecology, University of Durham, 1989-1990 PhD on the roosting behaviour of waders, University of Durham, 1991-1995
Recent BTO Publications
James W. Pearce-Higgins, Elizabeth M. Humphreys, Niall H.K. Burton, Philip W. Atkinson, Chris Pollock, Gary D. Clewley, Daniel T. Johnston, Nina J. O’Hanlon, Dawn E. Balmer, Teresa M. Frost, Sarah J. Harris & Helen Baker
2023.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza in wild birds in the United Kingdom in 2022: impacts, planning for future outbreaks, and conservation and research priorities. Report on virtual workshops held in November 2022.
Research Report no. 752.
British Trust for Ornithology, Thetford
ISBN: 978-1-912642-47-2
92pp
Mander, L., Nicholson, I., Green, R., Dodd, S., Forster, R. & Burton, N.
2022.
Individual, sexual and temporal variation in the winter home range sizes of GPS-tagged Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata.
Bird Study
View at journal website (DOI: 10.1080/00063657.2022.2144129)
Langley, L.P., Bearhop, S., Burton, N.H.K., Banks, A.N., Frayling, T., Thaxter, C., Clewley G., Scragg, E. & Votier, S.C.
2022.
Urban and coastal breeding lesser black-backed gulls (Larus fuscus) segregate by foraging habitat.
Ibis
View at journal website (DOI: doi.org/10.1111/ibi.13109)
Booth Jones, K., Thaxter, C., Clewley, G., Wolsey, S., Calbrade, N., Atkinson, P., Calladine, J. & Burton, N.
2022.
Belfast’s urban gulls: an assessment of breeding populations, breeding season movements and winter population.
Research Report no. 734.
British Trust for Ornithology, Thetford
ISBN: 978-1-912642-26-7
52pp
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