Sam Jones
PhD student
PhD title: eDNA assessment of the distribution, abundance and reproductive behaviour of Pearl Mussels in Scotland to inform species conservation needs.
Supervisor: Dr Barbara Morrissey
I have always been passionate about the environment and studied biology with a year in industry at York University for my undergraduate. My year in “industry” was spent working for the North York Moors National Park as part of the Esk Pearl Mussel and Salmon recovery project. There I gained a passion for practical hands on conservation, specifically working in freshwaters with fish, invertebrates, and the endangered freshwater pearl mussels. Since then I have worked for Natural England, the Environment Agency, and an ecological consultancy doing a variety of upland plant surveying, freshwater surveying, and bat and reptile surveying. Now I am here at the University of Highlands and Islands researching new techniques in freshwater pearl mussel conservation and monitoring. I am working with Jenny O’Dell to validate and design a field methodology for the use of environmental DNA to survey rivers.
Research interests:
- eDNA applied to understanding freshwater ecology
- Freshwater pearl mussel conservation
- Ecological field sampling and survey design
- Genomic tool for population assessment
Research project highlights:
- eDNA assessment of the distribution, abundance and reproductive behaviour of Pearl Mussels in Scotland to inform species conservation needs.
- Freshwater eDNA: Monitoring change in freshwater biological communities
Publications:
Sam Jones & Peter J. Mayhew (2017): A comparison of upland stream invertebrates in moorland and coniferous woodland in North York Moors National Park, UK. Inland Waters