Research
My current research interests concern the design and development
of computer models investigating the effects of habitat fragmentation
on population dynamics, concentrating on the nuthatch (Sitta europaea
L.)
Species extinction rates have been increasing rapidly throughout
the last 100 years or so, alarming environmentalists and other scientists.
Local extinctions reduce local biodiversity, which if left unchecked
can lead to the extinction of species at a regional and even global
level. Permanent removal of species can lead in turn to the collapse
of ecosystems.
The term ‘biodiversity’ describes the variety of all life on earth,
not just the number of species but also the variety of life at all
scales, from ecosystems, communities, species and populations, to
the genetic variation within species. A reduction in biodiversity
is clearly, therefore, a global concern. Sparked perhaps by global
warming, this concern led to the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro,
where signatories agreed to take steps to rehabilitate and restore
degraded ecosystems and to promote the recovery of threatened species.
The decisions made at the summit filtered down to country level
and led to the formation of the 1994 United Kingdom Biodiversity
Action Plan (UKBAP). Local steering groups were formed to implement
habitat and species action plans, with the aim of recording the
level of biodiversity and to suggest and take steps to at least
preserve and hopefully increase species diversity.
One cause of the loss in biodiversity is the transformation of
landscapes from a natural or semi-natural state supporting a wide
range of species, to a less suitable state resulting from a change
in land use such as urban spread, forestation or intensive agriculture.
The construction of a model to help understand and predict the effects
on the biodiversity of a landscape arising from various land-use
schemes. Such a model would aid groups involved with implementation
of the UKBAP to meet the overall aims of the 1992 earth summit in
rehabilitating and restoring degraded ecosystems and promoting the
recovery of threatened species. This project is concerned ultimately
with the development of such a model.
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Publications
Refereed Papers
Alderman, J. (2010) The swarming behaviour of Episyrphus
balteatus (De Geer) (Diptera: Syrphidae) in relation to conspecific
competition. British Journal of Entomology and Natural History.
(in press)
Alderman, J. (2009) Dorycera graminum (Fabricius,
1794) (Diptera, Ulidiidae) rediscovered at Bradlaugh Fields, Northamptonshire
(V.C. 32). Dipterists Digest. 16: 94.
Alderman, J. 2009. The Swarming Orientation of Fannia armata
(Diptera:Fanniidae). British Journal of Entomology and Natural History
22: 1-6.
Alderman, J. 2008. The swarming behaviour of Episyrphus
balteatus (De Geer) (Diptera: Syrphidae). British Journal of
Entomology and Natural History 21: 17-26.
Alderman, J. 2008. An unintentional record of the scuttle
fly Spiniphora bergenstammi (Mik) (Diptera: Phoridae) emerging
from Cepaea nemoralis (L.) (Gastropoda: Helicidae). British
Journal of Entomology and Natural History 21: 30-26.
Alderman
J. and Hinsley S.A. 2007. Modelling the third dimension: incorporating
topography into the movement rules of an individual-based spatially
explicit population model. Ecological Complexity. 4: 169-181. (Acrobat
1.34MB)
Alderman,
J, McCollin, D. Hinsley, S.A., Bellamy, P.E., Picton, P., &
Crockett, R. (2005) Modelling the effects of dispersal and landscape
configuration on population distribution and viability in fragmented
habitat. Landscape Ecology 20: 857-870. (Acrobat 298KB)
Alderman, J., McCollin, D., Hinsley, S., Bellamy,
P., Picton, P. and Crockett, R. 2004. Simulating population viability
in fragmented woodland: nuthatch ( Sitta europaea L. )
population survival in a poorly wooded landscape in eastern England
. In: Smithers, R. (ed) Landscape ecology of trees and forests:
Proceedings 12th Annual IALE(UK) Conference, Royal Agricultural
College, Cirencester. pp. 76-83.
Conference Proceedings
Alderman J. and Hinsley S.A. 2007. Modelling the effects
of elevation and topographical-based behaviour on inter-patch dispersal.
In: Bunce R.G.H., Jongman R.H.G., Hojas L. and Weel S. (eds.), 25
Years of Landscape Ecology: Scientific Principles in Practice. Proceedings
7 th IALE World Congress. 8 th -12 th July 2007, IALE Publication
series 4. IALE. Wageningen, The Netherlands pp. 398-399.
Alderman J., McCollin D., Hinsley S., Bellamy P., Picton
P. and Crockett R. 2005. Perceptual range and connectivity: exploring
the effects of habitat changes on inter-patch dispersal paths. In:
McCollin D. and Jackson J. (eds.), Planning, People and Practice:
the landscape ecology of sustainable landscapes. Proceedings 13
th Annual IALE(UK) Conference. September 2005. IALE(UK). University
of Northampton pp. 107-113.
Alderman J., McCollin D., Hinsley S., Bellamy P., Picton
P. and Crockett R. 2004. Simulating population viability in fragmented
woodland: nuthatch ( Sitta europaea L.) population survival
in a poorly wooded landscape in eastern England. In: Smithers R.
(ed.), Landscape Ecology of Trees and Forests. Proceedings 12 th
Annual IALE(UK) Conference. 21 st -24 th June 2004. IALE(UK). Royal
Agricultural College, Cirencester pp. 76-83.
Poster Presentations
Alderman J. 2002. PatchMapper: a Spatially Explicit Combined
Landscape and Metapopulation Ecology Model. In: Extinction Thresholds:
Insights from ecology, genetics, epidemiology and behaviour. Proceedings
University of Helsinki Spatial Ecology Conference. 2 nd_ 5 th September
2002. University of Helsinki, Finland pp. 52.
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