Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
I have been working at SRUC's Hill & Mountain Research Centre since 2002, initially joining as a sheep research technician then progressing to become a researcher.
Research interests
My current research interests focus predominantly on sheep production systems. More specifically:
- Investigating the genetic aspects of new and novel traits relating to production, health and welfare.
- The relationships between genetic and environmental influences on different production systems.
- Sheep breeding programmes.
- The use of technology in sheep farming & breeding programmes
- Hill sheep farming
Teaching
I teach on SRUC degree courses, mainly 3rd year students on animal breeding & genetics and the technologies used in breeding programmes. I also supervise at least one honours student each year.
Supervision
Fiona McAuliffe (co-supervisor) - Investigating causes of lamb loss on Highland farms and crofts. Joint with University of Edinburgh & Nature Scot, started 2019.
Eilidh Geddes (co-supervisor) - Holistic approach to internal parastie control on hill and upland sheep farms. Joint with the Moredun Research Institute and University of Edinburgh, started 2020.
Aimee Walker (co-supervisor) - Adopting precision livestock farming technologies to improve small ruminant management and welfare in grazing systems: Joint with Moredun Research Institute and University of Glasgow, started 2021.
Projects
Current
- 2019 – 2023 ICT-AGRI call : ‘On novel technologies, solutions and systems to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in animal production systems’ (Defra-funded) “Grass To Gas: Strategies to mitigate GHG emissions from pasture-based sheep systems” (with INRAE France; AgResearch NZ; Teagasc Ireland; NMBU Norway; INIA Uruguay; Sheep Ireland), €1.2M
- 2020 - 2022. InnovateUK. Smart Sheep (with Moredun and 6 addition partners). £245K.
- 2018-2022 EU H2020 (ID 772787) SMARTER: Small Ruminant Breeding for Efficiency and Resilience (with 27 organisations), €7M
- 2020 – 2024 EU H2020 (Innovative Action No. 862050) “TechCare: Integrating innovative technologies along the value chain to improve small ruminant welfare management” (with 18 other partners from 9 countries), €5.7M
- 2021- 2023 EU H2020 (Thematic Network No. 101000471) “Sm@RT: Small Ruminant Technologies” (with 10 other partners from 8 countries), €2M
- 2020 – 2023 EU H2020 (Thematic Network No. 863056) “EuroSheep: European network for interactive and innovative knowledge exchange on animal health and nutrition” (with 11 partners from 8 countries), €2M
Previous
- 2017-2020 ERA-Net Susan (funded by Defra) “SusSheP: Sustainable Sheep Production” (with University of Limerick, Teagasc, NSG, University of Oslo, INRAe), €800K
Other work
- BSAS Committee member (2018 – ongoing).
Education/Academic qualification
PhD, University of Edinburgh
2008 → 2014
Award Date: 1 Jul 2014
Master, University of Edinburgh
2006 → 2007
Award Date: 1 Nov 2007
Bachelor, University of Aberdeen
1998 → 2002
Award Date: 1 Jul 2002
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Network
Recent external collaboration on country/territory level. Dive into details by clicking on the dots or
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Livestock's role in food system resilience in remote, upland regions
McCracken, D., Shrestha, S., Thomson, S., Holland, J., Morgan-Davies, C., Barnes, A. & McLaren, A.
1/11/17 → 31/10/21
Project: Research
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RESAS Strategic Research Programme 2016-21 WP2.3 Productive and sustainable land management
Wall, E., Smith, S., Nicoll, L., Parker, J., Robertson, D., Davidson, R., Donbavand, J., Anderson, C., Roehe, R., Harrison, B., Purcell, L., Duthie, C., Gunn, G., Pritchard, T., Jones, S., Bagnall, A., Vosough Ahmadi, B., Archibald, I., Rees, B., Eory, V., Glenk, K., Edwards, T., Buckingham, S., March, M., Broadbent, C., Cloy, J., Hargreaves, P., Wishart, H., Griffiths, B., Fox, N., Sparks, N., Shrestha, S., Banos, G., Henry, M., Watson, C., Dickinson, J., Topp, K., Burnett, F., Kyle, J., Denholm, S., Dewhurst, R., Lawson, D., McCubbin, I., Dwyer, C., Holland, J., McCracken, D., Barratt, A., Havis, N., Stanisz-Migal, M., Miller, G., Bowen, J., Hutchings, M., Creissen, H., D'Eath, R., Baddeley, J., Houdijk, J., Coffey, M., Morgan-Davies, C., Walker, R., Turner, S., Haskell, M., Barnes, A., Athanasiadou, S., Cole, L., Sandilands, V., McLaren, A., MacLeod, M. & Smith, L.
1/04/19 → 31/03/20
Project: Research
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Development into sustainable sheep production: SusSheP
Morgan-Davies, C., Lambe, N. & McLaren, A.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
1/04/17 → 31/07/20
Project: Research
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Sharing expertise and experience towards sheep productivity through NET working (SheepNET)
Dwyer, C., Vipond, J., Morgan-Davies, C., Camerlink, I., Frater, P. & McLaren, A.
1/07/16 → 31/10/19
Project: Research
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A comparison of farm labour, profitability and carbon footprint of different management strategies in Northern European grassland sheep systems
Morgan-Davies, C., Kyle, J. K., Boman, I. A., Wishart, HM., McLaren, A., Fair, S. & Creighton, P., Jun 2021, In: Agricultural Systems. 191, 11 p., 103155.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Genetic analyses of novel traits derived from CT scanning for implementation in terminal sire sheep breeding programmes
McLaren, A., Kaseja, K., McLean, KA., Boon, S. & Lambe, NR., Aug 2021, In: Livestock Science. 250, 104555.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Key traits for ruminant livestock across diverse production systems in the context of climate change: perspectives from a global platform of research farms
Rivero, MJ., Lopez-Villalobos, N., Evans, A., Berndt, A., Cartmill, A., Neal, AL., McLaren, A., Farruggia, A., Mignolet, C., Chadwick, D., Styles, D., McCracken, DI., Busch, D., Martin, GB., Fleming, H., Sheridan, H., Gibbons, J., Merbold, L., Eisler, M., Lambe, NR. & 11 others, , 8 Jan 2021, (First published) In: Reproduction, Fertility and Development. 33, 2, p. 1-19 19 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile -
Breeding strategies for animal resilience to weather variation in meat sheep
Sánchez-Molano, E., Kapsona, VV., Oikonomou, S., McLaren, A., Lambe, NR., Conington, JE. & Banos, G., 7 Oct 2020, (First published) In: BMC Genetics. 21, 116.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile1 Citation (Scopus)6 Downloads (Pure) -
Could rumen volumes measured by CT scanning help to breed sheep with lower methane emissions?
Lambe, NR., McLaren, A., McLean, KA., Gordon, J. & Conington, JE., 4 Dec 2020, p. 620-620. 1 p.Research output: Contribution to conference › Abstract › peer-review