The underlying theme of much of my present research is the study of adaptations exhibited by animals in the wild. My interests lie in the variability in behavioural and physiological adaptations of animals to their environments in two respects. First, in terms of adaptive plasticity to a changing environment, where habitat changes occur both due to seasonal fluctuations and due to year on year variations as a result of human influences. Second, in terms of variations in adaptiveness and hence reproductive success between individuals within a population. Behavioural, physiological and energetic measures in combination enable me to answer fundamental questions about the plasticity of animals. For much of my work I deploy miniature data loggers on animals to measure, for example, body temperature. To gain estimates of energy expenditure, I have deployed loggers that measure heart rate and am currently developing a new type of logger that measures body acceleration as an alternative method for ascertaining the energetics of free-living animals.

Halsey LG, Butler PJ, Blackburn TM (2006) A phylogenetic analysis of the allometry of diving. American Naturalist. 167(2): 276-287 (with on-line enhancements).

Halsey LG, White CR, Enstipp MR, Jones DR, Martin GR, Butler PJ (2007) When cormorants go fishing: the differing cost of hunting for sedentary and motile prey. Biology Letters. 3: 574-576.