Dr Xavier Harrison
Senior Lecturer in Ecology
X.Harrison@exeter.ac.uk
5176
Stella Turk Building LG.3.12
University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE
Overview
The natural world is alive with microbes, including bacteria, fungi and viruses. These microbes can live in close association with animal and plant hosts, and have huge impacts on their biology, influencing traits such as disease susceptibility, digestive efficiency and lifespan.
But why is the microbiome apparently so important for organismal fitness? And what are the mechanisms by which the microbiome can cause differences among individuals in life history trajectory? These are the questions that drive me.
I’m a molecular ecologist with a broad background in genetics and evolutionary ecology. I use a range of systems to tackle questions about host-microbe interactions, including amphibians, birds and insects.
Qualifications
2011 PhD Biological Sciences, University of Exeter
2006 BSc. (Hons) Biology, Class I, University of York
Career
2021 – Present Senior Lecturer, University of Exeter
2019 – 2021 Lecturer, University of Exeter
2013-2018 Research Fellow, Institute of Zoology, ZSL
2011-2013 BBSRC Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Exeter
2007-2011 PhD, University of Exeter
2006-2007 Research Technician, UKPopNet, University of York
Research group links
Publications
Journal articles
Poyntz-Wright I, Harrison X, Johnson AC, Zappala S, Tyler C (In Press). Assessment of the Impacts of Gaba and Ache Targeting Pesticides on Freshwater Invertebrate Family Richness in English Rivers.
Harrison X, York JE, Cram DL, Hares M, Young AJ (In Press). Complete reproductive skew within white-browed sparrow weaver groups despite outbreeding opportunities for subordinates of both sexes. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology
Harrison, XA, York, JE, Cram, DL, Young AJ (In Press). Extra-group mating increases inbreeding risk in a cooperatively breeding bird. Molecular Ecology
Harrison XA, Bearhop S, Inger R, Colhoun K, Gudmundsson GA, Hodgson DA, McElwaine G, Tregenza T (In Press). Heretozygosity-Fitness Correlation in a Migratory Bird: an Analysis of Inbreeding and Single-Locus Effects. Molecular Ecology (in press)
Harrison XA, Bearhop S, Inger R, Colhoun K, Gudmundsson GA, Hodgson DJ, McElwaine G, Tregenza T (In Press). Heterozygosity-Fitness Correlations in a Migratory Bird: an analysis of inbreeding and single locus effects. Molecular Ecology
Poyntz-Wright I, Harrison X, Johnson AC, Zappala S, Tyler C (In Press). Pesticide Pollution Associations with Riverine Invertebrate Communities in England.
McMillan K, Lesbarreres D, Harrison X, Garner T (In Press). SPATIOTEMPORAL HETEROGENEITY DECOUPLES INFECTION PARAMETERS OF AMPHIBIAN CHYTRIDIOMYCOSIS. Journal of Animal Ecology
Edwards AW, Harrison XA, Smith MA, Chavarría Díaz MM, Sasa M, Janzen DH, Hallwachs W, Chaves G, Fernández R, Palmer C, et al (2023). Amphibian diversity across three adjacent ecosystems in Área de Conservación Guanacaste, Costa Rica. PeerJ, 11, e16185-e16185. Abstract.
Jones I, Marsh K, Handby TM, Hopkins K, Slezacek J, Bearhop S, Harrison XA (2023). The influence of diet on gut microbiome and body mass dynamics in a capital-breeding migratory bird. PeerJ, 11 Abstract. Author URL.
Smith D, O'Brien D, Hall J, Sergeant C, Brookes LM, Harrison XA, Garner TWJ, Jehle R (2022). Challenging a host-pathogen paradigm: Susceptibility to chytridiomycosis is decoupled from genetic erosion. J Evol Biol, 35(4), 589-598. Abstract. Author URL.
Handby T, Slezacek J, Lupi S, Colhoun K, Harrison XA, Bearhop S (2022). Changes in Behaviour and Proxies of Physiology Suggest Individual Variation in the Building of Migratory Phenotypes in Preparation for Long-Distance Flights. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 10
Palmer C, Jimenez C, Bassey G, Ruiz E, Villalobos Cubero T, Chavarria Diaz MM, Harrison XA, Puschendorf R (2022). Cold water and harmful algal blooms linked to coral reef collapse in the Eastern Tropical Pacific. PeerJ, 10, e14081-e14081. Abstract.
Bates KA, Sommer U, Hopkins KP, Shelton JMG, Wierzbicki C, Sergeant C, Tapley B, Michaels CJ, Schmeller DS, Loyau A, et al (2022). Microbiome function predicts amphibian chytridiomycosis disease dynamics. Microbiome, 10(1).
Mogensen LMW, Mei Z, Hao Y, Harrison XA, Wang D, Turvey ST (2022). Precautionary Principle or Evidence-Based Conservation? Assessing the Information Content of Threat Data for the Yangtze Finless Porpoise. Frontiers in Marine Science, 8 Abstract.
Costa A, Heleno R, Dufrene Y, Huckle E, Gabriel R, Harrison X, Schabo DG, Farwig N, Kaiser‐Bunbury CN (2022). Seasonal variation in impact of non‐native species on tropical seed dispersal networks. Functional Ecology, 36(11), 2713-2726. Abstract.
Harrison XA (2021). A brief introduction to the analysis of time-series data from biologging studies. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, 376(1831). Author URL.
Capilla-Lasheras P, Harrison X, Wood EM, Wilson AJ, Young AJ (2021). Altruistic bet-hedging and the evolution of cooperation in a Kalahari bird. Science Advances, 7(39). Abstract.
Williamson MJ, Tebbs EJ, Dawson TP, Curnick DJ, Ferretti F, Carlisle AB, Chapple TK, Schallert RJ, Tickler DM, Harrison XA, et al (2021). Analysing detection gaps in acoustic telemetry data to infer differential movement patterns in fish. Ecology and Evolution, 11(6), 2717-2730. Abstract.
Harrison XA, McDevitt AD, Dunn JC, Griffiths SM, Benvenuto C, Birtles R, Boubli JP, Bown K, Bridson C, Brooks DR, et al (2021). Fungal microbiomes are determined by host phylogeny and exhibit widespread associations with the bacterial microbiome. Proc Biol Sci, 288(1957). Abstract. Author URL.
Brown AM, Wood EM, Capilla-Lasheras P, Harrison XA, Young AJ (2021). Longitudinal evidence that older parents produce offspring with longer telomeres in a wild social bird. Biology Letters, 17(10). Abstract.
Jervis P, Pintanel P, Hopkins K, Wierzbicki C, Shelton JMG, Skelly E, Rosa GM, Almeida‐Reinoso D, Eugenia‐Ordoñez M, Ron S, et al (2021). Post‐epizootic microbiome associations across communities of neotropical amphibians. Molecular Ecology, 30(5), 1322-1335.
Leech T, McDowall L, Hopkins KP, Sait SM, Harrison XA, Bretman A (2021). Social environment drives sex and age‐specific variation in <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i> microbiome composition and predicted function. Molecular Ecology, 30(22), 5831-5843. Abstract.
Turvey ST, Duncan C, Upham NS, Harrison X, Dávalos LM (2021). Where the wild things were: intrinsic and extrinsic extinction predictors in the world's most depleted mammal fauna. Proc Biol Sci, 288(1946). Abstract. Author URL.
Campbell LJ, Pawlik AH, Harrison XA (2020). Amphibian ranaviruses in Europe: important directions for future research. Facets, 5(1), 598-614.
Canessa S, Spitzen-van der Sluijs A, Stark T, Allen BE, Bishop PJ, Bletz M, Briggs CJ, Daversa DR, Gray MJ, Griffiths RA, et al (2020). Conservation decisions under pressure: Lessons from an exercise in rapid response to wildlife disease. CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE, 2(1). Author URL.
Harrison XA, Sewell T, Fisher M, Antwis RE (2020). Designing Probiotic Therapies with Broad-Spectrum Activity Against a Wildlife Pathogen. Frontiers in Microbiology, 10
Harrison XA, McDevitt AD, Dunn JC, Griffiths S, Benvenuto C, Birtles R, Boubli JP, Bown K, Bridson C, Brooks D, et al (2020). Fungal microbiomes are determined by host phylogeny and exhibit widespread associations with the bacterial microbiome. Abstract.
Silk MJ, Harrison XA, Hodgson DJ (2020). Perils and pitfalls of mixed-effects regression models in biology. PeerJ, 8, e9522-e9522. Abstract.
Leech T, McDowall L, Hopkins KP, Sait SM, Harrison XA, Bretman A (2020). Social environment drives sex and age-specific variation in <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i> microbiome composition and predicted function. Abstract.
Bates KA, Shelton JMG, Mercier VL, Hopkins KP, Harrison XA, Petrovan SO, Fisher MC (2019). Captivity and Infection by the Fungal Pathogen Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans Perturb the Amphibian Skin Microbiome. Frontiers in Microbiology, 10
Harrison XA, Price SJ, Hopkins K, Leung WTM, Sergeant C, Garner TWJ (2019). Diversity-Stability Dynamics of the Amphibian Skin Microbiome and Susceptibility to a Lethal Viral Pathogen. Frontiers in Microbiology, 10 Abstract.
Campbell L, Garner T, Hopkins K, Griffiths A, Harrison XA (2019). Outbreaks of an Emerging Viral Disease Covary with Differences in the Composition of the Skin Microbiome of a Wild United Kingdom Amphibian. Frontiers in Microbiology
Harrison XA, Donaldson L, Correa-Cano ME, Evans J, Fisher DN, Goodwin C, Robinson B, Hodgson DJ, Inger R (2018). A brief introduction to mixed effects modelling and multi-model inference in ecology. Abstract.
Harrison XA, Donaldson L, Correa-Cano ME, Evans J, Fisher DN, Goodwin C, Robinson B, Hodgson DJ, Inger R (2018). A brief introduction to mixed effects modelling and multi-model inference in ecology. Abstract.
Harrison XA, Donaldson L, Correa-Cano ME, Evans J, Fisher DN, Goodwin CED, Robinson BS, Hodgson DJ, Inger R (2018). A brief introduction to mixed effects modelling and multi-model inference in ecology. PeerJ, 6 Abstract. Author URL.
Bates KA, Clare FC, O’Hanlon S, Bosch J, Brookes L, Hopkins K, McLaughlin EJ, Daniel O, Garner TWJ, Fisher MC, et al (2018). Amphibian chytridiomycosis outbreak dynamics are linked with host skin bacterial community structure. Nature Communications, 9(1). Abstract.
Campbell LJ, Garner TWJ, Tessa G, Scheele BC, Griffiths AGF, Wilfert L, Harrison XA (2018). An emerging viral pathogen truncates population age structure in a European amphibian and may reduce population viability. PEERJ, 6 Author URL.
Campbell LJ, Garner TWJ, Tessa G, Scheele BC, Griffiths AGF, Wilfert L, Harrison XA (2018). An emerging viral pathogen truncates population age structure in a European amphibian and may reduce population viability. Abstract.
Campbell LJ, Garner TWJ, Tessa G, Scheele BC, Griffiths AGF, Wilfert L, Harrison XA (2018). An emerging viral pathogen truncates population age structure in a European amphibian and may reduce population viability. Abstract.
Chen S, Cunningham AA, Wei G, Yang J, Liang Z, Wang J, Wu M, Yan F, Xiao H, Harrison XA, et al (2018). Determining threatened species distributions in the face of limited data: Spatial conservation prioritization for the Chinese giant salamander (Andrias davidianus). Ecology and Evolution, 8(6), 3098-3108. Abstract.
Griffiths SM, Harrison XA, Weldon C, Wood MD, Pretorius A, Hopkins K, Fox G, Preziosi RF, Antwis RE (2018). Genetic variability and ontogeny predict microbiome structure in a disease-challenged montane amphibian. ISME Journal, 12(10), 2506-2517. Abstract.
Douglas CMS, Cowlishaw G, Harrison XA, Henschel JR, Pettorelli N, Mulligan M (2018). Identifying the determinants of tree distributions along a large ephemeral river. Ecosphere, 9(6).
Antwis RE, Harrison XA (2018). Probiotic consortia are not uniformly effective against different amphibian chytrid pathogen isolates. Mol Ecol, 27(2), 577-589. Abstract. Author URL.
Harrison XA, Donaldson L, Correa-Cano ME, Evans J, Fisher DN, Goodwin C, Robinson B, Hodgson DJ, Inger R (2017). Best practice in mixed effects modelling and multi-model inference in ecology. Abstract.
Campbell LJ, Garner TWJ, Tessa G, Scheele BC, Griffiths AGF, Wilfert L, Harrison XA (2017). Disease mediated changes to life history and demography threaten the survival of European amphibian populations. Abstract.
Antwis RE, Griffiths SM, Harrison XA, Aranega-Bou P, Arce A, Bettridge AS, Brailsford FL, de Menezes A, Devaynes A, Forbes KM, et al (2017). Fifty important research questions in microbial ecology. FEMS Microbiol Ecol, 93(5). Abstract. Author URL.
Harrison XA, Price SJ, Hopkins K, Leung WTM, Sergeant C, Garner TWJ (2017). Host Microbiome Richness Predicts Resistance to Disturbance by Pathogenic Infection in a Vertebrate Host. Abstract.
Rebollar EA, Antwis RE, Becker MH, Belden LK, Bletz MC, Brucker RM, Harrison XA, Hughey MC, Kueneman JG, Loudon AH, et al (2016). Using "Omics" and Integrated Multi-Omics Approaches to Guide Probiotic Selection to Mitigate Chytridiomycosis and Other Emerging Infectious Diseases. FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY, 7 Author URL.
Rebollar EA, Antwis RE, Becker MH, Belden LK, Bletz MC, Brucker RM, Harrison XA, Hughey MC, Kueneman JG, Loudon AH, et al (2016). Using "Omics" and Integrated Multi-Omics Approaches to Guide Probiotic Selection to Mitigate Chytridiomycosis and Other Emerging Infectious Diseases. Front Microbiol, 7 Abstract. Author URL.
Douglas CMS, Mulligan M, Harrison XA, Henschel JR, Pettorelli N, Cowlishaw G (2016). Widespread dieback of riparian trees on a dammed ephemeral river and evidence of local mitigation by tributary flows. PeerJ, 4 Abstract. Author URL.
Harrison XA (2015). A comparison of observation-level random effect and Beta-Binomial models for modelling overdispersion in Binomial data in ecology & evolution. PeerJ, 3 Abstract. Author URL.
Antwis RE, Preziosi RF, Harrison XA, Garner TWJ (2015). Amphibian Symbiotic Bacteria Do Not Show a Universal Ability to Inhibit Growth of the Global Panzootic Lineage of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. Appl Environ Microbiol, 81(11), 3706-3711. Abstract. Author URL.
Harrison XA, York JE, Young AJ (2014). Population genetic structure and direct observations reveal sex-reversed patterns of dispersal in a cooperative bird. Molecular Ecology, 23(23), 5740-5755. Abstract.
Harrison XA, York JE, Young AJ (2014). Population genetic structure and direct
observations reveal sex-reversed patterns of dispersal in a cooperative bird. Molecular Ecology
Harrison XA (2014). Using observation-level random effects to model overdispersion in count data in ecology and evolution. PeerJ, 2 Abstract. Author URL.
Harrison XA, York JE, Cram DL, Hares MC, Young AJ (2013). Complete reproductive skew within white-browed sparrow weaver groups despite outbreeding opportunities for subordinates of both sexes. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 67(12), 1915-1929. Abstract.
Harrison XA, Hodgson DJ, Inger R, Colhoun K, Gudmundsson GA, McElwaine G, Tregenza T, Bearhop S (2013). Environmental conditions during breeding modify the strength of mass-dependent carry-over effects in a migratory bird. PLoS One, 8(10). Abstract. Author URL.
Harrison XA, York JE, Cram DL, Young AJ (2013). Extra-group mating increases inbreeding risk in a cooperatively breeding bird. Molecular Ecology, 22(22), 5700-5715. Abstract.
Tyler F, Harrison XA, Bretman A, Veen T, Rodríguez-Muñoz R, Tregenza T (2013). Multiple post-mating barriers to hybridization in field crickets. Molecular Ecology, 22(6), 1640-1649. Abstract.
Tyler F, Harrison XA, Bretman A, Veen T, Rodríguez-Muñoz R, Tregenza T (2013). Multiple post-mating barriers to hybridization in field crickets. Mol Ecol, 22(6), 1640-1649. Abstract. Author URL.
Drewe JA, Weber N, Carter SP, Bearhop S, Harrison XA, Dall SRX, McDonald RA, Delahay RJ (2012). Performance of proximity loggers in recording intra- and inter-species interactions: a laboratory and field-based validation study. PLoS One, 7(6). Abstract.
Harrison XA, Bearhop S, Inger R, Colhoun K, Gudmundsson GA, Hodgson D, McElwaine G, Tregenza T (2011). Heterozygosity-fitness correlations in a migratory bird: an analysis of inbreeding and single-locus effects. Molecular ecology, 20(22), 4786-4795. Abstract.
Inger R, Harrison XA, Ruxton GD, Newton J, Colhoun K, Gudmundsson GA, McElwaine G, Pickford M, Hodgson D, Bearhop S, et al (2010). Carry-Over Effects Reveal Reproductive Costs in a Long Distance Migrant. Journal of Animal Ecology, 79, 974-982.
Harrison XA, Blount J, Inger R, Bearhop S (2010). Carry-over Effects as Drivers of Fitness in Animals. Journal of Animal Ecology, 79, 974-982.
Harrison XA, Tregenza T, Inger R, Colhoun K, Dawson DA, Gudmundsson GA, Hodgson DJ, Horsburgh GJ, McElwaine G, Bearhop S, et al (2010). Cultural Inheritance Drives Site Fidelity and Migratory Connectivity in a Long Distance Migrant. Molecular Ecology, 19(24), 5484-5496.
Harrison XA, Dawson DA, Horsburgh GJ, Tregenza T, Bearhop S (2010). Isolation, characterisation and predicted genome locations of Light-bellied Brent goose (Branta bernicla hrota) microsatellite loci (Anatidae, AVES). Conservation Genetics Resources, 2, 365-371.
Harrison XA, Dawson DA, Horsburgh GJ, Tregenza T, Bearhop S (2010). Isolation, characterisation and predicted genome locations of Light-bellied Brent goose (Branta bernicla hrota) microsatellite loci (Anatidae, AVES). Conservation Genetics Resources, 1-7.
Chapters
Harrison XA, Cameron SJS (2020). Analytical approaches for microbiome research. In (Ed) Microbiomes of Soils, Plants and Animals, Cambridge University Press (CUP), 8-28.
Antwis RE, Harrison XA, J. Cox M, Carryl S, Dewar M, Doonan J, Fry EL, Gilbert JA, Greenwood B, Harris RN, et al (2020). Microbiomes of soils, plants and animals: an introduction. In (Ed) Microbiomes of Soils, Plants and Animals, Cambridge University Press (CUP), 1-7.
Antwis RE, Harrison XA, COX MJ (2020). Synthesis and future directions. In (Ed) Microbiomes of Soils, Plants and Animals, Cambridge University Press (CUP), 222-226.
