I was recently asked to provide some text for the basis of ZSL’s website about the Mauritius Fody, and as a part of this I had to provide a tagline- a snippet of text about the species that might stick with people. I suggested “The most interesting bird you’ve never heard of”- which is true. Fodies are obscure in general, and while the Mauritius Fody, being rare, has received some attention, when I talk to people about my work I usually get a blank face, and then a comment about a great trip to Mauritius that they took in 2014. Which is a real shame, because Fodies are beautiful, charismatic, and interesting; as I am in the process of discovering.
I started my PhD at the age of 38, having had 15 years out of science, during which time I got married to Tom and had our son Leo, and had a career in higher education administration. Prior to all that I did a MSc in Zoology and then an MSc in Wildlife Management and Conservation, both at Reading; and then I was lucky enough to do a year of fieldwork in Peru. I also received a cancer diagnosis about six weeks before I started my research, but that’s another story and beyond the scope I had imagined for this blog. That might change!
The Fody research came about due to Professor Ken Norris who is now Director of Science at IOZ; he taught me during my Masters at Reading. Since then we kept in touch; he has been incredibly supportive of my wish to be back in science, and when an opportunity came to take voluntary redundancy from my job, I jumped at the chance to start a PhD. Ken and his team have a long-standing relationship with the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation, who own the Fody data I am using for this research. More about the specifics of that in later posts.
I am conducting this research part time; I’m also occupied with parenting and family life. I also like running, netball, and swimming when I can; I have entered a triathlon in early 2019. I used to be an avid photographer but I am currently very out of practise; however as I’m going to Mauritius in November 2018, I need to start practising again! I am very excited to see a Fody in the wild; there aren’t any Mauritius Fodies in captivity, so it will be the first time I see one.
Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about me or my research.