CHLOE CARGILL

Biography

I am an early-career researcher and ornithologist concerned with the conservation of coastal and pelagic taxa. I am currently studying towards a PhD in Biological Sciences, under a SUPER DTP CASE Scholarship, entitled, “Towards enhanced black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) metapopulation modelling in the context of global change and renewable energy development”. 

I hold a Master’s degree in Marine Ecosystem Management and an Honours degree in Conservation Biology and Ecology. Prior to this position I consolidated my fieldwork and analytical skills by working with charitable organisations and non-governmental bodies, covering a range of species from the Spheniscidae, Procellariidae and Charadriidae families.

In tandem to my research interests, I am an advocate for proactive attitudes towards empowering young people through education. I maintain a partnership with UK STEM Ltd., with whom I develop teaching resources linking science, technology, engineering, and mathematics as learnt at school to engaging, real-world careers in sustainability and conservation for use in the UK STEM Global STEM Award (scan the QR code for more info).

Personal statement: I believe that I have the ability to play an active part in defining the manner in which the UK progresses towards a sustainable future. I find it imperative that such progress is fully informed, cooperative and takes all necessary action towards mitigating human-wildlife conflict.

Current Research

2021 - Present

Towards enhanced black-legged kittiwake metapopulation modelling in the context of global change and renewable energy development.

This project is a SUPER CASE Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP) PhD led by the University of Aberdeen with co-supervision from the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI), CASE partner Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) and Collaborative partner Marine Directorate. (MD)

Supervisors: Professor Beth E. Scott, Dr Elizabeth Masden (UHI), Dr Lise Ruffino (JNCC), Dr Julie Miller (MD)

Summary: A comprehensive understanding of population connectivity in marine species is required for sustainable, ecosystem-based marine spatial planning. The black-legged kittiwake, Rissa tridactyla, is a conservation priority seabird of international importance. Historic analyses demonstrate that kittiwakes disperse over short and long distances among breeding colonies, yet there remains a lack of knowledge of their dispersal and metapopulation source-sink dynamics at differing temporal and spatial scales. This is currently contributing to high uncertainty in Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs)  underpinning species assessments in the UK and analagous international frameworks. The overarching goal of this DTP PhD project is to explore the intergration of genetic information with classical population metrics (breeding success; number of breeding pairs) to improve understanding of patterns of dispersal among kittiwake colonies.

Active collaborations:

University of Aberdeen - Norwegian Institute for Nature Research: Kittiwakes breeding on offshore oil installations.

University of Aberdeen - University of Montpellier CNRS-IRD MiVEGEC: New analysis of a historic host-parasite microsatellite dataset.

University of Aberdeen - Universite Toulouse III Paul Sabatier: Determination of variation in MHC-II allelic composition between populations.

Conference presentations

Insights into kittiwake population connectivity derived from host-parasite microsatellite analyses. Oral presentation. 16th International Seabird Group Conference. Coimbra, Portugal. September 2024.

Using Genetic Estimates of Connectivity to Explore Appropriate Spatial Scales for Offshore Windfarm Impact Assessments: an Ecosystem-Based Case Study for the Black-legged Kittiwake. Oral presentation. International Council for the Exploration of the Seas ASC. Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain. September 2023. 

Quantifying Connectivity Between North Atlantic Black-Legged Kittiwake Populations Towards Evidence-Based Renewable Energy Development. Poster presentation. 15th International Seabird Group Conference. Cork, Ireland. August 2022.

Past Research

2019 - 2023

A research collaboration between Puhi Peaks Station, Wildlife Management International and GNS Science, funded by Puhi Peaks Station and the New Zealand Department of Conservation. Publication: The conservation status of Hutton’s shearwater (Puffinus huttoni) at Shearwater Stream, Kaikōura, New Zealand: a small population at risk? Cargill, C.P., Townsend, D., McArthur, N.R., Morgenstern, R., Morrissey, M., Sherley, G. and Bell, M. 2023. Notornis. 70(1):1

2018 - 2020

Mapping the distribution of little penguins (Eudyptula minor) along the greater Kaikōura coastline, New Zealand. Monitoring little penguin breeding success in a small urban Kaikōura colony, New Zealand. Publication: Cargill et al. (2020) Distribution of little penguins (Eudyptula minor) along the greater Kaikoura coastline, New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 56(1):43–58 DOI: 10.1080/00288330.2020.1844766

Knowledge Exchange

Explorathon Aberdeen 2023 - a collaborative interdisciplinary public engagement event with UK STEM Ltd, the Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU, University of St Andrews) and the University of Aberdeen Public Engagement with Research Unit (PERU). 

Funding and Grants

2024

Scottish Universities Partnership for Environmental Research (SUPER). SUPER-NERC Research Experience Placements (REPs), summer 2024: Insights into contemporary population connectivity of the Atlantic black-legged kittiwake: A snapshot at the ocean-basin scale. £4,150 

2023

Scottish Universities Partnership for Environmental Research (SUPER)/UKRI. Diversifying the Talent Pipeline Flexible Funding Award. £11,450. Part of a larger project led by SUPER DTP.

Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA)/Equinor. Kittiwakes breeding on offshore oil installations. 65,000 NOK / £4,828.73. Part of a larger project led by NINA.

Challenger Society for Marine Science Travel Award. £215

British Ecological Society Training and Travel Award. £500

International Council for the Exploration of the Sea Early Career Researcher Travel Grant. €500 / £433.69

British Trust for Ornithology Research Grant and The Seabird Group Research Grant (equal co-funders). Pioneering an international collection of non-invasive biological samples for the North Atlantic black-legged kittiwake. £1,000 total.

2022

Marine Alliance For Science and Technology for Scotland (MASTS) and Scottish Funding Council (SFC) Saltire Emerging Researcher Scheme European Exchange. A pilot study towards understanding the connectivity of United Kingdom and Norwegian black-legged kittiwake populations across the North Sea. £2,350

2021

Scottish Universities Partnership for Environmental Research (SUPER) Doctoral Training Programme Scholarship. 'Towards enhanced black-legged kittiwake metapopulation modelling in the context of global change and renewable energy development'. 

Funded by the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), the University of Aberdeen, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) and Marine Scotland Science (MSS), this studentship comprises a research collaboration between the University of Aberdeen, the University of the Highlands and Islands, JNCC and MSS.