Claire Harkin
Associate Tutor (Life Sciences)

Research

My research interests are focussed on the ecological impacts of anthropogenic change factors, particularly those associated with invasive species and their interactions with recipient communities.

I am currently working as a postdoctoral Research Fellow as part of the BRIGIT consortium https://www.jic.ac.uk/brigit/ investigating the ecology and distribution of xylem-feeding insects (froghoppers and leafhoppers) that may act as vectors for the plant bacterium Xylella fastidiosa.  You are invited to contribute data to the project here: https://www.spittlebugsurvey.co.uk/

My doctoral research centred on the ecological interactions of an invading planthopper, Prokelisia marginata, with its host plants and recipient community in the UK. P. marginata was recorded for the first time in Britain in 2008, where it feeds primarily on the widespread saltmarsh cordgrass Spartina anglica, itself listed as one of the world’s 100 worst invasive species, as well as its progenitors S. alterniflora, S. maritima and S. x townsendii. P. marginata appears to be in the successful early stages of invasion in Britain, having already spread extensively. My research showed that P. marginata significantly outnumbers all other saltmarsh arthropod groups, that it is benefitting from partial natural enemy escape, and that a high proportion of macropterous individuals in all populations indicates strong potential for further range expansion. Utilising both glasshouse and field manipulations, I was able to show that exposure to P. marginata has a significant negative impact on S. anglica, an interaction which has the potential to destabilise Britain’s important saltmarsh habitat. I suggested that the four host species that occur in Britain represent a ‘gradient’ of shared co-evolutionary history with the planthopper. I was able to show that, whilst all species are negatively impacted by P. marginata exposure, S. alterniflora, the species with which it shares the longest co-evolutionary history, is the least affected, and that P. marginata exhibits a preference for, and performs better on, S. anglica. As S. anglica is by far the most abundant of the four Spartina species in Britain, these results suggested P. marginata may be undergoing rapid evolution in its new range to take advantage of this widespread host species, thereby maximising its potential for further range expansion.