Mrs Anna Wilson
Project Manager
Department: Comparative Biomedical Sciences
Campus: Hawkshead
Research Centres: Structure & Motion Laboratory
My role is to manage research projects for Alan Wilson, from the proposal stage to completion of the research. The projects all involve studying the locomotion of animals in the wild using a range of innovative technologies.
-
AIRSCAN
The AIRSCAN project uses a modified research aircraft for aerial survey and data acquisition. During its first deployment in the LOCATE project, the aircraft allowed us to understand more about behaviour and locomotion in wild, free-ranging animals in southern Africa. The on-board technology helped reveal new insights into how animals interact with their natural environment, which will aid conservation and land management. The modified aircraft was originally built for studying large African carnivores and their prey in the savannah of northern Botswana. The researchers developed new ways of recording the detailed movements of these animals without disturbing them, using our wildlife tracking collars.
-
Gemsbok of the Namib Sand Sea
The gemsbok of the Namib Sand Sea in Namibia live deep in the complex maze of sand dunes and navigate between isolated patches of succulent vegetation, rarely drinking water. The specialisations to live here are extremely complex and we want to understand what is important in the anatomy, physiology and behaviour of gemsbok that enable them to survive in and exploit their extreme ecological niche.
-
LOCATE: Locomotion, hunting and habitat utilisation among large African carnivores and their prey
LOCATE: Locomotion, hunting and habitat utilisation among large African carnivores and their prey. The carnivores of the southern African savannah have no domestic counterparts and are at the extremes of performance in terms of speed, agility and strength. They are amongst the most threatened species in the world and yet there is much we do not know about them. At the beginning of this project, we did not know how the predators or their prey achieve the speed and manoeuvring required for the chase, what makes the difference between success and failure in hunting or how far the animals travel in a day or night and many other factors that may influence success and survival.