My name is Sophie Edwards, and I am a final year Integrated Masters student at Cardiff University. The aim of my Master’s project is to quantify competition in freshwater macroinvertebrate communities using stable isotope analysis. In my spare time I am an avid record collector and run Cardiff University’s Vinyl and Music Appreciation Society, in addition to being an enthusiastic crocheter.
My research interests are centered on understanding ecological interactions in freshwater environments of the Brazilian semiarid (Caatinga domain), using the fish community and its parasites and prey. At Cardiff University, the study plan “Antagonistic interactions networks from intermittent rivers in the Brazilian semiarid” is being conducted through the CAPES doctoral sandwich scholarship. Our aims are to verify if human impacts, as inter-basins transpositions, are affecting the aquatic biota and its interactions.
I am a PhD Candidate at the University of Cardiff developing methods to automatically detect ecological interactions from video footage. With a background in Electronic Engineering (Bachelors) and Conservation and Land Management (Masters), my research looks to bridge these fields and explore technical solutions to ecological problems. I aspire to design new methods that contribute towards data driven, predictive approaches within ecology.
Outside of my work I am often playing guitar in a park or exploring the countryside around Cardiff!
