Harry Sanders

PhD Topic: Biotic versus abiotic forcing of fluvial sediment dynamics: How much sediment do crayfish supply to river systems?

Since their introduction to the UK in the 1970s, signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) have adopted a burrowing behaviour into riverbanks. His research investigates the environmental and biological controls that impact the propensity of crayfish to burrow, and how their burrow morphology changes under varying conditions. From a combination of field work and laboratory experiments, his research aims to calculate and model the volume of fine sediment that crayfish are actively recruiting into river channels, and the implications that crayfish burrowing have on river bank stability.