PhD Studentship: Leopard seal migration as an early-warning signal of Antarctic ecosystem change

The project will address three key questions:

1. how does variability and long-term change in sea ice affect leopard seal migration phenology and population dynamics;
2. how do resulting changes in arrival timing influence predation pressure and prey communities at key Antarctic islands; and
3. how changes in leopard seal migration provide an early-warning indicator of wider ecosystem responses to climate change.

Leopard seals occupy a highly dynamic apex position in the Southern Ocean, as the only species that regularly preys on other warm-blooded vertebrates while maintaining a unique ability to filter-feed on krill. Their seasonal movements are closely associated with the expansion and retreat of Antarctic pack ice, connecting coastal, pelagic and potentially deep-sea ecosystems across Antarctic and sub-Antarctic regions.

Using decades of individual-based leopard seal data from British Antarctic Survey's unique long-term monitoring programme, integrated with remotely sensed sea-ice and environmental data, the student will learn to apply population, phenological and movement models, alongside machine-learning approaches for conservation, to quantify environmental drivers of migration and associated changes in predator occurrence and predation pressure.

The student will receive direct training in population and movement ecology, statistical modelling, remote sensing and machine-learning applications for wildlife conservation, alongside opportunities to develop transferable skills in scientific communication, collaborative research and reproducible data analysis.

The collaboration between the British Antarctic Survey and the University of Exeter will give the student access to complementary expertise in long-term population studies, behavioural ecology, trophic ecology, quantitative methods and ecological modelling. The student will benefit from integration within research groups at both institutions, gaining exposure to different research environments, analytical approaches and professional networks. This builds on an established collaboration in pinniped ecology, providing both the long-term datasets and methodological expertise required to deliver the project successfully.

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