Professor Andy Radford"s Homepage - University of Bristol

Professor Andrew Radford

Professor of Behavioural Ecology

Tel: +44 117 394 1197
Email: andy.radford at bristol.ac.uk

WELCOME

Hello! I am a behavioural biologist based at the School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol.

I hope you enjoy browsing the website, finding out about the exciting questions we ask and study systems we work on.

If you would like to know more or would like the opportunity to work with us, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

RESEARCH OVERVIEW

Close up of pied babbler, Turdoides bicolor

Close up of dwarf mongoose, Helogale parvula

One main theme of our research concerns the behaviour and vocalisations of social animals. Using a combination of observational data, sound recordings and a variety of experimental manipulations, we work on several different bird, mammal, fish and invertebrate study systems in captivity and around the world (South Africa, Australia, Panama, Trinidad), including the Dwarf Mongoose Research Project which we established in 2011. We are also now starting to work with robots!

The second major theme of our research concerns the potential impact of anthropogenic noise. Using a combination of laboratory and field experiments (in Scotland, France, French Polynesia and Australia), we are considering how this global pollutant affects the behaviour, physiology and development of a variety of fish and invertebrate species.

FUNDING SOURCES

We are extremely grateful to the following for funding:

RECENT NEWS

Welcome to Millie Clarke who has started her ASAB Undergraduate Project Scholarship, investigating the impact of anthropogenic noise on cognitive performance in Neolamprologus pulcher.

New paper published: Williams, B., Lamont, T.A.C., Chapuis, L., Harding, H.R., May, E.B., Prasetya, M.E., Seraphim, M.J., Jompa, J., Smith, D.J., Janetski, N., Radford, A.N. & Simpson, S.D. (2022) Enhancing automated analysis of marine soundscapes using ecoacoustic indices and marine learning. Ecological Indicators 140: 108986.

Congratulations to Kieran McCloskey who has defended his PhD thesis entitled, 'Impacts of underwater anthropogenic noise on individuals and populations', with minor corrections.

Good luck to Cathy Hobbs and Clemency White who have headed off for a field season at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami.

New paper published: Nedelec, S.L., Radford, A.N., Gatenby, P., Davidson, I.K., Jimenez, L.V., Travis, M., Chapman, K.E., McCloskey, K.P., Lamont, T.A.C., Illing, B., McCormick, M.I. & Simpson, S.D. Limiting motorboat noise on coral reefs boosts fish reproductive success. Nature Communications 13: 2822.

Congratulations to Tim Lamont who has won the Linnean Society’s John C. Marden Medal, which is awarded annually for the best doctoral thesis in biology at a UK institution.

New paper published: Morris-Drake, A., Kennedy, P., Braga Goncalves, I. & Radford, A.N. (2022) Variation between species, populations, groups and individuals in the fitness consequences of outgroup conflict. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, Series B 377: 20210148.

New paper accepted in Animal Behaviour: Braga Goncalves, I. & Radford, A.N. Intraspecific variation in audience effects during outgroup conflict in a cooperatively breeding fish.

Congratulations to Sophie Nedelec who has won the A. B. Wood Medal from the Institute of Acoustics, which is awarded every other year to a European researcher under 40 whose work is associated with the sea.

Farewell to Ines Braga Goncalves who has completed her ERC-funded PDRA role and is heading off for new adventures in Australia; good luck, Ines.

Good luck to Isla Davidson and Ellie Stockwell who have headed off for a field season at CARMABI in Curacao.

Andy Radford, Amy Morris-Drake and Luca Giuggioli have been awarded a NERC Research Grant for the project, ‘Preparing for War: Pre-emptive Behaviour in a Landscape of Intergroup Conflict’.

New paper published: Arasco, A.G., Manser, M., Watson, S.K., Kyabulima, S., Radford, A.N., Cant, M.A. & Garcia, M. (2022) Testing the acoustic adaptation hypothesis with vocalisations from three mongoose species. Animal Behaviour 187: 71–95.

Good luck to Patrick Kennedy who has headed off to Columbia University, New York for the overseas stage of his Marie Sklodowska-Curie and Simons Foundation fellowships

New paper published: Duarte, C.M., Chapuis, L., Collin, S.P., Costa, D.P., Devassy, R.P., Eguiluz, V.M., Erbe, C., Halpern, B.S., Harding, H.R., Havlik, M.N., Gordon, T.A.C., Merchant, N.D., Meekan, M., Miksis-Olds, J.L., Parsons, M., Predragovic, M., Radford, A.N., Radford, C.A., Simpson, S.D., Slabbekoorn, H., Staaterman, E., Van Opzeeland, I.C., Winderen, J., Zhang, X. & Juanes, F. (2021) The soundscape of the Anthropocene ocean. Science 371: eaba4658.

OPPORTUNITIES

If you are interested in potential PhD, Masters or intern opportunities, then please feel free to email through a cover letter and cv. Specific projects will be advertised here when available; self-funded applicants welcome to apply any time.

We are always keen to host fellows (those funded by Marie Curie, NERC and the Swiss National Science Foundation have recently finished their fellowships with us) or to discuss new collaborative ideas, so don’t hesitate to get in touch.

We often take on research assistants to help with our work, including at various fieldsites and in the Bristol-based aquarium facility; specific positions will be advertised here.

SELECTED RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Kern, J.M. & Radford, A.N. (2018) Experimental evidence for delayed contingent cooperation among wild dwarf mongooses. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA Accepted.
Kennedy, P., Higginson, A.D., Radford, A.N. & Sumner, S. (2018) Altruism in a volatile world. Nature 555: 359–362.
Gordon, T.A.C., Harding, H., Wong, K., Merchant, N., Meekan, M.G., McCormick, M., Radford, A.N. & Simpson, S.D. (2018) Habitat degradation negatively affects auditory settlement behaviour of coral reef fishes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA Online early.
Kern, J.M. & Radford, A.N. (2017) Reduced social-information provision by immigrants and use by residents following dispersal. Current Biology 27: R1266–R1267.
Nedelec S.L., Radford A.N., Pearl L., Nedelec B., McCormick M.I., Meekan M.G. & Simpson S.D. (2017) Motorboat noise impacts parental behaviour and offspring survival in a reef fish. Proceedings of the Royal Society, Series B 284: 20170143.
Herbert-Read, J.E., Kremer, L., Bruintjes, R., Radford, A.N. & Ioannou, C.C. (2017) Anthropogenic noise pollution from pile-driving disrupts the structure and dynamics of fish shoals. Proceedings of the Royal Society, Series B 284: 20170660.
Morris-Drake, A., Kern, J.M & Radford, A.N. (2016) Cross-modal impacts of anthropogenic noise on information use. Current Biology 26: R911–R912.
Simpson, S.D., Radford, A.N., Nedelec, S.L., Ferrari, M.C.O., Chivers, D.P., McCormick, M.I. & Meekan, M.G. (2016) Anthropogenic noise increases fish mortality by predation. Nature Communications 7: 10544.
Radford, A.N., Majolo, B. & Aureli, F. Within-group behavioural consequences of between-group conflict: a prospective review. Proceedings of the Royal Society, Series B 283: 20161567.
Radford, A.N., Lèbre, L., Lecaillon, G., Nedelec, S.L. & Simpson, S.D. (2016) Repeated exposure reduces the response to impulsive noise in European sea bass. Global Change Biology 22: 3349–3360.
Nedelec, S.L., Simpson, S.D., Morley, E.L., Nedelec, B. & Radford, A.N. (2015) Impacts of regular and random noise on the behaviour, growth and development of larval Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B 282: 20151943.

Magrath, R.D., Haff, T.M., Fallow, P.M. & Radford, A.N. (2015) Eavesdropping on heterospecific alarm calls: from mechanisms to consequences. Biological Reviews 90: 560–586.
Simpson, S.D., Purser, J. & Radford, A.N. (2015) Anthropogenic noise compromises anti-predator behaviour in European eels. Global Change Biology 21: 586–593.
Nedelec, S.L., Simpson, S.D., Morley, E.L., Nedelec, B. & Radford, A.N. (2015) Impacts of regular and random noise on the behaviour, growth and development of larval Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B 282: 20151943.
Radford, A.N. & Fawcett, T.W. (2014) Conflict between groups promotes later defence of a critical resource in a cooperatively breeding bird. Current Biology 24: 2935–2939.
Morley, E.L., Jones, G. & Radford, A.N. (2014) The importance of invertebrates when considering the impacts of anthropogenic noise. Proceedings of the Royal Society, Series B 281: 20132683.
Radford, A.N., Bell, M.B.V., Hollén, L.I. & Ridley, A.R. (2011) Singing for your supper: sentinel calling by kleptoparasites can mitigate the cost to victims. Evolution 65: 900–906.

Full list of publications with links to pdf files.

Bioacoustics and Behavioural Ecology