Personal Chair
- About
-
- Email Address
- lesleylancaster@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 274551
- School/Department
- School of Biological Sciences
Biography
PhD, University of California Santa Cruz, 2008. Dissertation title: Maternal Effects as Adaptations for Organizing Alternative Social and Antipredator Strategies.
Postdoctoral Fellow, National Center for Ecological Ananlysis and Synthesis (NCEAS), 2009-2012. Project title: Macroevolutionary causes of regional and habitat-based biodiversity gradients.
Postdoctoral associate, Lund University, 2012-2013. Project title: Adaptation at range limits in Ischnura elegans.
Lecturer, University of Aberdeen, 2013-
Memberships and Affiliations
- Internal Memberships
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Ecology Research Cluster Lead
SBS Executive Committee
- External Memberships
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Senior editor, Journal of Animal Ecology
Member of British Ecological Society and European Society for Evolutionary Biology
- Research
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Research Overview
My research focuses on evolution under climate change, and evolutionary processes associated with geographic range limits. I am interested in how social and behavioral factors interact with changing ecological conditions to faciliate or hinder evolutionary change and macroevolutionary processes associated with geographic range shifts and habitat shifts.
Research Areas
Accepting PhDs
I am currently accepting PhDs in Biological and Environmental Sciences.
Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your research ideas further.

Current Research
Recent work focuses on biogeography, niche evolution, and population- and community-level processes associated with climate change and invasions. My current study systems include Scottish damselflies (Odonata), experimental evolution in seed beetles (Callosobruchus maculatus), and synthesis of global data.
- Publications
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Page 1 of 4 Results 1 to 25 of 91
Movement Strategies of Neotropical Nectarivorous Birds: insights from Insights From High-Andean Hummingbirds and Flowerpiercers Andean hummingbirds and flowerpiercers
Biotropica, vol. 58, no. 1, e70132Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe effect of differing levels of intrasexual and intersexual selection on survival and reproduction under a heatwave
Ecology and EvolutionContributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.72778
Pollination ecology in the tropical Andes: moving towards a cross-scale approach
Biological Reviews, vol. 100, no. 6, pp. 2312-2345Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70049
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/01a3f7c3-bb78-434a-966d-3f54cfb78f6e/download
Genomic evidence of local adaptation in Scottish freshwater pearl mussels
Conservation GeneticsContributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-025-01739-6
Global changes in Lepidopteran phylogenetic diversity across space and time
Ecology and EvolutionContributions to Journals: ArticlesGuild Diversity Impacts Demographic Outcomes of Novel Species Interactions Following Range Shifts
Journal of Animal Ecology, vol. 94, no. 10, pp. 2062-2078Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHigh-quality genome assembly and linkage map for a rapidly evolving plant species: Silene uniflora is potentially suitable
G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics MissionContributions to Journals: ArticlesTowards a sustainable energy transition
Journal of Applied Ecology, vol. 62, no. 7, pp. 1570-1578Contributions to Journals: Editorials- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.70075
BioTIME 2.0: Expanding and Improving a Database of Biodiversity Time Series
Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 34, no. 5, e70003Contributions to Journals: ArticlesComplex life cycles shape the functional biogeography of European dragonflies
Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 34, no. 5Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.70056
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/fed72b23-22f7-4384-8dba-e923fc3c9307/download
Disentangling evolutionary, geometric and ecological components of the elevational gradient of diversity
Evolution Letters, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 51-64Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe genetic structure of the ash obligate moth prays fraxinella suggests that it is not affected by current habitat fragmentation
Journal of Insect Conservation, vol. 29, 10Contributions to Journals: ArticlesNon-linear transcriptomic responses to compounded environmental changes across temperature and resources in a pest beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)
Journal of Insect Science, vol. 24, no. 6, ieae106Contributions to Journals: ArticlesGAM4water: An R-based method for extracting wetted areas from remote sensed images
MethodsX, vol. 13, 102955Contributions to Journals: ArticlesConceptualising ecology to support more theory-driven research
Journal of Animal Ecology, vol. 93, no. 12, pp. 1814-1818Contributions to Journals: Editorials- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.14206
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Heatwaves during early development have long-term consequences for parental care in adulthood
Animal Behaviour, vol. 217, pp. 65-72Contributions to Journals: ArticlesNiche breadth specialisation impacts ecological and evolutionary adaptation following environmental change
The ISME Journal, vol. 18, no. 1, wrae183Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTracking Small Animals in Complex Landscapes: A Comparison of Localisation Workflows for Automated Radio Telemetry Systems
Ecology and Evolution, vol. 14, no. 10, e70405Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAccounting for extinction dynamics unifies the geological and biological histories of Indo-Australian Archipelago
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 291, no. 2031, 20240966Contributions to Journals: ArticlesGeneralism accumulates on the path to success
Nature Ecology & Evolution, vol. 8, pp. 1569–1570Contributions to Journals: ArticlesDetermining Critical Periods for Thermal Acclimatisation Using a Distributed Lag Non-linear Modelling Approach
Ecology and Evolution, vol. 14, no. 6, pp. e11451Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11451
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/198f7978-9c94-45da-bf94-633dbeb729c3/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Mechanisms, detection and impacts of species redistributions under climate change
Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, vol. 5, pp. 351-368Contributions to Journals: Review articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-024-00527-z
- [ONLINE] https://rdcu.be/dE753
- [ONLINE] https://bibli.cbnbl.org/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=670660
Bringing traits back in the equation: A roadmap to understand species redistribution
Global Change Biology, vol. 30, no. 4, e17271Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.17271
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/535b0714-b7f1-44fd-bd79-d972642b604c/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Biotic interactions in soil and dung shape parasite transmission in temperate ruminant systems: An integrative framework
Ecological Applications, vol. 34, no. 3, e2956Contributions to Journals: Review articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.2956
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/e51a9ee8-3466-4c45-a8b8-fd0daf424180/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
An open-source method for producing reliable water temperature maps for ecological applications using non-radiometric sensors
Remote Sensing Applications: Society and Environment , vol. 34, 101184Contributions to Journals: Articles