Senior Research Ecologist
Role and responsibilities
Hugh is a Senior Research Ecologist in the Terrestrial Ecology team working primarily on urban birds and demographic data.
Interests
Hugh has a background in avian urban ecology having undertaken a PhD on urban birds at the University of Reading. His research primarily focuses on urban ecology and avian demography using long and short-term citizen science surveys alongside novel field surveys. He has a particular interest in the impacts of and human-wildlife interactions around garden bird supplementary feeding, first started during his PhD and continued at BTO.
Hugh was responsible for the coordination of BTO Project Owl during 2018/19 including leading the design and analysis of two Tawny Owl surveys and he is also the organiser of the 2024/25 Blackbirds in Gardens survey.
Other Information
Prior to undertaking his current role and following his PhD, Hugh spent a summer as a RSPB Research Assistant working on Corn Bunting breeding success and Swift survey projects. He started bird ringing at a young age and currently holds a BTO S permit with extensive experience of ringing throughout the UK and abroad from the Tropics to the Arctic Circle. Since moving to start work at BTO HQ he has got involved in a number of local ringing activities both through BTO work projects and as a volunteer.
Qualifications
PhD “Unintended Consequences: How Human Intervention Affects the Ecology of Urban Birds”, People and Wildlife Research Group, University of Reading 2014-2017.
MRes Environmental Biology, University of St Andrews 2012-2013.
BSc Zoology (Hons), University of St Andrews 2008-2012.
S permit bird ringer.
Recent BTO publications
- Bruce, R.C., Abbott, A.J., Jones, B.P., Gardner, B.L., Gonzalez, E., Ionescu, A.-M., Jagdev, M., Jenkins, A., Santos, M., Seilern-Macpherson, K., Hanmer, H.J., Robinson, R.A., Vaux, A.G.C., Johnson, N., Cunningham, A.A., Lawson, B., Medlock, J.M. & Folly, A.J. 2025. Detection of West Nile virus via retrospective mosquito arbovirus surveillance, United Kingdom, 2025. Eurosurveillance 30: doi:10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2025.30.28.2500401
- Boersch-Supan, P.H., Hanmer, H.J. & Robinson, R.A. 2024. Extended molt phenology models improve inferences about molt duration and timing. Ornithology 141: doi:10.1093/ornithology/ukae003
- Hanmer, H.J. & Leech, D.I. 2024. Breeding periods of hedgerow-nesting birds in England. BTO Research Report 762:
- Hanmer, H.J., Dadam, D. & Siriwardena, G.M. 2022. Evidence that rural wintering populations supplement suburban breeding populations. Bird Study 69: 12-27 doi:10.1080/00063657.2022.2139814
- Hanmer, H.J., Boothby, C., Toms, M.P., Noble, D.G. & Balmer, D.E. 2022. Large-scale citizen science survey of a common nocturnal raptor: urbanization and weather conditions influence the occupancy and detectability of the Tawny Owl Strix aluco. Bird Study doi:/10.1080/00063657.2021.2019188
- Hanmer, H.J., Cunningham, A.A., John, S.K., Magregor, S.K., Robinson, R.A., Seilern-Moy, K., Siriwardena, G.M. & Lawson, B. 2022. Habitat-use influences severe disease-mediated population declines in two of the most common garden bird species in Great Britain. Scientific Reports 12: doi:10.1038/s41598-022-18880-8
- Hanmer, H.J., Boersch-Supan, P.H. & Robinson, R.A. 2022. Differential changes in life cycle-event phenology provide a window into regional population declines. Biology Letters doi:10.1098/rsbl.2022.0186
- Hanmer, H.J. & Robinson, R.A. 2021. Incidence of road mortality in ringed raptors and owls: a spatial analysis. BTO Research Report 733
- Burns, F., Eaton, M.A., Balmer, D.E., Banks, A., Caldow, R., Donelan, J.L., Douse, A., Duigan, C., Foster, S., Frost, T., Grice, P.V., Hall, C., Hanmer, H.J., Harris, S.J., Johnstone, I., Lindley, P., McCulloch, N., Noble, D.G., Risely, K., Robinson, R.A. & Wotton, S. 2020. The State of the UK's Birds 2020.
Other publications
Hanmer, H. J., Thomas, R. L. and Fellowes, M. D. E. 2018 Introduced Grey Squirrels subvert supplementary feeding of suburban wild birds. Landscape and Urban Planning 177: 10-18
Hanmer, H. J., Thomas, R. L. and Fellowes, M. D. E. 2017 Urbanisation influences range size of the domestic cat (Felis catus): consequences for conservation. Journal of Urban Ecology 3: jux014.
Hanmer, H. J., Thomas, R. L., Beswick, G. J. F., Collins, B. P. and Fellowes, M. D. E. 2017 Use of anthropogenic material affects bird nest arthropod community structure: influence of urbanisation, and consequences for ectoparasites and fledging success. Journal of Ornithology 158: 1045-1059.
Hanmer, H. J., Thomas, R. L. and Fellowes, M. D. E. 2017. Provision of supplementary food for wild birds may increase the risk of local nest predation. Ibis 159: 158-167.
Dunning, J., Hanmer, H., and Christmas, S. E. 2014 Hybridisation between House Martin Delichon urbicum and Sand Martin Riparia riparia: a new observation and review of past occurrences as a case study into hybrid reporting rates. Ringing & Migration 29: 86-89.