Caitlin Douglas

PhD Student

Curriculum Vitae:

2009–present: PhD Student, Institute of Zoology and King’s College London.
2007–2008: MSc Biodiversity, Conservation and Management, University of Oxford.
2006: Volunteer Field Assistant, Tsaobis Baboon Project.
2001-2006: BSc Hons Geography, University of Victoria.
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Research Interests:

My general research interests lie in applied ecology and conservation. My PhD research investigates the drivers and processes of environmental change in a dryland riparian ecosystem: the ephemeral Swakop River in Namibia.

I am investigating how groundwater availability and the invasion of a non-native tree species (Prosopis glandulosa) influence native woody vegetation, and the associated impacts on wildlife. I will then synthesise and incorporate these relationships into an existing model of land degradation dynamics that was applied to North and West Africa during the EU funded DESURVEY project. I will further develop the model to incorporate and predict wildlife dynamics. As this model is designed as a policy tool it allows users to explore the multi-sectoral effects of potential policy actions.
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Supervisors:

Dr. Guy Cowlishaw (IoZ)
Dr. Mark Mulligan (KCL)
Dr. Nathalie Petorelli (IoZ)
Dr. Daanish Mustafa (KCL)
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Funding:

My PhD is funded by an ESRC-NERC Interdisciplinary Research Studentship.
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Publications:

King, A. J., Douglas, C.M.S., Huchard, E., Isaac, N. J. B. & Cowlishaw, G. (2008). Dominance and affiliation mediate despotism in a social primate. Current Biology, 18(23):1-6.
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