Dr. Neil Burns

Biography

Neil Burns is a quantitative ecologist specializing in population ecosystem health, with a primary focus on marine systems. He is a lecturer in the University of Glasgow's School of Social & Environmental Sustainability, based at the Dumfries Campus. Before joining the School, he held research positions as a Research Fellow at SRUC and as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Glasgow’s Gilmorehill Campus. With a decade of experience in higher education, Neil previously worked at Bell College (now the University of the West of Scotland) and Oatridge College (now SRUC). He holds a PhD in Population Ecosystem Health from the University of Glasgow, where his research focused on demographic distribution changes in marine fish. Furthermore, he developed a novel statistical method to analyze otolith microchemistry data to track fish movements. His research interests include understanding population processes related to animal distributions, movements, and connectivity within marine environments. He examines marine spatial patterns and population dynamics to understand the impacts of human activities on ecosystem health. Additionally, Neil adopts an interdisciplinary approach and collaborates with colleagues to integrate advanced statistical methods and qualitative techniques into his work.

Research Interests

Experience