Iain Staniland

Marine Mammal Ecologist

Iain Staniland

Contact

Iain Staniland

Biography

I am a biologist with expertise in Antarctic wildlife, in particular seals and penguins. I have a strong field work background having spent two winters and a number of summers in the Antarctic, including quite a few under canvas. My scientific passion is in animal behaviour and my research has focused on feeding ecology; Using animal-borne telemetry devices to track the behaviour of seals and penguins whilst they are at sea. This work attempts to not only understand the behaviour of the animals themselves but also use these marine predators to monitor their underwater environment.

My recent work has looked at the behaviour of male and female seals relating observed differences to the contrasting constraints placed upon them by their life histories and morphology. I am also using new approaches to monitor the recovery of whale populations such as Satellite imagery and Passive Acoustic recorders.

I am actively engaged in public outreach with a wide range of media interviews including television, radio, print and online media. I regularly give talks to schools and and clubs ranging in ages from from 4 year olds to retirees.

My work forms part of the ECOSYSTEMS core science project.

**N.B. I am keen to gain more teaching experience and as such am seeking opportunities to undertake Guest Lecturing at a University. If you are interested please get in touch**
Employment
1996 – (Current) SSO – British Antarctic Survey: Seal and Penguin Biologist

Working as a research scientist in the conservation biology group with a special interest in the biology and foraging dynamics of Antarctic fur seals.
Field Work Experience
1996-1999 Bird Island research station South Georgia, investigating foraging, breeding and diet of Antarctic fur seals. Also working with penguin and albatross species breeding on the island. In final year I combined my science with the role of base commander running the base administration.

1999-2000 (summer) Bird Island research station, training new Assistant and working on seal biology projects.

2003-2004 Heard Island (summer), invited to join an Australian Antarctic Division expedition working on seal and penguin foraging.

2004 – Bird Island (summer), Investigating male fur seal foraging using satellite transmitters.

2005 – 2006 Cooper Bay, South Georgia (field camp) leading a project on female fur seal ecology.

2006 – 2007 Bird Island research station, using animal borne cameras on male fur seals in collaboration with American Scientists. Also participating in and assisting the filming for ‘Penguin Safari’ with Nigel Marvin

2007 (Autumn) Commander Islands, Russia, invited to join American / Russian project tagging northern fur seals

2007 – 2008 Hound Bay, South Georgia (field camp) Leading a project on female fur seal ecology and king penguin foraging.

2009-2010 Wilson Harbour (field camp) leading a project on female fur seal foraging investigating limits to their breeding distribution

2013 – 2014 Bird Island, tracking Antarctic fur seal mother-pup pairs

2015-2016 South Orkney Islands, tracking Antarctic fur seals and Penguins collaboration with Norwegian Polar Institute.

 
Education
1992-1996 PhD, University of Leicester and MAFF Fisheries Laboratory Lowestoft “The Feeding Ecology and Behaviour of Whiting Merlangius merlangus.”

1989-1992 BSc (Hons) Marine Biology, University of Wales (College Swansea). Grade 2i

 

RECENT MEETINGS

2015: SAERI Marine Spatial Planning and GAP analysis workshop

2014: ICED Scenarios workshop

2014: Whalefest, Invited talk on Whales from Space -Brighton

2014: CCAMLR Working Group on Ecosystem Monitoring and Management

2014: Southern Ocean Research Partnership meeting South Korea

2013: Antarctic Science Conference, Cambridge UK

2013: South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands MPA workshop

 

SCIENCE AND SOCIETY

I regularly provide interviews and expert advice for the media, including TV, radio, websites and newspapers and talks for the general public. Most recently including:

2016 Radio 5 interview penguin about National Geographic viral penguin video

2015 BBC1 “the Science of Cute” on camera interview about penguin locomotion

2014 BBC news and other media outlets interviews on Fur Seal genetics published in Nature.

Collaborations

I have a number of collaborations including:

Ecology of South American sea lions and fur seals in the Falkland Islands: With Dr Al Baylis

Functional Responses of Antarctic fur seals: With Dr Sophie Smout @ St Andrews University

PhD student (Kayleigh Jones) studying the ontogeny of sexual segregation in Antarctic fur seals : With Dr Steve Votier @ University of Exeter

PhD student (Pauline Goulet) developing passive and active acoustic animal borne tags: With Dr Mark Johnson @ University of St-Andrews

Predator/fisheries interactions in the Scotia Sea: Norwegian Polar Institute

CCAMLR papers
Staniland, I.J. (1999) Beach debris survey – Main Bay, Bird Island, South Georgia, 1997/98.CCAMLR-XVIII/BG/6. 15 pages.

Aspey, N.J. and Staniland, I.J. (1999) Entanglement of Antarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella) in manmade debris at Bird Island, South Georgia, during the 1998 winter and1998/99 pup-rearing season. SC-CAMLR-XVIII/BG/5. 20 pages.

Staniland, I.J. (1998) Entanglement of Antarctic fur seals Arctocephalus gazella in man-made debris at Bird Island, South Georgia, during the 1997 winter and 1997/98 pup-rearing season. SC-CAMLR-XVII/BG/11. 22 pages

Staniland, I.J. and Reid, K. (1997) Draft standard methods for monitoring diet in Antarctic fur seals. WG-EMM-97/5. 4 pages.

 

Publications from NERC Open Research Archive

2018

Baylis, Alastair M.M., Tierney, Megan, Staniland, Iain J., Brickle, Paul. (2018) Habitat use of adult male South American fur seals and a preliminary assessment of spatial overlap with trawl fisheries in the South Atlantic. Mammalian Biology, 93. 76-81. 10.1016/j.mambio.2018.07.007

Staniland, Iain, Ratcliffe, Norman, Trathan, Phil, Forcada, Jaume. (2018) Long term movements and activity patterns of an Antarctic marine apex predator: the Leopard Seal. PLOS One, 13. 10.1371/journal.pone.0197767

Augé, Amelie A., Dias, Maria P., Lascelles, Ben, Baylis, Alastair M.M., Black, Andy, Boersma, P. Dee, Catry, Paulo, Crofts, Sarah, Galimberti, Filippo, Granadeiro, Jose Pedro, Hedd, April, Ludynia, Katrin, Masello, Juan F., Montevecchi, William, Phillips, Richard A., Putz, Klemens, Quillfeldt, Petra, Rebstock, Ginger A., Sanvito, Simona, Staniland, Iain J., Stanworth, Andrew, Thompson, Dave, Tierney, Megan, Trathan, Philip N., Croxall, John P.. (2018) Framework for mapping key areas for marine megafauna to inform Marine Spatial Planning: the Falkland Islands case study. Marine Policy, 92. 61-72. 10.1016/j.marpol.2018.02.017

Baylis, Alastair M.M., Tierney, Megan, Orben, Rachael A., Staniland, Iain J., Brickle, Paul. (2018) Geographic variation in the foraging behaviour of South American fur seals. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 596. 233-245. 10.3354/meps12557

2017

Cavanagh, Rachel D., Murphy, Eugene J., Bracegirdle, Thomas J., Turner, John, Knowland, Cheryl A., Corney, Stuart P., Smith, Walker O., Waluda, Claire M., Johnston, Nadine M., Bellerby, Richard G.J., Constable, Andrew J., Costa, Daniel p., Hofmann, Eileen E., Jackson, Jennifer A., Staniland, Iain J., Wolf-Gladrow, Dieter, Xavier, Jose C.. (2017) A synergistic approach for evaluating climate model output for ecological applications. Frontiers in Marine Science, 4. 10.3389/fmars.2017.00308

Carneiro, Ana P.B., Bonnet-Lebrun, Anne S., Manica, Andrea, Staniland, Iain J., Phillips, Richard A.. (2017) Methods for detecting and quantifying individual specialisation in movement and foraging strategies of marine predators. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 578. 151-166. 10.3354/meps12215

Baylis, Alastair M. M., Orben, Rachael A., Costa, Daniel P., Tierney, Megan, Brickle, Paul, Staniland, Iain J.. (2017) Habitat use and spatial fidelity of male South American sea lions during the nonbreeding period. Ecology and Evolution, 7. 3992-4002. doi:10.1002/ece3.2972

2016

Baylis, A.M.M., Orben, R.A., Costa, D.P., Arnould, J.P.Y., Staniland, I.J.. (2016) Sexual segregation in habitat use is smaller than expected in a highly dimorphic marine predator, the southern sea lion. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 554. 201-211. doi:10.3354/meps11759

Hoffman, J. I., Kowalski, G. J., Klimova, A., Eberhart-Phillips, L. J., Staniland, I. J., Baylis, A. M. M.. (2016) Population structure and historical demography of South American sea lions provide insights into the catastrophic decline of a marine mammal population. Royal Society Open Science, 3. 17 pp. doi:10.1098/rsos.160291

Baylis, Alastair M. M., Kowalski, Gabriele J., Voigt, Christian C., Orben, Rachael A., Trillmich, Fritz, Staniland, Iain J., Hoffman, Joseph I.. (2016) Pup vibrissae stable isotopes reveal geographic differences in adult female southern sea lion habitat use during gestation. PLoS ONE, 11. 11 pp. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0157394

2015

Baylis, A. M. M., Orben, R. A., Arnould, J. P. Y., Peters, K., Knox, T., Costa, D. P., Staniland, I. J.. (2015) Diving deeper into individual foraging specializations of a large marine predator, the southern sea lion. Oecologia, 179. 1053-1065. doi:10.1007/s00442-015-3421-4

Ratcliffe, Norman, Hill, Simeon L., Staniland, Iain J., Brown, Ruth, Adlard, Stacey, Horswill, Catharine, Trathan, Phil N.. (2015) Do krill fisheries compete with macaroni penguins? Spatial overlap in prey consumption and catches during winter. Diversity and Distributions, 21. 1339-1348. 10.1111/ddi.12366

Baylis, Alastair M. M., Orben, Rachael A., Arnould, John P. Y., Christiansen, Fredrik, Hays, Graeme C., Staniland, Iain J.. (2015) Disentangling the cause of a catastrophic population decline in a large marine mammal. Ecology, 96. 2834-2847. doi:10.1890/14-1948.1

Hooker, Sascha K., Barychka, Tatsiana, Jessopp, Mark J., Staniland, Iain J.. (2015) Images as proximity sensors: the incidence of conspecific foraging in Antarctic fur seals. Animal Biotelemetry, 3. 11 pp. doi:10.1186/s40317-015-0083-2

Iwata, T., Sakamoto, K. Q., Edwards, E. W. J., Staniland, I. J., Trathan, P. N., Goto, Y., Sato, K., Naito, Y., Takahashi, A.. (2015) The influence of preceding dive cycles on the foraging decisions of Antarctic fur seals. Biology Letters, 11. 13 pp. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2015.0227

Arthur, Benjamin, Hindell, Mark, Bester, Marthan, Trathan, Phil, Jonsen, Ian, Staniland, Iain, Oosthuizen, W. Chris, Wege, Mia, Lea, Mary-Anne. (2015) Return customers: foraging site fidelity and the effect of environmental variability in wide-ranging Antarctic fur seals. PLOS ONE, 10. 19 pp. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0120888

Baylis, Alastair M. M., Page, Brad, Staniland, Iain, Arnould, John P. Y., McKenzie, Jane. (2015) Taking the sting out of darting: Risks, restraint drugs and procedures for the chemical restraint of Southern Hemisphere otariids. Marine Mammal Science, 31. 322-344. doi:10.1111/mms.12148

Baylis, Alastair M. M., Orben, Rachel A., Pistorius, Pierre, Brickle, Paul, Staniland, Iain, Ratcliffe, Norman. (2015) Winter foraging site fidelity of king penguins breeding at the Falkland Islands. Marine Biology, 162. 99-110. 10.1007/s00227-014-2561-0

2014

Baylis, Alastair M. M., Arnould, John P. Y., Staniland, Iain J.. (2014) Diet of South American fur seals at the Falkland Islands. Marine Mammal Science, 30. 1210-1219. doi:10.1111/mms.12090

Fretwell, Peter T., Staniland, Iain J., Forcada, Jaume. (2014) Whales from space: counting southern right whales by satellite. PLoS One, 9. 10.1371/journal.pone.0088655

Ratcliffe, Norman, Crofts, Sarah, Brown, Ruth, Baylis, Alistair M.M., Adlard, Stacey, Horswill, Catharine, Venables, Hugh, Taylor, Phil, Trathan, Philip N., Staniland, Iain J.. (2014) Love thy neighbour or opposites attract? Patterns of spatial segregation and association among crested penguin populations during winter. Journal of Biogeography, 41. 1183-1192. 10.1111/jbi.12279

Trathan, Philip N., Collins, Martin A., Grant, Susie M., Belchier, Mark, Barnes, David K.A., Brown, Judith, Staniland, Iain J.. (2014) The South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands MPA: Protecting a biodiverse oceanic island chain situated in the flow of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. In: Marine Managed Areas and Fisheries, Elsevier, 15-78. (Advances in Marine Biology, 69). doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-800214-8.00002-5

2013

Waluda, Claire M., Staniland, Iain J.. (2013) Entanglement of Antarctic fur seals at Bird Island, South Georgia. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 74. 244-252. 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2013.06.050

2012

Staniland, Iain, Robinson, S.L., Silk, Janet, Warren, Nicholas, Trathan, Phil. (2012) Winter distribution and haul-out behaviour of female Antarctic fur seals from South Georgia. Marine Biology, 159. 291-301. 10.1007/s00227-011-1807-3

Murphy, E. J., Watkins, J.L., Trathan, P.N., Reid, K., Meredith, M.P., Hill, S.L., Thorpe, S.E., Johnston, N.M., Clarke, A., Tarling, G.A., Collins, M.A., Forcada, J., Atkinson, A., Ward, P., Staniland, I.J., Pond, D.W., Cavanagh, R.A., Shreeve, R.S., Korb, R.E., Whitehouse, M.J., Rodhouse, P.G., Enderlein, P., Hirst, A.G., Martin, A.R., Briggs, D.R., Cunningham, N.J., Fleming, A.H.. (2012) Spatial and Temporal Operation of the Scotia Sea Ecosystem. In: Antarctic Ecosystems: An Extreme Environment in a Changing World, Blackwell Publishing, 160-212. 10.1002/9781444347241.ch6

Iwata, Takashi, Sakamoto, Kentaro Q., Takahashi, Akinori, Edwards, Ewan W.J., Staniland, Iain J., Trathan, Philip N., Naito, Yasuhiko. (2012) Using a mandible accelerometer to study fine-scale foraging behavior of free-ranging Antarctic fur seals. Marine Mammal Science, 28. 345-357. doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2011.00482.x

2011

Staniland, Iain J., Morton, Ashley, Robinson, Sarah, Malone, Donald, Forcada, Jaume. (2011) Foraging behaviour in two Antarctic fur seals colonies with differing population recoveries. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 434. 183-196. 10.3354/meps09201

2010

Nash, Susan Bengtson, Rintoul, Stephen R., Kawaguchi, So, Staniland, Iain, van den Hoff, John, Tierney, Megan, Bossi, Rossana. (2010) Perfluorinated compounds in the Antarctic region: Ocean circulation provides prolonged protection from distant sources. Environmental Pollution, 158. 2985-2991. doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2010.05.024

Staniland, Iain J., Gales, N., Warren, Nicholas L., Robinson, Sarah L., Goldsworthy, S.D., Casper, R.M.. (2010) Geographical variation in the behaviour of a central place forager: Antarctic fur seals foraging in contrasting environments. Marine Biology, 157. 2383-2396. 10.1007/s00227-010-1503-8

Casper, Ruth M., Sumner, Michael D., Hindell, Mark A., Gales, Nicholas J., Staniland, Iain J., Goldsworthy, Simon D.. (2010) The influence of diet on foraging habitat models: a case study using nursing fur seals. Ecography, 33. 748-759. 10.1111/j.1600-0587.2009.06155.x

Waluda, Claire M., Collins, Martin A., Black, Andrew D., Staniland, Iain J., Trathan, Philip N.. (2010) Linking predator and prey behaviour: contrasts between Antarctic fur seals and macaroni penguins at South Georgia. Marine Biology, 157. 99-112. 10.1007/s00227-009-1299-6

2009

Forcada, Jaume, Malone, Donald, Royle, J. Andrew, Staniland, Iain J.. (2009) Modelling predation by transient leopard seals for an ecosystem-based management of Southern Ocean fisheries. Ecological Modelling, 220. 1513-1521. 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2009.03.020

2008

Staniland, Iain J., Robinson, Sarah L.. (2008) Segregation between the sexes: Antarctic fur seals, Arctocephalus gazella, foraging at South Georgia. Animal Behaviour, 75. 1581-1590. doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2007.10.012

Forcada, J., Staniland, I.J.. (2008) Antarctic fur seal Arctocephalus gazella. In: Encyclopedia of marine mammals. 2nd ed, Academic Press, 1352 pp.

2007

Staniland, I.J., Reid, K., Boyd, I.L.. (2007) An energy–distance trade-off in a central-place forager, the Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella). Marine Biology, 152. 233-241. 10.1007/s00227-007-0698-9

Murphy, E.J., Watkins, J.L., Trathan, P.N., Reid, K., Meredith, M.P., Thorpe, S.E., Johnston, N.M., Clarke, A., Tarling, G.A., Collins, M.A., Forcada, J., Shreeve, R.S., Atkinson, A., Korb, R., Whitehouse, M.J., Ward, P., Rodhouse, P.G., Enderlein, P., Hirst, A.G., Martin, A.R., Hill, S.L., Staniland, I.J., Pond, D.W., Briggs, D.R., Cunningham, N.J., Fleming, A.H.. (2007) Spatial and temporal operation of the Scotia Sea ecosystem: a review of large-scale links in a krill centred food web. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society (B), 362. 113-148. doi:10.1098/rstb.2006.1957

2006

Staniland, I.J., Trathan, P.N., Martin, A.R.. (2006) Consequences of prey distribution for the foraging behaviour of top predators. In: Top predators in marine ecosystems: their role in monitoring and management, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 131-142. (Conservation Biology, ).

Reid, Keith, Davis, Dexter, Staniland, Iain J.. (2006) Spatial and temporal variability in the fish diet of Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella) in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 84. 1025-1037. doi:10.1139/Z06-071

2005

Staniland, Iain.J.. (2005) Sexual segregation in seals. In: Sexual segregation in vertebrates, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 53-73. doi:10.2277/0521835224

Staniland, I.J., Pond, D.W.. (2005) Investigating the use of milk fatty acids to detect dietary changes: a comparison with faecal analysis in Antarctic fur seals. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 294. 283-294. 10.3354/meps294283

2004

Staniland, Iain J., Boyd, Ian L., Reid, Keith. (2004) Comparing individual and spatial influences on foraging behaviour in Antarctic fur seals Arctocephalus gazella. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 275. 263-274. 10.3354/meps275263

Staniland, I.J., Pond, D.W.. (2004) Variability in milk fatty acids: recreating a foraging trip to test dietary predictions in Antarctic fur seals. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 82. 1099-1107. doi:10.1139/z04-088

2003

Staniland, I.J., Taylor, R.I., Boyd, I.L.. (2003) An enema method for obtaining fecal material from known individual seals on land. Marine Mammal Science, 19. 363-370. doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2003.tb01114.x

Staniland, I.J., Boyd, I.L.. (2003) Variation in the foraging location of antarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella) and the effects on diving behavior. Marine Mammal Science, 19. 331-343. doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2003.tb01112.x

2002

Boyd, I.L., Staniland, I.J., Martin, A.R.. (2002) Distribution of foraging by female Antarctic fur seals. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 242. 285-294. 10.3354/meps242285

Barlow, K.E., Boyd, I.L., Croxall, J.P., Reid, K., Staniland, I.J., Brierley, A.S.. (2002) Are penguins and seals in competition for Antarctic krill at South Georgia?. Marine Biology, 140. 205-213. doi:10.1007/s00227-001-0691-7

2001

Staniland, I.J., Hart, P.J.B., Bromley, P.J.. (2001) The regurgitation of stomach contents in trawl caught whiting, evidence of a predator size effect. Journal of Fish Biology, 59. 1430-1432. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8649.2001.tb00207.x

Boyd, I.L., Hawker, EJ., Brandon, M.A., Staniland, I.J.. (2001) Measurement of ocean temperatures using instruments carried by Antarctic fur seals. Journal of Marine Systems, 27. 277-288. doi:10.1016/S0924-7963(00)00073-7