Alumni Spotlight: Georgia Cowie’s Bat Summer

30 March 2025

 

What initially drew you to study bats, and why did you choose to focus on their presence in London’s micro green spaces?  

During my undergrad, my final dissertation project focused on the use of bioacoustics to record avian nocturnal migration in the UK, as well as monitor biodiversity in Mozambique. I’d never heard about this method before, but I found it really interesting and was keen to carry it on during my master's. I knew I wanted to do field research as part of my project, especially given my inability to do so during my undergrad due to the pandemic, and I wanted to investigate mammals. 

During the first semester of the master’s course, the “Emerging Technology” module really stood out, with Steve Rossiter’s expertise on bats and the use of bioacoustics to monitor them a huge inspiration. When paired with living and studying in London, it felt like a natural choice to investigate urban bat populations, especially in these small spaces where you wouldn’t expect them. Also, bats are adorable.

 

You mentioned that the biggest outcome of your study is realising that micro green spaces and their conservation value shouldn’t be overlooked, and more robust research is needed. Is this something you wish to undertake?  

The short answer is yes, very much. As a result of my project and its outcomes, I was left with more questions than answers and am subsequently eager to continue this research. I am in talks now with my ex-supervisor from QMUL about continuing this in my own time with her support, as I know I barely scratched the surface surrounding this topic. I also think it’s a really important step in urban nature recovery and conservation, as I think it can be easy to forget that these spaces can (and do) host a wide variety of species that need our attention. Before this project, if you had told me bats were abundant in these tiny parks in central London, I would not have believed it. I’d love to work towards influencing local policy to ensure these spaces are made as desirable to wildlife as possible, creating a green network throughout the city.  

 

Your research involved a mix of fieldwork and data analysis. Which aspects did you find most challenging or rewarding?

My project was challenging and rewarding in pretty much the same areas. At times it was hard to motivate myself to physically go on the bat walks in the evening, especially as it crept into summer and the nights got shorter. However, once I was out the house and met up with one of my many friend volunteers, I was rewarded most nights by hearing bats in these unexpected places! One particularly exciting park was in central Soho where 3 species were heard in my 15-minute recording slot.  

Additionally, the data analysis side was hard as I had to wrap my head around running a Generalized Linear Mixed Model (GLMM) in R. This got especially difficult as the weather improved, as I was having to spend my days in the library staring at a computer. However, as is often the case, seeing it all come together and being able to get a real overview of my project was rewarding in itself, and I was very proud of how much I learned to code in R studio.  

 

How did you first get involved with The Linnean Society?

I was actually a staff member at the Linnean Society before beginning this master’s degree, working as the Journal Officer for the four academic journals published by the Society. It was through this job that I heard about this master’s course, after meeting a student, Karl, from the previous years’ cohort at one of their in-house events. He spoke very highly of the course and the university, prompting me to look into it. He also mentioned that he had reached out to the Editor of The Linnean about writing a piece for it about his time in Borneo with the course; this was published in June/July of 2023. Seeing this success, I spoke to the Editor myself about my project and why I thought it was important and was subsequently offered a piece in the magazine. I had no idea it would be the cover story!  

Whilst I had a slight advantage through my association with The Society, I would stress that simply engaging with the staff and going to their events will offer some opportunities to get involved. The Linnean magazine itself publishes a real mix of articles, ranging from current science to new popular science book reviews, interviews with researchers and so much more. I know for a fact that engaging with students and young people is a real mission for The Society at the moment, so whilst it might be a shot in the dark sometimes, reaching out to the editor as I did may open some doors. 

 

What were the biggest limitations of your study, and how would you improve the research if you had more time and resources?  

As with many outdoor field projects in the UK, the weather significantly affected my project! I was particularly unlucky that the summer of 2024 was quite wet, which meant several of the nights I intended to undertake a bat walk were rained off. Obviously, this isn’t something I could control, but having more time to conduct the study would’ve meant I could have collected more data. I’d also change my method slightly if I were to do it again; using static bioacoustic recorders instead of only relying on my handheld device would have made it easier to collect much more data. It also would have removed the problem of several parks being locked at night, preventing me from surveying them. 

 

What led to you choosing to study for an MSc in Biodiversity and Conservation at Queen Mary?  

I mentioned above, but the first time I heard of this course was through meeting a previous student at an event, whereby he spoke very highly of the course and its content. I also have a friend who studied their masters at QMUL in psychology, and her experience was very positive. I had known for some time that I wanted to pursue a master’s in this field, but there are several highly regarded universities that offer similar courses. What stood out for me about this one was the field course to Borneo, offering the opportunity to put theory into practice, and the focus on developing real-world skills and knowledge as opposed to simply teaching theory. What’s more, the opportunity to tailor the course to my interests through elective modules, as well as the courses’ association with Kew, were huge factors in my decision making. I will honestly say I have no regrets! 

 

Besides this project, what were some of your highlights studying at Queen Mary?  

The course was great overall, with highlights being the module at Kew Gardens and the field course to Borneo. Danum Valley was one of the most incredible places I have ever visited, and I will cherish those memories and the skills I learned there for life. I also made some incredible friends on this masters course, as it encouraged collaboration with other students across most modules, something I didn’t expect. Furthermore, the amount of freedom I was given for my project was a highlight, as I was able to fully tailor it to my expertise as well as my future interests. Outside of the course, I really enjoyed the campus at Mile End as it was a remarkably calm place to be despite being in a very busy area.

 

How did the staff, facilities and resources available to you in the school help facilitate your research?  

I want to give a huge shout out to my supervisor Sally Faulkner, as she allowed me to essentially design and run my own project idea with her support. Also to Tom Fayle for his help on the statistics side of things, and Steve Rossiter for sharing his love of bats in Borneo and subsequently helping me design my project. I am grateful to the university for offering the student budget, as it enabled me to purchase my bat detector and therefore make my project feasible. I’d also like to shout out the library at Mile End, an unusually pleasant location to spend countless hours working, as well as The Grad Centre café for their cheap coffees!