Dr Jeroen Minderman
Research Associate

I completed my BSc/MSc degree in Ecology at the University of Groningen (NL), and a PhD at Newcastle University. I am now back at Newcastle following two years as a postdoc at the University of Stirling.

I have broad interests in animal conservation biology and behavioural ecology, and ornithology in particular. Specifically, I am keen on developing links between behavioural-ecological processes on an individual level and population processes, and using insights thereof to inform conservation efforts. Moreover, I am interested in human-wildlife interactions, both in terms of conflicts and their resolution (e.g. effects of wind turbines on wildlife,) and in terms of benefits (e.g. ecosystem services, targeting of conservation effort to maximise investment).

I also have a keen interest in the use of (statistical) modelling in applied ecological work, such as generalised linear mixed effects models, IT model selection approaches and Bayesian statistics, and in the use of the software such as R and Python to handle and manipulate large data sets. I have used GIS for spatial analyses and have basic programming skills in C/C++.

Current project: Methods for the Assessment of Priorities for International Species Conservation (MAPISCo), with Mark Whittingham (Newcastle),Phil McGowan (World Pheasant Association), Jon-Paul Rodriguez (IUCN SSC) and Alison Rosser (UNEP-WCMC). 

The MAPISCO project is funded by the UK Deparment for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), and aims to develop a scientifically robust and transparent method to prioritise DEFRA investment in international species conservation projects. Specifically, the method should maximize the contribution that DEFRA's work makes towards achieving the UK commitments to the CBD 'Aichi' targets, both biologically (i.e. improving species threat status using the IUCN Red List as a starting point) and sociologically/economically (e.g. by improving livelihoods or provision of vital ecosystem services).

Previous work 

  • The effect of small wind turbines on birds and bats, based at University of Stirling. This project aimed to assess the potential ecological impact of micro- and small wind turbines on wildlife, particularly birds and bats. With Dr Kirsty Park, Dr Chris Pendlebury (Stirling Uni) and Dr James Pearce-Higgins (British Trust for Ornithology). For more  information, see: http://www.sbes.stir.ac.uk/research/ecology/micro-turbines.html
  •  The ecological relevance of animal personality traits in wild starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), PhD project based at Newcastle Univeristy. "Animal personalities" or "behavioural syndromes" refer to individual behaviour that is consistent and correlated across contexts and situations. Few studies have investigated animal personalities in the wild, and this project aimed to study their occurrence and relevance to the ecology and life-histories of wild birds, using starlings as a study species. Supervised by Dr Mark Whittingam (Newcastle University), Dr Jane Reid (University of Aberdeen) and Dr Peter Evans (University of Bangor).
  • Interference competition and predation risk in Redshanks (Tringa totanus). MSc project at University of Groningen (NL) and the University of St Andrews (supervised by Dr Will Cresswell).
  • Foraging ecology of Oystercatchers (Haematopus ostralegus) and modelling foraging bird distributions from their functional and aggregative responses. BSc/Msc research projects.