Professor Tim Sparks
thsparks@btopenworld.com
Tel:
+44 (0)1223 336675
I have a background in the analysis and interpretation of data, with a degree in Statistics and masters degrees in Applied Statistics and in Operational Research, followed by a PhD by publications in Environmental Sciences. After a decade in agricultural research I switched to ecological and environmental research at Monks Wood Research Station (1991-2009).
I am currently a visiting professor at the University of Liverpool and at the Poznań University of Life Sciences in Poland. I am also a Hans Fischer Senior Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Study, Technische Universität München. I currently split my time between the UK, Poland and Germany. In September 2011 I joined Coventry University to provide statistics advice and support
Research Interests
I am interested in a wide range of topics, ranging from ancient woodlands to farmland biodiversity. In recent years my research has focused on the detection of climate impacts from long-term data. Much of this concerns the study of phenology, the timing of naturally recurring events as diverse as ice-melt, bear hibernation, bird migration, insect flight, plant flowering and lawn cutting. Data are obtained from a curious mix of sources, including diaries, old published journals, photographs and museums. I also remain very active in the UK Phenology Network.
I collaborate widely but particularly productively with Profs Piotr Tryjanowski (Poznań), Annette Menzel (Munich) and Roger Dennis (Staffordshire/Oxford Brookes). I directly supervise two PhD students in Munich, but am active in mentoring others in all “my” three countries. The continental dimension has added further interests to phenology, including hornets, bees, hops and grapevines. I am an editor of the journal Climate Research.
I have a worrying amount of data waiting to be analysed and written up. This reflects my latent inability to say “no” and an unfortunate fascination with the detection and attribution of change. Amidst this backlog are pending co-authored books on Leonard Jenyns, a Victorian Cambridge naturalist, and Robert Marsham, an eighteenth century Norfolk naturalist and the father of British phenology.
Links
UK Phenology Network www.phenology.org.uk
Publications
- Kauserud, H., Heegaard, E., Büntgen, U., Halvorsen, R., Egli, S., Boddy, L., Senn-Irlet, B., Krisai-Greilhuber, I., Dämon, W., Sparks, T., Nordén, J., Høiland, K., Kirk, P., Semenov, M. & Stenseth, N.C. (2012). Warming-induced shift in European mushroom fruiting phenology. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (USA), 109, 14488-14493.
- Żmihorski, M., Sparks, T.H. & Tryjanowski, P. (2012). The weekend bias in recording rare birds: mechanisms and consequences. Acta Ornithologica, 47, 87-94.
- Rosin, Z.M., Skórka, P., Wylegała, P., Krąkowski, B., Tobolka, M., Myczko, Ł., Sparks, T.H. & Tryjanowski, P. (2012). Landscape structure, human disturbance and crop management affect foraging ground selection by migrating geese. Journal of Ornithology, 153, 747-759.
- Donnelly, A., Caffarra, A., Kelleher, C.T., O'Neill, B.F., Diskin, E., Pletsers, A., Proctor, H., Stirnemann, R., O'Halloran, J., Peñuelas, J., Hodkinson, T.R. & Sparks, T.H. (2012). Surviving in a warmer world: environmental and genetic responses. Climate Research, 53, 245-262.
- Meek, W.R., Burman, P.J., Sparks, T.H., Nowakowski, M. & Burman, N.J. (2012). The use of Barn Owl Tyto alba pellets to assess population change in small mammals. Bird Study, 59, 166-174.
- Rosin, Z.M., Myczko, Ł., Skórka, P., Lenda, M., Moroń, D., Sparks, T.H. & Tryjanowski, P. (2012). Butterfly responses to environmental factors in fragmented calcareous grasslands. Journal of Insect Conservation, 16, 321-329.
- Ziello, C., Sparks, T.H., Estrella, N., Belmonte, J., Bergmann, K.C., Bucher, E., Brighetti, M.A., Damialis, A., Detandt, A., Galán, C., Gehrig, R., Grewling, L., Gutiérrez Bustillo, A.M., Hallsdóttir, M., Kockhans-Bieda, M-C., De Linares, C., Myszkowska, D., Pàldy, A., Sánchez, A., Smith, M., Thibaudon, M., Travaglini, A., Uruska, A., Valencia-Barrera, R.M., Vokou, D., Wachter, R., de Weger, L.A. & Menzel, A. (2012). Changes to airborne pollen counts across Europe. PLoS One. 7(4), e34076.
- Sparks, T., Lewthwaite, K. & Atkinson, S. (2012). Phenology in 2011: an unusual year? British Wildlife, April 2012, 252-255.
- Sparks, T. (2012). Our fruitful autumn. Tree News, 21, 19-21.
- Stroh, P.A., Hughes, F.M.R., Sparks, T.H. & Mountford, J.O. (2012). The influence of time on the soil seed bank and vegetation across a landscape-scale wetland restoration project. Restoration Ecology, 20, 103-112.
- Sparks, T.H., Mizera, T., Wójtowicz, W. & Tryjanowski, P. (2012). Synchrony in the phenology of a culturally iconic spring flower. International Journal of Biometeorology, 56, 407-409.
- Jochner, S.C., Sparks, T.H., Estrella, N. & Menzel, A. (2012). The influence of altitude and urbanisation on trends and mean dates in phenology (1980-2009). International Journal of Biometeorology, 56, 387-394.
- Staley, J.T., Sparks, T.H., Croxton, P.J., Baldock, K.C.R., Heard, M.S., Hulmes, S., Hulmes, L., Peyton, J., Amy, S.R. & Pywell, R.F. (2012). Long-term effects of hedgerow management policies on resource provision for wildlife. Biological Conservation, 145, 24-29.
- Bock, A., Sparks, T., Estrella, N. & Menzel, A. (2011). Changes in the phenology and composition of wine from Franconia, Germany. Climate Research, 50, 69-81.
- Knudsen, E., Lindén, A., Both, C., Jonzén, N., Pulido, F., Saino, N., Sutherland, W.J., Bach, L.A., Coppack, T., Ergon, T., Gienapp, P., Gill, J.A., Gordo, O., Hedenström, A., Lehikoinen, E., Marra, P.P., Møller, A.P., Nilsson, A.L.K., Péron, G., Ranta, E., Rubolini, D., Sparks, T.H., Spina, F., Studds, C.E., Sæther, S.A., Tryjanowski, P. & Stenseth, N.C. (2011). Challenging claims in the study of migratory birds and climate change. Biological Reviews, 86, 928-946.
- Kaługa I., Sparks T.H. & Tryjanowski P. (2011). Reducing death by electrocution of the white stork Ciconia ciconia. Conservation Letters, 4, 483-487.
- Sparks, T.H., Menzel, A., Peñuelas, J. & Tryjanowski, P. (2011). Species response to contemporary climate change. In: The Sage Handbook of Biogeography (eds Millington, A.C, Blumler, M. & Schickoff, U.). Sage, Los Angeles, pp. 231-242.
- Sparks, T.H., Butchart, S.H.M., Balmford, A., Bennun, L., Stanwell-Smith, D., Walpole, M., Bates, N.R., Bomhard, B., Buchanan, G.M., Chenery, A.M., Collen, B., Csirke, J., Diaz, R.J., Dulvy, N.K., Fitzgerald, C., Kapos, V., Mayaux, P., Tierney, M., Waycott, M., Wood, L. & Green, R.E. (2011). Linked indicator sets for addressing biodiversity loss. Oryx 45, 411-419.
- Tryjanowski, P., Hartel, T., Báldi, A., Szymański, P., Tobolka, M., Herzon, I., Goławski, A., Konvička, M., Hromada, M., Jerzak, L., Kujawa, K., Lenda, M., Orłowski, G., Panek, M., Skórka, P, Sparks, T.H., Tworek, S., Wuczyński, A. & Żmihorski, M. (2011). Conservation of farmland birds faces different challenges in Western and Central-Eastern Europe? Acta Ornithologica, 46, 1-12.
- Sparks, T.H., Górska-Zajączkowska, M., Wójtowicz, W. & Tryjanowski, P. (2011). Phenological changes and reduced seasonal synchrony in western Poland. International Journal of Biometeorology, 55, 447-453.
- Smithers, R. & Sparks, T. (2011). ‘No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow’. British Wildlife, 22, 254-257.
- Britt, C., Sparks, T., Roberts, A. & Kirkham, F. (2011). Hedgerow management in England and Wales: Current practice and factors influencing farmers’ decisions. Aspects of Applied Biology, 108, 133-143.
- Donnelly, A., Caffarra, A., Diskin, E., Kelleher, C.T., Pletsers, A., Proctor, H., Stirnemann, R., Jones, M.B., O’Halloran, J., O’Neill, B.F., Peñuelas, J. & Sparks, T. (2011). Climate warming results in phenotypic and evolutionary changes in spring events: a mini-review. In: Climate Change, Ecology and Systematics (eds. Hodkinson, T.R., Jones, M.B., Waldren, S. & Parnell, J.A.N.). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 176-200.
- Brown, P.M.J., Frost, R., Doberski, J., Sparks, T., Harrington, R. & Roy, H.E. (2011). Decline in native ladybirds in response to the arrival of Harmonia axyridis: early evidence from England. Ecological Entomology, 36, 231-240.
- Tryjanowski, P., Sparks, T.H., Bochenski, M., Dabert, M., Kasprzak, M., Kaminski, P., Mroczkowski, S., Wisniewska, E. & Jerzak L. (2011). Do males hatch first and dominate sex ratios in White Stork Ciconia ciconia chicks? Journal of Ornithology, 152, 213-218.
- Rosin, Z.M., Skórka, P., Lenda, M., Moroń, D., Sparks, T.H. and Tryjanowski, P. (2011). Increasing patch area, proximity of human settlement and larval food plants positively affect the occurrence and local population size of the habitat specialist butterfly Polyommatus coridon (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) in fragmented calcareous grasslands. European Journal of Entomology, 108, 99-106.
- Biodiversity Indicators Partnership (2010) Biodiversity Indicators and the 2010 Target: Experiences and lessons learnt from the 2010 Biodiversity Indicators Partnership. Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Montréal , Canada. Technical Series No. 53, 196 pages.
- Sparks, T and Tryjanowski, P. (2010). Regression and causality. In Hudson , I.L. and Keatley, M.R. (eds.) Phenological research. Methods for environmental and climate change analysis. Springer, Dordecht, pp. 123-145.
- Tryjanowski, P., Pawlikowski, T., Pawlikowski, K., Banaszak-Cibicka, W. and Sparks, T.H. (2010). Does climate influence phenological trends in social wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespinae) in Poland? European Journal of Entomology, 107, 203-208.
- Hardy, P.B., Kinder, P.M., Sparks, T.H. and Dennis, R.L.H. (2010). Elevation and habitats: the potential of sites at different altitudes to provide refuges for phytophagous insects during climatic fluctuations. Journal of Insect Conservation, 14, 297-303.
- Kauserud, H., Heegaard, E., Semenov, M.A., Boddy, L., Halvorsen, R., Stige, L.C., Sparks, T.H., Gange, A.C. and Stenseth, N.C. (2010). Climate change and spring-fruiting fungi. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 277, 1169-1177.
- Jerzak, L., Sparks, T.H., Kasprzak, M., Bochenski, M., Kaminski, P., Wiśniewska, E., Mroczkowski, S. and Tryjanowski, P. (2010). Blood chemistry in White Stork Ciconia ciconia chicks varies by sex and age. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology B, 156, 144-147.
- Lehikoinen, E. and Sparks, T.H. (2010). Changes in migration. In: Moller, A.P. Fiedler, W. and Berthold, P. (Eds). Effects of climate change on birds. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Pp. 89-112.
- Zduniak, P., Yosef, R., Sparks, T.H., Smit, H. and Tryjanowski, P. (2010). Rapid advances in the timing of the spring passage migration through Israel of the steppe eagle Aquila nipalensis. Climate Research, 42, 217-222.
- Croxton, P. and Sparks, T. (2010). The rise and fall of ponds in Kimbolton parish. Huntingdonshire Fauna and Flora Society Annual Report, 62, 24-28.
- Thackeray, S.J., Sparks, T.H., Frederiksen, M., Burthe, S., Bacon, P.J., Bell, J.R., Botham, M.S., Brereton, T.M., Bright, P.W., Carvalho, L., Clutton-Brock, T., Dawson, A., Edwards, M., Elliott, J.M., Harrington, R., Johns, D., Jones, I.D., Jones, J.T., Leech, D.I., Roy, D.B., Scott, W.A., Smith, M., Smithers, R.J., Winfield, I.J. and Wanless S. (2010). Trophic level asynchrony in rates of phenological change for marine, freshwater and terrestrial environments. Global Change Biology, 16, 3304-3313.
- Sparks, T.H., Langowska, A., Głazaczow, A., Wilkaniec, Z., Bieńkowska, M. and Tryjanowski, P. (2010). Advances in the timing of spring cleaning by the Honeybee Apis mellifera in Poland. Ecological Entomology, 35, 788-791.
- Askeyev, O.V., Sparks, T.H., Askeyev, I.V., Tishin, D.V. and Tryjanowski, P. (2010). East versus West: contrasts in phenological patterns? Global Ecology and Biogeography, 19, 783-793.
- Dennis, R.L.H., Dapporto, L., Sparks, T.H., Williams, S.R., Greatorex-Davies, J.N., Asher, J. and Roy, D.B. (2010). Turnover and trends in butterfly communities on two British tidal islands: stochastic influences or deterministic factors. Journal of Biogeography, 37, 2291-2304.
- Jenkins, D. and Sparks, T.H. (2010). The changing bird phenology of Mid Deeside, Scotland 1974-2010. Bird Study, 57, 407-414.
- Newton, I., Ekner, A., Walker , D. and Sparks, T.H. (2010). The migration seasons of birds as recorded at Dungeness Bird Observatory in southeast England. Ringing and Migration, 25, 71-87.
Older publications available here
