Steffen Oppel - Conservation Scientist / Ornithologist
Raptor conservation and ecology
We aim to understand the causes of the recent increase of the Swiss Red Kite population, and the dispersal processes in young raptors more generally. We have tracked hundreds of animals with GPS transmitters (red kites, golden eagles, Egyptian vultures) and use this information to estimate movements, survival probabilities, and the frequency of mortality causes. We hope that a better understanding of the movement patterns of young birds before they recruit into a breeding population will help to design conservation measures for populations that are decreasing or decimated.
Eradication of invasive species from islands
Invasive non-native species are a main concern for biodiversity, especially on islands. Eradicating invasive species is a useful conservation strategy, but often difficult to implement. I work with partners in the UK and internationally to prioritise islands on which eradication would provide the greatest benefits to native species, and conduct research how eradications on priority islands can be conducted successfully. I also provide the scientific support for the restoration of Gough and Henderson Island, two UK Overseas Territory islands of globally significant value for conservation.
Seabird tracking for MPA identification
Seabirds are spectacular species that travel far and wide across the world's oceans. With many collaborators we are trying to identify the foraging areas of seabirds nesting on Ascension, St Helena, the Tristan da Cunha archipelago, Malta, Henderson, and some Caribbean islands by tracking birds with satellite transmitters or GPS loggers. By developing tools to identify important bird areas following international criteria, we aim to facilitate the process by which tracking data can be used to identify areas that could be proposed as marine protected areas.
Bird monitoring on UK Overseas Territories
From the forests on Montserrat to the seabird assemblages on St Helena or Gough Island, I support local partners on these territories to design efficient monitoring programmes and analyse these data to infer whether populations are stable or declining. This includes mostly bird counts, but also demographic data, nest monitoring, and more detailed assessments of population densities of some species of conservation concern.