Swapna Lawrence
MASTER'S STUDENT
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RESEARCH INTERESTS
My interest in wildlife biology and conservation developed during my years as an undergraduate student in Bangalore. Long hours spent bird watching, observing and documenting biodiversity within green spaces in the campus and the city is what kindled my passion for ecology. Broadly my research interests lie at the interface of conservation and behavioural ecology. I would like to use insights from animal behaviour to address conservation issues. Specifically, I’d like to understand ways in which both direct and indirect impacts of anthropogenic disturbances influence the behaviour of animals and how it ultimately affects populations. I’m also interested in knowing why and how some species fare better than others in changing ecosystems. I’m currently doing my Master’s in Ornithology and Conservation Biology at the Sálim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History. For my thesis, I’m studying how exotic timber plantations in the Shola Sky Islands of the Western Ghats impacts the distribution and abundance of endemic birds in the landscape. I’m interested in examining how landscape changes due to loss and fragmentation of habitats and, spread of exotic invasives affects the movement and foraging patterns of bird species. Projects Involved: Sky Island Birds PERSONAL AND OTHER INTERESTS
In my spare time I like to travel, bird watch, and find new artists and their music (of late, jazz). I also enjoy stand up comedy and discovering new places to eat. |
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