Room: 406 Westbury Mount     Phone: 01248 382864
E-mail: [email protected]
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Jan is a professor in the School of Ocean Sciences and specialise in the field of marine benthic ecology. For his PhD he studied the adaptive value of migrations and nursery use for the intertidal bivalve Macoma balthica at the Department of Marine Biology at Groningen University, and he received the Annual VLIZ North Sea Award 2002 from the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) for his PhD thesis. After completing his PhD in 2002, he started a postdoc at Bangor University, where he studied the impact of bottom trawling on the functioning of benthic invertebrate communities. He joined the lecturing staff in SOS in 2006 and was promoted to Reader in 2013. He was awarded a Personal Chair in 2017.  JGH has published >95 peer reviewed papers since 2001. His grant capture since 2006 totals over £7M.

His research broadly examines the effect of human disturbance on benthic ecosystems, including fishing and climate change. He has a broad interest in other topics and has been working on research ranging from cattle trampling wader nests on saltmarshes to acoustic monitoring of cetaceans. His research is focussed on gaining a quantitative understanding of the effect of disturbance (such as exploitation and climate change) on the biodiversity and functioning of marine benthic communities, and on how such effects can be mitigated. JGH aims to increase understanding of ecosystem functioning and distribution patterns by comparing empirical data with predictions of ecological models. Much of this research has focused ont the effect of bottom trawling on benthic ecosystems.

Research Areas

• Marine Conservation and Resource Management
• Marine Ecology

I teach on undergraduate and MSc level modules, and organise module on marine vertebrates (MSc). I am the course director of the Marine Biology BSc.

PhD student supervision

Ongoing

1. James Monnington. Part-time, started 2012. Effect of windfarms of benthic ecosystems. Co-supervisor with John Turner
2. Alistair Feather. Solving the conflict between commercial shellfish fisheries and shorebird conservation in Morecambe Bay and the Duddon Estuary. Co-supervisor with Line Cordes. 2017-2020.

 Completed

1. Adam Delargy. Science to underpin a strategy for sustainable scallop fisheries in Welsh waters. Co-supervisor with Michel Kaiser. 2016-2019.
2. Martyn Kurr. 2011-2014. NERC algorithm. Chemical defences in seaweeds. Co-supervisor with Andy Davies.
3. Elwyn Sharps, 2011-2014. Salt marsh management for breeding birds. KESS funded. June 2011 to September 2014.  Lead supervisor, with Martin Skov.
4. Timothy Whitton. 2010-2013. University of Wales funded. Spatial and temporal patchiness of cockles. Co-supervisor, with Chris Richardson and Stuart Jenkins.
5. Holly Whiteley. 2009-2013, NERC funded. Benthic productivity in marine protected areas. Lead supervisor, with Kirsten Ramsay
6. Hanna Nuuttilla. 2009-2012. Static acoustic monitoring of cetaceans. Bangor 125 funded. Co-supervisor with John Turner.
7. Andrew Johnson, 2008-2011, NERC funded. Identification of fish habitats. Co-supervisor with Stuart Jenkins and Hilmar Hinz. Viva June 2012.
8. Gwladys Lambert, 2008-2011, CEFAS/DEFRA funded. Impact of fishing on structural seabed fauna. Lead supervisor, with Michel Kaiser. Viva 7 December 2011
9. Thomas Davies, 2007-2010, NERC funded. Extinction proneness and functionality in marine benthic ecosystems. Lead supervisor, with Stuart Jenkins and Steve Hawkins. Viva May 2011
10. Ana Queiros, 2006-2010, FCT funded. Effects of biological invasion on diversity and ecosystem functioning of benthic communities impacted by fishing. Co-supervisor with Michel Kaiser.
11. Gareth Johnson, 2006-2009, BangorUniversity funded. Facilitation and biodiversity in marine benthos. Lead supervisor, with Michel Kaiser and Kirsten Ramsay.

Live and recent grants  - total >£7M

Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture, Isle of Man; Jenkins SR, Hiddink JG, McCarthy ID,  Le Vay L, Shepperson J; £896,258 Independent Fisheries Science Advice  Sept 2020-Aug 2024

Welsh Government: Razor Clams: Impacts of Electro-fishing £9914

Welsh Government: Razor clams Razor Clam Beds: A Standardised Survey Methodology / C194/2018/2019 Marine Evidence Framework (Lot 1) £9914

Sêr Cymru II -  MSCA COFUND Fellowship for Paula de Barra. Saltmarsh landscape effects on fisheries production. Hiddink, Skov. £42k

ESRC Impact Acceleration Account. Implementing methodologies for the assessment of the state of the seabed. Hiddink. £1395.

EMFF MARine MAnagement: Tool for evaluating conservation Evidence: (MARMATE). £104,618 Hiddink and Kaiser. May 2018 to March 2020.

EMFF Scallop fisheries in the English Channel. £130k. Hiddink and Kaiser. January 2018 to December 2019.

EMFF Adaptive approach to MPA Management Project £74k. Hiddink and Kaiser. April 2018 to March 2020.

ASSEMBEPlus through H2020. In kind ship time on RV Oceanograf in Gdansk Bay. ~£100k. Hiddink. Summer 2018

NERC SSB trawling workshop. £2.5k 2017

Marine Stewardship Council. Determining quantitative habitat impact in Marine Stewardship Council assessments. £153 000. Start 01/03/17 end 31/08/19

NERC. How can we maximise the benefits from living marine natural capital? Hiddink JG, Kaiser MJ. £26234 (part of £0.5 million multi-partner grant); January 2017 – May 2018

NERC. Cumulative Impacts and the Management of Marine Ecosystems. Hiddink JG, Kaiser. £62271 (part of £0.5 million multi-partner grant); January 2017 – May 2018

KESS2: Balancing commercial seed mussel harvest and shorebird conservation. Cordes L, Hiddink JG; £52,000. Jan 2017 - Dec 2020; (In partnership with Myti Mussels).

Natural England, £8k, fuel for RV Prince Madog for survey West of Walney. Hiddink.

KESS2 PhD studentship: Science to underpin a strategy for sustainable scallop fisheries in Welsh waters. Part funded by Welsh Fishermen’s Association. Kaiser and Hiddink

Seafish. Development of a tool to inform the RASS system about the sustainability of trawl and dredge fisheries with specific reference to assessing the impact of gear within conservation zones under the MSFD. Cost: £69 569. Kaiser & Hiddink.

Multiple Level Effects of Trawling (MULLET): EUROFLEETS2 call for ship-time “Regional 2” call. Sciberras, Hiddink and Hinz.

DEFA/2014/005 - Independent Fisheries Science Advice for the Isle of Man. £700k. Kaiser, Hiddink et al.

NERC directed programme: Integrating Macroecology and Modelling to Elucidate Regulation of Services from Ecosystems (IMMERSE). £622k for Bangor, Bangor PI Hiddink. 4 year project.

NERC directed programme: Biogeochemistry, macronutrient and carbon cycling in the benthic layer'. £120k for Bangor, Bangor PI Hiddink. 4 year project.

EU FP7 grant (£257k): BENTHIS: Benthic ecosystem fisheries impact study. Bangor PI Hiddink and Kaiser. I am leading WP4. 5 year project

I have a range of research interests in which PhD projects could be developed. Please contact me by email in the first instance regarding any of the following areas: benthic ecology, sustainable fisheries, seabird ecology, ecological impacts of climate change.