Heather Paxton
|
|
Heather is a postdoctoral researcher in the Structure & Motion Laboratory, supervised by John Hutchinson. Her current research focuses on broiler chickens. This is part of a BBSRC funded grant entitled 'Towards the chicken of the future: Biomechanical Compromises and Constraints on Locomotion and Breathing in Broiler Chickens.'
Biography
Heather graduated in 2004 from the University of Reading with a BSc in Animal Science, after undertaking a research project looking at regional variation in the microhardness and mineralization of vertebrae from brown and rainbow trout.
Heather proceeded to spend two years teaching at agricultural college in the animal management and vet nursing department. She went on to do an MSc in Wild Animal Biology with the Institute of Zoology and RVC in 2006/07. As part of her final research project for the MSc she worked with the Structure & Motion Lab looking at the locomotor kinematics of Asian elephants.
Heather completed her PhD entitled "Locomotor design constraints and musculoskeletal compromises in broiler chickens" supervised by John Hutchinson and Sandra Corr. Her current research looks at the linkages between body conformation, locomotor and ventilatory mechanics, as well as metabolic energy costs during ontogeny in broiler chickens.
Selected Publications
PAXTON H, ANTHONY NB, CORR SA, HUTCHINSON JR (2010) The effects of selective breeding on the architectural properties of the pelvic limb in broiler chickens: a comparative study across modern and ancestral populations. J Anat 217, 153-166.
ALLEN V, PAXTON H, HUTCHINSON JR (2009) Variation in center of mass estimates for extant sauropsids, and its importance for reconstructing inertial properties of extinct archosaurs. Anat Rec 292, 1442-1461. PubMed ID 19711477
REN L, BUTLER M, MILLER C, PAXTON H, SCHWERDA D, FISCHER MS, HUTCHINSON JR (2008) The movements of limb segments and joints during locomotion in African and Asian elephants. J Exp Biol 211, 2735-2751. PubMed ID 18723530
PAXTON, H, BONSER, RHC, WINWOOD, K (2006) Regional variation in the microhardness and mineralization of vertebrae from brown and rainbow trout. Journal of Fish Biology 68 (2), 481-487.