Emma has joined us from the University of California Santa Barbara, where she worked as a project scientist for the Benioff Ocean Initiative. Emma led the SharkEye project a research effort using drones and computer vision technology to detect and monitor great white sharks in coastal areas. The project aimed to increase knowledge of the distribution and behaviour of white sharks in coastal waters in California, and to create replicable methods and technology that can be used to monitor sharks globally. Her work also involved ensuring scientific knowledge and data was considered in policy discussions around high seas issues, including the development of the deep-sea mining industry and marine protected areas in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
Prior to moving to Santa Barbara, Emma completed her PhD and subsequent postdoc at University College Cork in Ireland, supervised by John Quinn and Mark Jessopp. Emma’s PhD focused on predicting breeding season distribution of all seabird species in Irish waters in order to better understand overlap with oil & gas energy infrastructure, vulnerability to oil spills and protection afforded by existing marine protected areas. She then joined the EirWind project, Co-designing opportunities towards the development of Irish offshore wind, as a postdoc where she assessed the vulnerability of seabirds to offshore wind farms in Irish waters.
Left: Great white shark AI detection. Photo Credit: Benioff Ocean Initiative. Right: Storm petrel chick being weighed
For the MARCIS project Emma will be analysing behavioural movement patterns of seabirds and migrating birds, utilizing data obtained from a 3D avian radar installed on one of the floating turbines at Hywind Tampen. In order to assess species-specific behavioural responses to floating wind turbines, Emma will develop machine learning algorithms to identify species by their flight characteristics. Emma has already begun fieldwork, collecting ground-truthing data for a pilot radar study on the island of Fedje. By matching birds observed in the field to tracks detected by the radar system, she will collect important data on species specific flight characteristics for developing the machine learning algorithms. This research will improve our understanding of species’ sensitivity to offshore wind turbines, including the likelihood of collision with or avoidance of the turbines, and potential population level vulnerability.
Welcome to the team, Emma!
Emma at the radar field site on Fedje