Leonie Robinson

Lecturer in Marine Ecology

Expertise:

I have a background in community ecology of marine ecosystems with particular reference to understanding the drivers, both natural and anthropogenic, of variability in temporal and spatial dynamics. I am also interested in the application of ecological theory in underpinning management of marine resources. My interests in risk and uncertainty relate to the methodologies and applications I have been working on more recently that use risk-based approaches in understanding the likely outcomes for policy and management related to environmental objectives. I am also interested in assessing the vulnerability of different components of ecosystems to human activities where vulnerability is assessed based on likelihood and consequence of an impact occurring due to a driver being assessed (thus in terms of risk). Uncertainty in the information used to inform predictions about natural systems and the environmental policies that relate to them is also a major issue that we are working on within my group.

List of current projects involving risk and uncertainty 

  • Options for Delivering Ecosystem Based Marine Management (ODEMM) (in particular WP5 Risks faced in implementation of policy related to environmental objectives), funded by the European Commission under FP7 (www.liv.ac.uk/odemm)

  • A methodology for assessing the sensitivity of marine habitats to the combined effects of fishing, funded by the Countryside Council for Wales

List of publications

  1. Robinson LA and Frid CLJ (2003) 'Dynamic ecosystem models and the evaluation of ecosystem effects of fishing: can we make meaningful predictions? Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 13, 5-20

  2. Robinson LA and Frid, CLJ (2005) 'Extrapolating extinctions and extirpations: searching for the pristine state of the benthos'. American Fisheries Society Symposium, 41, 619-628

  3. Robinson LA and Frid CLJ (2008) Historical marine ecology: examining the role of fisheries in changes to North Sea benthos. Ambio, 37, 362-371

  4. Robinson, LA, Greenstreet, SPR, Reiss, H, Callaway, R,,Craeymeersch, J, De Boois, I, Degraer, S, Ehrich, S, Fraser, HM, Goffin, A, Kroncke, I, Lindal Jorgenson, L, Robertson, MR, Lancaster, J (2010) Length-weight relationships of 216 North Sea benthic invertebrates and fish. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the UK, 90 (1), 95-104

  5. Frid CLJ, Garwood PR & Robinson LA (2009) Observing change in a North Sea benthic system:A 33 year time series. Journal of Marine Systems, 77, 227-236

  6. Frid, CLJ, Garwood, PR & Robinson, LA (2009) The North Sea benthic system: A 36 year time-series. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the UK, 89 (1), 1-10

  7. Frid CLJ, Robinson LA and Bremner, J (2005) 'Muddy thinking: ecosystem based management of marine benthos'. American Fisheries Society Symposium, 41, 651-665

  8. Hussain S S, Winrow-Giffin A, Moran D, Robinson L A, Fofana A, Paramor O A L and Frid C L J (2010) An ex ante ecological economic assessment of the benefits arising from marine protected areas designation in the UK. Ecological Economics, 69 (4), 828-838

  9. Piet GJ, Quirijns FJ, Robinson LA and Greenstreet SPR (2007) Potential pressure indicators for fishing, and their data requirements. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 64, 110-121

  10. Reiss, H, Greenstreet, SPR, Robinson, LA, Ehrich, S, Jorgenson, LL, Piet, GJ, Wolff, WJ (2010) Unsuitability of TAC management within an ecosystems approach to fisheries: An ecological perspective. Journal of Sea Research, 63, 85-92

  11. Reiss, H, Greenstreet, SPR, Sieben, K, Ehrich, S, Piet, GJ, Quirijns, F, Robinson, LA, Wolff, WJ, Kroncke, I (2009) Effects of fishing disturbance on benthic communities and secondary production within an intensively fished area. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 394, 201-213

  12. Spencer, M., Birchenough, S.N.R., Mieszkowska, N., Robinson, L.A., Simpson, S.D.,Burrows, M.T., Capasso, E., Cleall-Harding, P., Crummy, J., Duck, C., Eloire, D., Frost, M., Hall, A.J., Hawkins, S.J., Johns, D.G., Sims, D.W., Smyth, T.J. and Frid, C.L.J. (2010) Temporal change in UK marine communities: trends or regime shifts? Marine Ecology: An Evolutionary Perspective, 32, 1-15

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