PhD Student Placement - Quantitative Review of Grey Seal Monitoring at Skomer MCZ

Position: PhD Student Placement - A Quantitative Review of Grey Seal Monitoring at Skomer MCZ
Location: Coulby Newham

The role This 3 month placement offers a unique opportunity to work at the forefront of marine conservation, tackling a real-world challenge that is directly influencing how one of the UK's most important grey seal populations is monitored and protected. Drawing on an exceptional 30-year dataset from Skomer Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) , you will apply advanced quantitative analysis to investigate the impact of recent monitoring changes and help distinguish genuine ecological trends from methodological effects.

Your findings will have immediate relevance for statutory conservation reporting and the future management of protected Marine Sites in Wales. Working closely with NRW specialists, you will help shape the marine monitoring by evaluating innovative approaches such as remote cameras, drones and automated image analysis The recommendations you develop will help secure the integrity of one of the UK's longest-running grey seal monitoring programmes and influence how evidence is gathered and used to support marine conservation going forward.

This opportunity is offered as a short-term, 3-month PhD placement and candidates should be available for the full duration of the placement. As an organisation we support flexible working. You will be contracted to the nearest NRW office to your home and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face to face meetings or training will be planned in advance.

To make an informal enquiry about this role, please contact Lucie Haines at . Interviews will take place on week commencing 09/11/26 through Microsoft Teams.

About us Skomer Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) supports one of the largest grey seal ( Halichoerus grypus ) breeding populations in southwest Britain. Grey seals are protected under the Conservation of Seals Act (1970), listed under Annex II of the Habitats Regulations (2017), and form a key feature of the Pembrokeshire Marine SAC. Monitoring data from Skomer MCZ directly informs SAC, MCZ and SSSI condition assessments, making robust long-term evidence essential.

Since 1992, NRW and The Wildlife Trust of South West Wales (WTSWW) have monitored pup production and survival using a standardised protocol combining shore access for dye-marking pups with cliff-top observations. These methods, documented in the Grey Seal Monitoring Handbook (Poole 1996b) and updated in the Skomer MCZ Grey Seal Management Plan (Alexander 2015), have produced a 30-year dataset used to assess population health.

However, in 2024, insurance restrictions removed access to Skomer Island beaches and caves. Monitoring was forced to shift to cliff-top-only methods, mirroring the approach used on the Marloes Peninsula since 2007. Eleven of sixteen Skomer sites were deemed suitable for this method. A full trial in 2025 revealed major limitations: high pup numbers at peak season, extensive movement between sites and caves, difficulty identifying new pups after a few days, and an inability to track pups reliably to weaning without marking.

As a result,  Skomer Island data are not comparable with the long-term dataset or with mainland data, breaking continuity in the evidence base. This presents a significant challenge for statutory reporting. NRW must determine whether observed changes reflect real biological trends or methodological artefacts, and must identify alternative metrics that remain robust under current access constraints. This project requires two key actions:
Quantitative review of long-term vs post-change data Assess the impact of the  method change on detectability, pup counts and survival estimates. Compare Skomer Island and Marloes Peninsula datasets to identify biases and uncertainties. Determine which historic…