Ross Crates

Ross Crates is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University (ANU). His research focuses on ecology, evolution, and conservation, with a particular emphasis on birds. He leads projects on endangered species such as the regent honeyeater, King Island scrubtit, and brown thornbill, exploring habitat loss, predator management, and reintroduction strategies. Crates is also investigating animal cultures and the role of social learning in conservation outcomes.

Education: BSc (First Class Honours in Ecology) from University of East Anglia (2006), followed by PhD research on regent honeyeater conservation. He previously worked as a research assistant at Oxford University’s Edward Grey Institute.

Research interests include biodiversity conservation, population dynamics, and the impacts of environmental changes. He actively collaborates on projects addressing noisy miner management, mistletoe ecology, and genomic insights into endangered species.

Grants and projects include funding from BirdLife Australia, Hunter LLS, and ANU initiatives. His work spans 43 publications and 17 active projects, emphasizing empirical and applied conservation science.

Labs/Teams: Member of the Difficult Bird Research Group at ANU, leading interdisciplinary conservation efforts.