I have always been fascinated by animal movement, specifically that of long distance migrants, and their seemingly innate ability to cross vast and complex landscapes in search of resources and warmer climates. These profound feats of movement are demonstrated no better than in oceanic seabirds, nature’s wanderers, who regularly travel hundreds of miles across featureless oceans to reach their colonies, relying on complex navigational systems to inform their flights. Through my DPhil, working with Prof Tim Guilford and Dr Oliver Padget, I will be investigating the cognitive drivers of these impressive navigational processes, using natural flights and experimental displacements to uncover how Manx shearwaters perceive their surroundings and navigate during pelagic movements.
