We are working with a tri-trophic food web involving trees, caterpillars and blue tits.
Current work
Some of the questions we are currently working on are outlined below. Click on each for more details.
1. Experimentally determine the causal relationship between lay date and fitness
2. Quantify intraspecific spatial variation in B, the environmental sensitivity of selection
(i) B is a property of a species (i.e. it shows little intraspecific variation among sites);
(ii) B is a property of a population and it varies substantially among sites.
3. Understand the mechanistic basis of spatial variation in B
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We have established a transect along a latitudinal gradient in Scotland. During the field season, we visit 44 sites along the transect to track tree, invertebrate and bird phenology. To get further insight into what the field season is like for us, you can read through our blog posts and take a look at the video below.
Transect Publications
3.Shutt, J. D., Burgess, M. D. & Phillimore, A. B (2019) A spatial perspective on the phenological distribution of the spring woodland caterpillar peak. American Naturalist In Press
2. Shutt, J. D., Bolton, M. Benedicto Carabello, I., Burgess, M. D. & Phillimore, A. B (2018) The effects of woodland habitat and biogeography on blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) territory occupancy and productivity along a 220km transect Ecography 41: 1967
1. Shutt, J.D (2017) Expanding a classic woodland food chain into a geographically variable food web. PhD thesis. University of Edinburgh
You can find more information about opportunities to join Phenoweb here.