- Room 619, Davy Building, Drake Circus
- +44 1752 584617
- P.Cotton@plymouth.ac.uk
Profiles
Dr Peter Cotton
Associate Head of School
School of Biological and Marine Sciences (Faculty of Science and Engineering)
Role
Associate Head of School (Marine Biology)
Qualifications
BSc, University of Dundee (1987)
DPhil, University of Oxford (1993)
PGC LTHE, University of Plymouth (2001)
Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2016)
AFRC Research Assistant, University of Oxford (1991-1993)
NERC Postdoctoral Research Assistant, University of Oxford (1994-1996)
College Lecturer in Zoology, Pembroke College, University of Oxford (1997)
Research Biologist, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (1998-2000)
Lecturer / Senior Lecturer, Unviversity of Plymouth (2000-present)
Professional membership
Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.
Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
Teaching interests
In the first year I teach on MBIO120 Introduction to Marine Biology and on the MBIO123 Marine Biology Field Course to Brittany. I also teach about vertebrates and animal behaviour on MBIO121 Life on Earth, and mate choice on BIOL124PP Biology of Sex.
My second year teaching is largely field-based. I run the Marine Biology and Coastal Ecology field course in South Africa (MBIO213) which is usually in September. At the end of the year I'm involved a non-residential field course based at the marine station. This course covers experimental design, sampling from boats and statistical analysis of the data we collect (MBIO224).
In the third year I teach behavioural ecology (MBIO317) and supervise research projects (MBIO313).
I was the programme leader for BSc Marine Biology & Coastal Ecology for seven years, and now help Tony Knights to run the programme.
Staff serving as external examiners
External examiner for the University of St Andrews and the University of Malta.
Research interests
I am a behavioural ecologist and of late I have primarily worked on predator-prey interactions and contest behaviour. I'm also interested in community ecology and anthropogenic impacts on ecological assemblages and phenology.
Pete Cotton's page on Google Scholar.
Research degrees awarded to supervised students
Lisa Sztukowski. Individual foraging specialization and seabird fishery interactions: implications for albatross conservation. With Dr Steve Votier, University of Exeter, and Dr Henri Weimerskirch, CNRS, France. Funding: MARES. Complted 2016.
Julian Evans. PhD. habitat characterisation of infralittoral pebble beds in the Maltese islands. (Jointly supervised with Prof Martin Attrill & Prof Patrick Schembri, University of Malta). Funding: STEPS, Malta). Completed 2014.
Ahmed Al-Mazrouai, PhD. Phenotypic plasticity in marine intertidal gastropods. (Jointly supervised with Dr. S. Rundle). Funding: Sultanate of Oman. Completed 2009.
Sophie Mowles, PhD. Contest behaviour in hermit crabs. (Jointly supervised with Dr Mark Briffa). Funding: University of Plymouth Research Studentship. Completed 2009.
Sarah Dalesman, PhD. Anti-predator behaviour in the freshwater gastropod Lymnaea stagnalis. (Jointly supervised with Dr Simon Rundle). Funding: University of Plymouth Studentship. Completed 2007.
Lissa Goodwin, PhD. The ecology and conservation of the harbour porpoise (Phocena phocena) along the west coast of the UK. (Jointly supervised with Dr Martin Attrill & Dr Nick Tregenza). Funding: private. Completed 2007.
Sarah Carless, PhD. The effect of human disturbance on oystercatcher prey selection and foraging behaviour on rocky shores. (Jointly supervised with Dr Ross Coleman, University of Sydney & Dr Richard Stillman, CEH). Funding: HEFCE COLLr. Completed 2006.
Gillian Groeger, PhD. The visual performance of the cuttlefish eye. (Jointly supervised with Prof. Roddy Williamson). Funding: HEFCE COLLr. Completed 2003.
Key publications are highlighted
Journals
Articles
2019
'Abundance drives broad patterns of generalisation in plant–hummingbird pollination networks'
Oikos
, DOI
PEARL
2018
'Functional diversity mediates macroecological variation in plant–hummingbird interaction networks'
Global Ecology and Biogeography
27,
(10)
1186-1199
, DOI
PEARL
2018
'Sex differences in individual foraging site fidelity of Campbell albatross'
Marine Ecology Progress Series
601,
, DOI
PEARL
2018
'Hidden in plain sight: species richness and habitat characterisation of sublittoral pebble beds'
Marine Biology
165,
(2)
, DOI
PEARL
2017
'Global patterns of interaction specialization in bird-flower networks'
Journal of Biogeography
, DOI
PEARL
2017
'Tracking reveals limited interactions between Campbell Albatross and fisheries during the breeding season'
Journal of Ornithology
158,
(3)
725-735
, DOI
PEARL
2016
'The integration of alien plants in mutualistic plant-hummingbird networks across the Americas: the importance of species traits and insularity'
Diversity and Distributions
22,
(6)
672-681
, DOI
PEARL
2016
'High proportion of smaller ranged hummingbird species coincides with ecological specialization across the Americas'
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
283,
(1824)
20152512-20152512
, DOI
PEARL
2015
'Understanding the gender and ethnicity attainment gap in UK higher education'
Innovations in Education and Teaching International
, DOI
PEARL
2015
'The macroecology of phylogenetically structured hummingbird-plant networks'
Global Ecology & Biogeography
PEARL
2014
'The effects of a competitor on the foraging behaviour of the shore crab Carcinus maenas'
PLoS One
9,
(4)
, DOI
PEARL
2012
'Consistent crustaceans: the identification of stable behavioural syndromes in hermit crabs'
BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY AND SOCIOBIOLOGY
66,
(7)
1087-1094
, DOI
2011
'Specialization in Plant-Hummingbird Networks Is Associated with Species Richness, Contemporary Precipitation and Quaternary Climate-Change Velocity'
PLOS ONE
6,
(10)
, DOI
PEARL
2011
'Susceptibility to predation affects trait-mediated indirect interactions by reversing interspecific competition'
PLoS One
6,
(8)
, DOI
2011
'Flexing the abdominals: do bigger muscles make better fighters?'
Biol Lett
7,
(3)
358-360
, DOI
2010
'Whole-organism performance capacity predicts resource-holding potential in the hermit crab Pagurus bernhardus'
ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR
80,
(2)
277-282
, DOI
2010
'Using Observational Methods to Research the Student Experience'
JOURNAL OF GEOGRAPHY IN HIGHER EDUCATION
34,
(3)
463-473
, DOI
2009
'Crawl-out behaviour in response to predation cues in an aquatic gastropod: insights from artificial selection'
EVOLUTIONARY ECOLOGY
23,
(6)
907-918
, DOI
2009
'Developmental plasticity compensates for selected low levels of behavioural avoidance in a freshwater snail'
ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR
78,
(4)
987-991
, DOI
2009
'Aerobic capacity influences giving-up decisions in fighting hermit crabs: does stamina constrain contests?'
ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR
78,
(3)
735-740
, DOI
2009
'Field biology experiences of undergraduate students: the impact of novelty space'
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL EDUCATION
43,
(4)
169-174
, DOI
2008
'The Role of Circulating Metal Ions During Shell Fights in the Hermit CrabPagurus bernhardus'
Ethology
114,
(10)
1014-1022
, DOI
2008
'The role of Greater Yellow-headed Vultures Cathartes melambrotus as scavengers in neotropical forest'
Ibis
136,
(2)
193-196
, DOI
2007
'Phylogenetic relatedness and ecological interactions determine antipredator behavior'
Ecology
88,
(10)
2462-2467
2007
'Predator regime influences innate anti-predator behaviour in the freshwater gastropod Lymnaea stagnalis'
Freshwater Biology
52,
(11)
2134-2140
2007
'Seasonal resource tracking by Amazonian hummingbirds'
Ibis
149,
(1)
135-142
2006
'Cue association and antipredator behaviour in a pulmonate snail, Lymnaea stagnalis'
Animal Behaviour
71,
789-797
2006
'Effects of habitat complexity on the diversity and abundance of macrofauna colonising artificial kelp holdfasts'
Marine Ecology-Progress Series
325,
93-100
2005
'Ontogenetic changes in the visual acuity of Sepia officinalis measured using the optomotor response'
Canadian Journal of Zoology-Revue Canadienne de Zoologie
83,
(2)
274-279
2005
'The effects of climate variability on zooplankton and basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus) relative abundance off southwest Britain'
Fisheries Oceanography
14,
(2)
151-155
2004
'Habitat selection by song thrushes in stable and declining farmland populations'
Journal of Applied Ecology
41 (2),
275-293
, DOI
2004
'Ontogenetic changes in metabolism may determine diet shifts for a sit-and-wait predator'
Journal of Animal Ecology
73,
(3)
536-545
2004
'The effects of boat traffic on the behaviour of bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus'
Aquat. Mamm
30:,
279-283
2004
'Trait compensation in marine gastropods: Shell shape, avoidance behavior, and susceptibility to predation'
Ecology
85,
(6)
1581-1584
2003
'Avian migration phenology and global climate change'
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
100,
(21)
12219-12222
2002
'Book Review :Howell, SNG (ed). Hummingbirds of North America: The Photographic Guide'
Ibis
144,
2002
'Habitat utilisation by song thrushes Turdus philomelos on lowland farmland during summer and winter'
Birds and Agriculture Aspects of Applied Biology
67,
11-20
2001
'The Behavior and interactions of birds visiting Erythrina fusca flowers in the Colombian Amazon'
Biotropica
33,
(4)
662-669
1999
'Patterns of winter field use by StarlingsSturnus vulgaris: how important is prey depletion?'
Bird Study
46,
(3)
289-298
, DOI
1999
'Chick begging strategies in relation to brood hierarchies and hatching asynchrony'
AMERICAN NATURALIST
153,
(4)
412-420
, DOI
1998
'Temporal partitioning of a floral resource by territorial hummingbirds'
IBIS
140,
(4)
647-653
, DOI
1998
'Quality vs. quantity: energetic and nutritional trade‐offs in parental provisioning strategies'
Journal of Animal Ecology
67,
(4)
620-634
, DOI
1998
'Instability of signaling resolution models of parent-offspring conflict'
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
95,
(8)
4453-4457
, DOI
1997
'Nestling sex ratio in the European Starling Sturnus vulgaris'
JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY
28,
(3)
255-258
, DOI
1996
'The evolution of begging: Signaling and sibling competition'
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
93,
(25)
14637-14641
, DOI
1996
'Measuring the impact of parental foraging by starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) on soil invertebrate prey availability: An exclosure experiment'
OIKOS
76,
(3)
511-521
, DOI
1996
'Body size and ecology of hummingbirds'
Symposia of the Zoological Society of London
69,
239-258
1995
'WINTER FIELD USE BY THE EUROPEAN STARLING STURNUS-VULGARIS - HABITAT PREFERENCES AND THE AVAILABILITY OF PREY'
JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY
26,
(3)
193-202
, DOI
1995
'Food allocation among nestling starlings: sibling competition and the scope of parental choice'
Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences
259,
(1356)
259-263
, DOI
1994
'Song versus food: trade-off decisions in a breeding colony of European StarlingsSturnus vulgaris'
Bird Study
41,
(2)
95-101
, DOI
1994
'EXPERIMENTALLY-INDUCED SEX-DIFFERENCES IN PARENTAL CARE - AN EFFECT OF CERTAINTY OF PATERNITY'
ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR
47,
(6)
1311-1322
, DOI
1989
'Frequency-dependent selection on aposematic prey: some experiments'
Biological Journal of the Linnean Society
36,
(1-2)
213-226
, DOI
Conference Papers
1996
'Body size and the ecology of hummingbirds'
239-258
Links
Pete Cotton's page on Google Scholar.
Marine Biology and Ecology Research Centre
BSc Marine Biology and Coastal Ecology
Marine Biology
Marine Biology & Oceanography
MRes Marine Biology