Alex Ford Portrait

Professor Alex Ford

Professor of Biology

Alex.Ford@port.ac.uk

PhD Supervisor

View my research outputs
Faculty of Science and Health School of the Environment and Life Sciences Biological sciences Environmental Geography and Geosciences Sustainability and the environment Health and wellbeing Institute of Biological and Biomedical Sciences

Summary

I am a Professor of Biology with broad expertise in marine biology, ecotoxicology and parasitology. I'm particularly interested in the effects of contaminents on crustaceans and their parasites. I have a diverse background in aquatic toxicology including endocrine disrupters, plastics, nanoparticles and pharmaceuticals. I am an editor for several journals whereby my focus is invertebrate ecotoxicology and general marine biology. I am currently Director of Research Degrees programs within the School of Biological Sciences and school REF cordinator for UoA7.

Biography

I studied Biological Sciences as an undergraduate at Plymouth University (1993-1996), followed by an MSc in Environmental Biology at University of Wales Swansea (1997). After spells working as a Nature Conservation Officer, Pollution Control Officer and Turtle Biologist, I settled down to a Senior Research Assistant post back in Wales (Swansea University 1991-2001) where I worked on a large European funded project identifying and mapping the epibenthic diversity of the North Sea. A PhD followed at Napier University (Edinburgh) investigating the effects of pollution on the endocrine systems of crustaceans (2001-2004).

On completion of my PhD I spent two and a half years lecturing at Napier University (2004-2007) followed by a Senior Research Fellowship post at the UHI Millennium Institute (2007-2008) based in Thurso (N. Scotland). I joined the School of Biological Sciences at Portsmouth University in August 2008 as a Senior Lecturer in Marine Zoology and became a Reader in Biology in 2012 and a Professor of Biology in 2016.

Teaching responsibilities

Undergraduate

Marine and Terrestrial Ecology

  • Marine Organisms and Ecosystems
  • Marine Ecophsyiology

Postgraduate

  • Ecotoxicology and Pollution
  • Science and the Media

Research outputs

2024

Insights into PFAS contaminants before and after sewage discharges into a marine protected harbour

Ford, A. T., Ginley, F.

17 Oct 2024, In: Chemosphere. 366, 7p., 143526

EthoCRED: a framework to guide reporting and evaluation of the relevance and reliability of behavioural ecotoxicity studies

Allen, J., Balshine, S., Bertram, M. G., Brand, J. A., Brodin, T., Brooks, B. W., Dang, Z., Duquesne, S., Ford, A. T., Hoffmann, F., Hollert, H., Jacob, S., Kloas, W., Klüver, N., Lazorchak, J., Ledesma, M., Maack, G., Macartney, E. L., Martin, J. M., Melvin, S. D., Michelangeli, M., Mohr, S., Padilla, S., Pyle, G., Saaristo, M., Sahm, R., Smit, E., Steevens, J. A., Thoré, E. S. J., Vossen, L. E., Wlodkowic, D., Wong, B. B. M., Ziegler, M., van den Berg, S., Ågerstrand, M.

12 Oct 2024, In: Biological Reviews, 30p.

A toxic chemical was blamed for killing thousands of Teesside crabs – but our study explains why pyridine wasn’t the culprit

Fitzsimons, M., Ford, A., Halsall, C.

17 Sep 2024, In: The Conversation

Low ethnic diversity among university applicants in marine and environmental science in the United Kingdom

Bachiller-Jareno, N., Ford, A. T., Reynolds, S., Shankar, A.

12 Aug 2024, In: Communications Earth & Environment. 5, 1, 8p., 425

Why there is no evidence that pyridine killed the English crabs

Fitzsimons, M. F., Ford, A. T., Halsall, C.

5 Aug 2024, In: Environmental Science: Advances, 7p.

The effects of plastic additives on swimming activity and startle response in marine amphipod Echinogammarus marinus

Botelho, M. T., Ford, A. T., Green-Ojo, B., Grinsted, L., Obanya, H., Parker, M. O., Tan, H.

1 Mar 2024, In: Science of the Total Environment. 918, 10p., 170793

Evaluation of precopulatory pairing behaviour and male fertility in a marine amphipod exposed to plastic additives

Botelho, M. T., Ford, A. T., Gomes, V., Green-Ojo, B., Grinsted, L., Parker, M. O., Umbuzeiro, G. d. A.

15 Jan 2024, In: Environmental Pollution. 341, 10p., 122946

2023

Marine recreation with a purpose: an emerging form of marine citizen science in the Ocean Decade

Couceiro, F., Fantuzzi, L., Ford, A., de Laszlo, W.

12 Dec 2023, In: Frontiers in Sustainable Tourism. 2, 7p.

Conflicts of interest in the assessment of chemicals, waste, and pollution

Azoulay, D., Backhaus, T., Bertram, M. G., Carney Almroth, B., Cousins, I. T., Diamond, M. L., Ford, A. T., Grimalt, J. O., Groh, K. J., Guida, Y., Hansson, M. C., Jeong, Y., Lohmann, R., Michaels, D., Mueller, L., Muncke, J., Orellana, M. A., Sanganyado, E., Scheringer, M., Schäfer, R. B., Schäffer, A., Sheriff, I., Sigmund, G., Soehl, A., Sullivan, R. C., Suzuki, N., Vandenberg, L. N., Venier, M., Vlahos, P., Wagner, M., Wang, F., Wang, M., Ågerstrand, M., Öberg, G.

9 Nov 2023, In: Environmental Science & Technology

White Paper on the scope and functions of the future science-policy panel to contribute further to the sound management of chemicals, waste, and to prevent pollution

Agerstrand, M., Alo, B., Backhaus, T., Castillo Castillo, A., Diamond, M., Ford, A., Grimalt, J., Groh, K., Guido, Y., Kumar, N., Lohmann, R., Mestrot, A., Moalnder, S., Schaeffer, A., Scheringer, M., Sigmund, G., Soehl, A., Suzuki, N., Torres, J. P., Venier, M., Vlahos, P., Wagner, M., Wang, M.

18 Jan 2023, In: International Panel on Chemical Pollution

View all my research outputs