2017

Dissertation and project lists

Doctoral theses

Carstens, Kate. December 2017. Nest boxes as a conservation tool for the Southern Ground Hornbill Bucorvus Leadbeateri. (Supervisors: Peter Ryan, Rob Little, Robert Thomson).

Gaglio, Davide. December 2017. Investigating the foraging ecology and energy requirements of a seabird population increasing in an intensely exploited marine environment. (Supervisors: Peter Ryan, Timothée Cook, Richard Sherley, Tom Flower).

Garcia-Heras, Marie-Sophie. July 2017. Environmental factors influencing the breeding and health of a predator endemic to southern Africa: the endangered Black Harrier Circus maurus. (Supervisors: Rob Simmons, Arjun Amar, Beatriz Arroyo and Francois Mougeot).

Rollinson, Dominic. July 2017. Understanding and mitigating seabird bycatch in the South African pelagic longline fishery. (Supervisors: Peter Ryan and Ross Wanless)

van de Ven, Tanja. December 2017. Implications of climate change on the reproductive success of the Southern yellow-billed Hornbill Tokus leucomelas. (Supervisors: Phil Hockey, Susie Cunningham, Andrew McKechnie).

van Eeden, Rowen. July 2017. Understanding the decline of Martial Eagles Polemaetus bellicosus in the  Kruger National Park, South Africa. (Supervisor: Arjun Amar)

Whitehead, Otto. December 2017. Comparative foraging ecology of macaroni and rockhopper penguins at the Prince Edward Islands. (Supervisor: Peter Ryan)

Masters Theses

de Blocq van Scheltinga, Andrew. July 2017. Disturbance effects of boat-based tourism on waterbirds at the Ramsar-designated De Hoop Vlei, Western Cape, South Africa. (Supervisors: Peter Ryan and Robert Thomson).

Conservation Biology Masters mini-theses

Huyam Abbas. 2017. Limited impact of severe drought on plant dynamics in African Savanna. (Supervisors: Jeremy Midgley, William Bond)

Michelle Blanckenberg. July 2017. Resurrection ecology of invertebrates in temporary wetlands in the Cape Floristic region: effects of urbanisation and fire. (Supervisors: Cecile Reed, Musa Mlambo)

Sarah Casola. July 2017 The potential impact of climate change on the genetic diversity of the endangered western leopard toad Sclerophrys pantherina. (Supervisors: Claire Spottiswoode, Krystal Tolley)

Tendai Chinho. July 2017. Testing the Information Centre Hypothesis in a colonial seabird: foraging information exchange among breeding pairs of Cape Gannets Morus capensis(Supervisors: Peter Ryan, Lorien Pichegru)

Christie Craig. July 2017. Assessing the anthropogenic threats to vultures in the communal farmlands of Namibia (Supervisors: Robert Thomson, Andrea Santangeli)

Carles Dura. July 2017. Understanding predation of tortoises by nesting Pied Crows (Corvus albus) in western South Africa. (Supervisors: Arjun Amar, Robert Thomson)

Wesley Gush. July 2017. The decline of the globally threatened Rudd’s Lark in one of its last remaining core sites, the Wakkerstroom grasslands. (Supervisors: Claire Spottiswoode, David Maphisa)

Corey Jeal. July 2017. The impact of a trough concentrated solar power facility on birds and other animals in the Northern Cape, South Africa. (Supervisors: Peter Ryan, Samantha Ralston-Paton)

Alicia Ly. July 2017. Associations between MHC class I variation and blood pathogen prevalence in caracal. (Supervisor: Jacqui Bishop)

Matthew Macray. July 2017. Tortoise mortalities along fences in the south eastern Karoo, South Africa. (Supervisors: Peter Ryan, Alan Lee, Graham Alexander)

Elelwani Nenzhelele. July 2017. Long-term impacts of livestock grazing in the succulent Karoo: a 20-year study of vegetation change under different grazing regimes in Namaqualand. (Supervisors: Timm Hoffman, Simon Todd)

Ryan Olinger. July 2017. How does temperature affect Fork-tailed Drongo Dicrurus adsimilis foraging effort, nestling provisioning and growth rates?

Maggie Parrish. 2017. The influence of fire-grazer interactions on Forb communities in a highveld grassland (Supervisors: Jeremy Midgely, Sally Archibald)