Dr. Iris Bontekoe

Research:

I am an ecologist specialising in bird migration and the spatial ecology of animal movement. My research integrates computational approaches to analyse ecological datasets, with a focus on generating meaningful visualisations and uncovering novel patterns that inform both theory and conservation practice.

During my PhD, I investigated how migration timing, individual characteristics, and social dynamics shape the migratory and flight behavior of juvenile white storks. This work combined ecological theory with high-resolution movement data to better understand the drivers of early-life migration strategies.

At the University of Bern, I study obstacle avoidance by golden eagles (https://www.cb.iee.unibe.ch/research/golden_eagle/index_eng.html) and bearded vultures (https://www.cb.iee.unibe.ch/research/bearded_vulture/index_eng.html) as part of the project "flying vertebrates vs wind turbines" (https://www.cb.iee.unibe.ch/research/flying_vertebrates_vs_wind_turbines/index_eng.html).

Publications:

Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=0XOf7WIAAAAJ)