Publications and impact
In an effort to upscale animal behaviour monitoring, I have conducted research using passive acoustic monitoring to investigate the behaviour and presence of birds and bats in the mountainous environments around Qwaqwa. Some of this research has already led to well-cited papers. For example, the paper below, led by my PhD student Toka Mosikidi, has already been cited 15 times since its publication in 2023.
- Mosikidi, T, Le Maitre, N, Steenhuisen, S-L, Clark, RV, Lloyd, K, Le Roux, A. 2023. Passive acoustic monitoring detects new records of globally threatened birds in a high-elevation wetland (Free State, South Africa). Bird Conservation International 33: e80. doi:10.1017/S0959270923000345
Large-scale monitoring of how animals interact with human infrastructure is only possible through truly multinational collaborations. The impact of this approach is demonstrated by my collaboration with Prof Clara Grilo from Portugal. The two papers below have been cited more than 100 times collectively and are expected to garner significant attention in the future.
- Grilo, C, Borda-de-Agua, L, Beja, P, Goolsby, E, Soanes, K, Le Roux, A, Koroleva, E, Zanchetta F, Gagné, S, Wang, Y, and González-Suárez, M. 2021. Conservation threats from roadkill in the global road network. Global Ecology and Biogeography 30(11): 2200-2210. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.13375
- Grilo, C, Neves, T, Bates, J, Silva, I, Le Roux, A et al. 2025. Global Roadkill Data: a data set on terrestrial vertebrate mortality caused by collision with vehicles. Scientific Data 12:505. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-04207-x
This collaboration on roadkill originally stemmed from a partnership with the Endangered Wildlife Trust in South Africa, where we used citizen science data to describe regional roadkill patterns:
- Périquet, S, Roxburgh, L, Le Roux, A, and Collinson, WJ. 2018. Testing the value of citizen science for roadkill studies: A case study from South Africa. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 6: https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2018.00015
While multinational collaborations remain important and are becoming increasingly important in a changing landscape, I strongly believe in the value of close, detailed observational research. Such research allows us to uncover patterns of behaviour never seen before, which gives us strong insights into how adaptable and maladaptive traits have evolved. This is the kind of research that I would also like to upscale beyond site-specific research, because I believe we can go beyond merely monitoring the absence or presence of species to monitoring their adaptive responses to challenges in the transformed environment:
- Le Roux, A, Jumbam, KR, Renda, S. 2026. Surplus killing and prey stashing behaviour in an insectivorous carnivore. Ecology (Scientific Naturalist) 107, e70310, 10.1002/ecy.70310
- Welch, R, Périquet, S, Petelle, M and Le Roux, A. 2017. Hunter or hunted? Perceptions of risk and reward in a small mesopredator. Journal of Mammalogy. 98(6): 1531-1537. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyx100
- Nowak, K, Hill, RA, Wimberger, K and Le Roux, A. 2016. Risk-taking in samango monkeys in relation to humans at two sites in South Africa. In: Ethnoprimatology: Primate Conservation in the 21st Century (Ed. by M. Waller), pp. 301-314, UK: Springer.
Many of my current student projects combine citizen science, natural science, and social science approaches, but publications are still in progress. This interdisciplinary approach stems from my own involvement in social science research and contributions to mentorship, especially for women in academia. This includes a publication on women's mentorship in Southern Africa:
- Biljohn, M, Marenge, TS, Le Roux, A and Schroeder, K. 2024. A conceptual framework for mentorship support to early-career black women academics in South Africa. African Journal of Inter/Multidisciplinary Studies 6(1): 1-15. (special issue)
- Le Roux, A. 2016. Inverted engagement: A case study of the flipped classroom on a rural South African campus. Journal for New Generation Sciences (special edition) 14(1): 51-62.
Finally, I believe it is important to contribute to national and regional dialogue on environmental and scientific challenges that we face in the 21st Century. I have contributed, for example, to podcasts, scientific advisories to government, and some commentaries, some of which have had real-world impact.
- Le Roux, A, Taylor, PJ, Foord, S, Liebenberg, L, Rosmarin, J, Mugwedi, L, Pokpas, K, Naidoo, S, Singh, JA. 2023. SAGE Scientific Advisory on the environmental and heritage implications of South Africa’s Makhado-Musina Special Economic Zone.
In 2022, I was an invited contributor to the podcast ‘Blue’ hosted by the Academic Citizen, to discuss the seismic surveys off the South African coast.
- Le Roux, A, Singh, JA, Ansorge, I, Bornman, T, Elwen, S, Gammage, L, Naidoo, S, Rajkaran, A, Vrancken, P, Kumar, P and Manjoro, M. 2022. Advisory on the use of deep-sea seismic surveys to explore for oil and gas deposits in South African waters. https://www.assaf.org.za/files/2022/SAGE/SAGE%20Advisory%20on%20Shell%20Seismic%20Survey.pdf
Singh, JA, Le Roux, A and Naidoo, S. 2022. Marine seismic surveys for hydrocarbon exploration: What’s at stake? South African Journal of Science 118 (3/4): Art. #13420. https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2022/13420