Principal Ecological Statistician
Philipp analyses data from various BTO surveys and research projects. He also advises across the organisation on statistical techniques used for scientific analysis and survey design.
Interests & Responsibilities
Philipp is broadly interested in using statistical and mathematical models to better understand the physical and biological processes that shape the distribution and movements of animals, their foraging and migration behaviours, and their life-history strategies. His work aims to bridge the gap between field observations and ecological theory, and he is actively involved in the development of open-source statistical software.
Other information
- Affiliated Research Faculty at the Department of Geography, University of Florida
- Associate Editor for Animal Conservation
Qualifications
- Vordiplom in Chemistry, University of Marburg (2006-2008)
- MRes in Environmental Biology, University of St Andrews (2010)
- PhD in Marine Biology ‘The ecology of scattering layer biota around Indian Ocean seamounts and islands’, University of St Andrews (2014)
Recent BTO Publications
- O'Hanlon, N.J., Clewley, G.D., Johnston, D.T., Thaxter, C.B., Langlois Lopez, S., Quinn, L.R., Boersch-Supan, P.H., Masden, E.A., Daunt, F., Wilson, J., Burton, N.H.K. & Humphreys, E.M. 2025. Partial niche partitioning in three sympatric gull species through foraging areas and habitat selection. Ecology and Evolution 15: doi:10.1002/ece3.71577
- Feather, A.P., Burton, N.H.K., Johnston, D.T. & Boersch-Supan, P.H. 2025. A review of existing methods to collect data on seabird flight height distributions and their use in offshore wind farm impact assessments. BTO Research Report 780:
- Brighton, C.H., Clarke, J.A. & Boersch-Supan, P.H. 2025. Scientific support to the trial of Spoor AI at the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre.
- Bennett, S., Rhoades, J., Boersch-Supan, P., Humphreys, E.M., Davies, J. & Upton, A. 2025. Modelled changes to seabird presence and abundance across the MarPAMM region in response to predicted changes in climatic and oceanographic variables. BTO Research Report 767:
- Rhoades, J., Johnston, D.T., Humphreys, E.M. & Boersch-Supan, P.H. 2025. Review of methods used to calculate scale of artificial nesting structures proposed as a compensation measure for Kittiwake mortality at offshore wind farms. BTO Research Report 788:
- Davies, J.G., Boersch-Supan, P.H., Clewley, G.D., Humphreys, E.M., O’Hanlon, N.J., Shamoun-Baranes, J., Thaxter, C.B., Weston, E. & Cook, A.S.C.P. 2024. Influence of wind on kittiwake Rissa tridactyla flight and offshore wind turbine collision risk. Marine Biology 171: doi:10.1007/s00227-024-04508-0
- Gordon, I.J., Sollmann, R., Rantanen, E.M., Johnson, J.A., Evans, K.L., Penteriani, V. & Boersch-Supan, P. 2024. Ten years on for the Letter from the Conservation Front Line. Animal Conservation 27: 139-140 doi:10.1111/acv.12944
- Brighton, C.H., Massimino, D., Boersch-Supan, P., Barnes, A.E., Martay, B., Bowler, D.E., Hoskins, H.M.J. & Pearce-Higgins, J.W. 2024. The benefits of protected areas for bird population trends may depend on their condition. Biological Conservation 292: doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110553
- Border, J.A., Boersch-Supan, P., Pearce-Higgins, J.W., Hewson, C., Howard, C., Stephens, P.A., Willis, S.G., Houston, A., Gargallo, G. & Baillie, S.R. 2024. Spatial variation in spring arrival patterns of Afro-Palearctic bird migration across Europe. Global Ecology and Biogeography 33: doi:10.1111/geb.13850
- O’Hanlon, N.J., Harris, S.J., Thaxter, C.B., Boersch-Supan, P.H., Robinson, R.A., Balmer, D.E. & Burton, N.H.K. 2024. Seabird population and demographic monitoring in the UK: a review and recommendations for future sampling. BTO Research Report 754:
Other publications
Boersch-Supan PH, Johnson LR. 2018. Two case studies detailing Bayesian inference for dynamic energy budget models. Journal of Sea Research in press.
Boersch-Supan PH, Johnson LR, Phillips RA, Ryan SJ. 2018. Surface temperatures of albatross eggs and nests. Emu - Austral Ornithology 118(2):224-229.
Borrelle SB, Boersch-Supan PH, Gaskin CP, Towns DR. 2018. Influences on recovery of seabirds to islands eradicated of invasive predators, with a focus on Procellariiformes. Oryx 52:346-358.
Johnson LR, Boersch-Supan PH, Phillips RA, Ryan SJ. 2017. Changing measurements or changing movements? Sampling scale and movement model identifiability across multiple generations of biologging technology. Ecology and Evolution 7:9257–9266.
Sydeman WJ, Thompson SA, Anker-Nilssen T, Arimitsu M, Bennison A, Bertrand S, Boersch-Supan P, Boyd C, Bransome NC, Crawford RJ, Daunt F, Furness RW, Gianuca D, Gladics A, Koehn L, Lang JW, Logerwell E, Morris TL, Phillips EM, Provencher J, Punt AE, Saraux C, Shannon L, Sherley RB, Simeone A, Wanless RM, Wanless S, Zador S. 2017. Best Practices for Assessing Forage Fish Fisheries - Seabird Resource Competition. Fisheries Research 194:209–221.
Boersch-Supan PH, Ryan SJ, Johnson LR. 2016. deBInfer: Bayesian inference for dynamical models of biological systems in R. Methods in Ecology and Evolution 8:511–518