Overview
My interests revolve around how animal-borne technologies can be used to better understand marine vertebrate ecology and mitigate negative human interaction through large scale spatial ecology combined with fine scale behavioural data. My research focuses on the use of accelerometers and satellite tags in uncovering otherwise unidentifiable behaviours marine vertebrate to help inform conservation.
Prior and during my undergrad at the University of Exeter, I volunteered in Costa Rica and in Northern Cyprus working with hatchling and adult life stages of leatherback, loggerhead and green turtles. During my year abroad at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, I had the opportunity to join Dr Steven Cooke’s Fish Conservation Ecology and Physiology Lab for the summer field season which introduced me to the application of biologgers in conservation. I was able to apply both these experiences while joining the Sea Turtle Research Team at the Cape Eleuthera Institute in The Bahamas as a graduate research student and for my masters.
Broad research specialisms:
- Marine Vertebrate Conservation
- Marine Spatial Ecology
- Biotelemetry
- Accelerometry
Qualifications
BSc (Hons) Zoology with Study Abroad, University of Exeter, 2016
Masters by Research Marine Biology, University of Exeter, 2020
Research
Research projects
Project Title: Application of accelerometry to the conservation of coastal marine vertebrates
Supervisors: Dr Lucy Hawkes, Dr Matthew Witt
Project Description:
This study sets out to contribute to the applications of biologging to the conservation of two species of endangered migrating marine vertebrates, the basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus) and the green turtle (Chelonia mydas). The study will investigate how georeferenced fine-scale behaviour derived from Daily Diary tags can be used to determine spatio-temporal breeching events. This behaviour possibly linked to courtship displays can be used to infer breeding hotpots, influencing policy extending to wildlife watching guidelines and management of fisheries bycatch within and outside of MPAs.
By combining GPS telemetry data with accelerometer-derived energy expenditure, the study will also aim to test whether relocation is an effective conservation strategy for juvenile green turtles by estimating the behavioural differences and energetic consequence of homing behaviour following relocation.
Publications
Key publications | Publications by category | Publications by year
Publications by category
Journal articles
Witt M, Hawkes L, Exeter O, Kerry C, Rudd J, Henderson S, Kukulya A, Yoda N, Whelan S (In Press). Autonomous underwater videography and tracking of basking sharks. Animal Biotelemetry
Rudd JR, Bartolomeu T, Dolton HR, Exeter OM, Kerry C, Hawkes L, Henderson SM, Shirley M, Witt MJ (In Press). Basking shark sub-surface behaviour revealed by animal-towed cameras. PLoS One
Witt M, Hawkes L, Exeter O, Kerry C, Rudd J, Hall J, Hall G, Henderson S (In Press). High resolution biologging of breaching by the world's second largest shark species. Scientific Reports
Publications by year
In Press
Witt M, Hawkes L, Exeter O, Kerry C, Rudd J, Henderson S, Kukulya A, Yoda N, Whelan S (In Press). Autonomous underwater videography and tracking of basking sharks. Animal Biotelemetry
Rudd JR, Bartolomeu T, Dolton HR, Exeter OM, Kerry C, Hawkes L, Henderson SM, Shirley M, Witt MJ (In Press). Basking shark sub-surface behaviour revealed by animal-towed cameras. PLoS One
Witt M, Hawkes L, Exeter O, Kerry C, Rudd J, Hall J, Hall G, Henderson S (In Press). High resolution biologging of breaching by the world's second largest shark species. Scientific Reports
2021
Rudd J (2021). The role of Accelerometry in the Conservation of two Coastal Marine Vertebrates.
Abstract:
The role of Accelerometry in the Conservation of two Coastal Marine Vertebrates
This thesis advances the understanding of the spatial and behavioural ecology of two endangered species, basking sharks (Cetorhinus maximus) and green turtles (Chelonia mydas) at their coastal foraging sites while highlighting the pragmatic application of biologging technology in informing conservation. Chapter 1 of this thesis is a general introduction to tracking technologies, covering how the advancements of biologging have revolutionised the field of ecology, with an emphasis on how accelerometers can be used in conservation. Chapters 2 explores the use of accelerometers on three basking sharks in the western Scottish Isles to understand their fine-scale behaviour. I present early evidence of potential behavioural lateralisation, and the first direct records of 67 breaches over 41 days, with sharks breaching on average twice a day, both during night and day and increasing energy expenditure by at least 30 times to breach. While the function of breaching remains unclear, owing to its energetic cost, breaching is likely to have an important fitness function. In Chapter 3, accelerometers were deployed on 16 juvenile green turtles in the Bahamas to investigate the behavioural and energetic costs of translocation. Turtles rehomed in as little as 15 hours following translocation of 4 km and allocated twice as much time to energetically demanding behaviours compared to resident turtles at their foraging grounds, highlighting that translocation is not a suitable conservation practice for sea turtles. Chapter 4 summarises both data chapters and discusses how their findings provide further evidence of how tracking technologies can be ideal tools for conservation practitioners by monitoring animal movement, behaviour and health as well as assisting with the designation of protected areas by identifying important life history events. Chapter 4 concludes on the challenges and limitations of the thesis as well as the future directions in the use of tracking technologies in conservation ecology.
Abstract.
Jessica_Rudd Details from cache as at 2023-09-30 00:49:58
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