Dr Lucy Bates
Biography
I hold a BA in Experimental Psychology and MSc in Human Biology from the University of Oxford, and a PhD in Behavioural Ecology from the University of St Andrews. I also completed my first post-doc research period at St Andrews, on a Leverhulme Trust funded project exploring social cognition in savannah elephants, working in collaboration with the Amboseli Trust for Elephants. After that, I spent a long time working as a consultant for various conservation projects in southern Africa, before returning to academic research with a Daphne Jackson Trust Fellowship, held at the University of Sussex. I've also worked as an Associate Lecturer for the Open University.
Research interests
My research considers the evolution of social skills and intelligence in mammals, particularly elephants. Over time, this has grown into a wider interest in the conservation and management of savannah elephant populations, so try to use my knowledge of animal behaviour and cognition to contribute to and enable sustainable, fair and effective conservation practices.
Teaching responsibilities
I'm the coordinator for The Science of Psychology module, the first module of the online MSc Psychology (conversion) degree. I also supervise undergraduate research project degrees, and lecture on the first year (L4) Perspectives in Psychology and Animal Behaviour modules.
Research outputs
2025
Eleuteri, V., Bates, L. A., Nyaradzo Masarira, Y., Plotnik, J. M., Hobaiter, C., Stoeger, A.
9 Jul 2025, In: Royal Society Open Science. 12, 18p., 242203
Research output: Article
Bates, L. A., Fishlock, V., Plotnik, J., de Silva, S., Shannon, G.
1 May 2025, In: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. 380, 14p., 20240132
Research output: Article
2024
van de Water, A., Garaï, M. E., Burnett, M. M., Henley, M., Di Minin, E., Streicher, J. P., Bates, L. A., Slotow, R.
3 Aug 2024, In: Ecology and Society. 29, 3, 59p., 15
Research output: Article
Eleuteri, V., Bates, L. A., Rendle-Worthington, J., Hobaiter, C., Stoeger, A.
9 May 2024, In: Communications Biology . 7, 12p., 472
Research output: Article
Bates, L. A., Proops, L.
15 Mar 2024, In: The Conversation
Research output: Article
2022
van de Water, A., Henley, M., Bates, L., Slotow, R.
1 Dec 2022, In: Ecosystem Services. 58, 23p., 101488
Research output: Article
2020
Bates, L. A.
2 Mar 2020,
Research output: Chapter (peer-reviewed)
Bates, L. A., Byrne, R. W.
16 Jan 2020,
Research output: Chapter (peer-reviewed)