Susan J Cunningham

Biography

I am a New Zealander resident in South Africa. I am the Director of the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology (University of Cape Town) and co-PI of the ‘Hot Birds Project’ – jointly run by the FitzPatrick Institute and the University of Pretoria. We investigate the impact of climate change on arid-zone birds by studying the links between climate, physiology, behaviour, and population processes. My research involves understanding the behavioural changes birds make in order to cope with high temperatures, and the consequences of these for their fitness (survival and reproductive success). My students and I work on a number of species including the southern fiscal (Lanius collaris), southern pied babbler (Turdoides bicolor) and southern yellow-billed hornbill (Tockus leucomelas). We produce cutting edge work on the behavioural mechanisms by which species are vulnerable / resilient to climate change. See our website: https://hbresearchproject.wixsite.com/hbresearchproject.

Although I am a thermal biologist and behavioural ecologist, my background is in sensory ecology and I completed my PhD dissertation in NZ on the use of tactile senses in foraging by birds, particularly kiwi, shorebirds and ibises. I retain a keen interest in sensory ecology and am continuing this work with southern African ibis species. My main research questions in this field relate to the evolution of the 'remote-touch' sensory system in birds with different foraging niches.