Bryony's research integrates agroecology, entomology and veterinary parasitology and broadly seeks to understand the impacts of agricultural activities on insect biodiversity, ecosystem function and pest and parasite populations in livestock systems. Her work has focused on the environmental impacts of agricultural parasiticides on functionally important insect decomposer communities, and consideration of novel, environmentally sensitive approaches to parasite control. Her research aims to bring together farmers, vets and researchers to co-develop inclusive and socially relevant strategies for the future of food and farming.
With the Gund Institute and UVM Extension Bryony will be working on collaborative farmer-led projects to investigate the impacts of regenerative agricultural practices and Integrated Parasite Management (IPM) for livestock, on beneficial insect biodiversity, soil health, ecosystem function and pest and parasite regulation.
Gund Postdoctoral Fellow, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Publications
Selected
- Sands, B., Machado, M.R., White, A., Zent, E. and Gould, R. (2023) Moving towards an anti-colonial definition for regenerative agriculture. Agriculture and Human Values, pp.1-20.
- White, A., Darby, H., Ruhl, L. and Sands, B. (2023) Long term influence of alternative corn cropping practices and corn-hay rotations on soil health, yields and forage quality. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 11, p.243.
- Sands B., Lihou, K., Lait, P. & Wall, R. (2022) Prevalence of Babesia spp. pathogens in the ticks Dermacentor reticulatus and Ixodes ricinus in the UK. Acta Tropica. 236:106692. doi: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2022.106692
- Sands, B. & Noll, M. (2021) Toxicity of ivermectin residues in aged farmyard manure to terrestrial and freshwater invertebrates. Insect Conservation and Diversity. 15, 9-18.
- Sands, B. O., Bryer, K. & Wall, R. (2021) Climate and the seasonal abundance of the tick Dermacentor reticulatus. Medical and Veterinary Entomology. https://doi.org/10.1111/mve.12518
- Sands, B. & Wall (2018) Sustained parasiticide use in cattle farming affects dung beetle functional assemblages. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment. 265, 226-235 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2018.06.012
- Sands, B. O. & Wall, R. (2017) Dung beetles reduce livestock gastrointestinal parasite availability on pasture. Journal of Applied Ecology. 54, 1180-1189 https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12821
Areas of Expertise and/or Research
Regenerative agriculture, agroecology, entomology, veterinary parasitology, ecosystem services, livestock systems
Education
- PhD, Agroecology, University of Bristol
- MSc, Veterinary Parasitology, University of Bristol
- BSc, Zoology, University of Bristol
Contact
Email:
Website(s):