Ben Stevenson
Senior Lecturer

Department of Statistics
University of Auckland
Private Bag 92019
Auckland 1142
New Zealand

Office: Room 303.326
E-mail: ben.stevenson@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 8474



Research interests
  • Ecological statistics
  • Capture-recapture methods
  • Spatial statistics
  • Statistical computing


Biography

I am a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Statistics at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

I develop statistical methods and software to estimate ecological parameters of interest, usually animal abundance or density. My recent work has met statistical challenges that arise when instruments like microphones, video-cameras, or drones are deployed to detect animals on wildlife surveys. New technologies have the potential to collect mountains of data at a low cost, but complicate estimation of ecological parameters because less information is encoded within each detection. For example, we can easily identify an individual on a live-trapping survey via a securely fixed ID tag, but perhaps cannot do so from a fleeting glimpse in a video. Most of my current work involves capture-recapture or spatial capture-recapture models.

Along with ecological statistics, I have research interests in spatial statistics, statistical computing, and applied statistics in general. I am currently an associate editor at Biometrics, a journal that publishes statistics research relevant to the biosciences.

My CV is available here.



Current students

PhD:
  • Rishika Chopara
    Goodness-of-fit for spatial capture-recapture models
    Cosupervisor: Rachel Fewster

  • Joseph Jantke (University of Adelaide)
    Kyloriny in the information age: Investigating habitat selection and population dynamics of the elusive western ground parrot
    Cosupervisors: Kyle Armstrong, Sarah Comer, and Allan Burbidge

BSc (Hons):
  • Kaiya Collins
    Composite likelihood methods for point processes with inhomogeneous thinning

  • Jack Peers
    Fast, flexible models for multi-session spatial capture-recapture data



Prospective students

If you are interested in working on a postgraduate (Hons/MSc/PhD) research project under my supervision, then please feel free to send me an email. It's helpful if you summarise your background (e.g., your skills and qualifications) and indicate the type of project you would like to work on, although it isn't a problem if you are unsure.



Research grants

  • co-PI, Marsden Standard Grant, NZ$712k, 2024–2027.
    Fast statistical methods for enigmatic sensor data.
    With Rachel Fewster, Jesse Goodman, Martin Hazelton (co-PIs), and Andrew Robinson (AI).

  • PI, Marsden Fast-Start Grant, NZ$300k, 2020–2024.
    Estimating animal population size in an unobservable spatial obstacle course.
    With Rachel Fewster and David Borchers (AIs).

  • AI, Marsden Grant, NZ$680k, 2018–2021.
    Cells and whistles: Supercharging our biodiversity monitoring toolkit using genetic and acoustic records.
    With Rachel Fewster (PI), David Borchers, and Stephen Marsland (AIs).



Peer-reviewed publications

My Google Scholar citations page can be found here.
  • Stevenson, B. C., Smit, E., and Setyawan, E. (in press) Measurement error models for morphometric data. Annals of Applied Statistics.

  • Stevenson, B. C. and Fewster, R. M. (in press) Design and delivery of a large statistics capstone course. In Proceedings of the Twelfth International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS12), Brisbane, Australia.

  • Chan, D. K. E., Seo, J., and Stevenson, B. C. (in press) The impact of survey design on robustness to misspecified detection functions in spatial capture-recapture. Ecosphere.

  • Colbert, J., Stevenson, B. C., Bowen, M., and Constantine, R. (2026) Redistribution of cetaceans based on ocean temperature using spatiotemporal regression models. Diversity and Distributions, 32(2), e70145. (link)

  • Cohen, O., Baron, H. R., Stevenson, B. C., Wills, D. J., Wang, T., Walsh, W. R., Fearnside, S. M., and Cowan, M. L. (2026) Ex vivo pullout strength of locking and cortical screws in the femur and tibiotarsus of the Pekin duck (Anas platyrhynchos domesticus). Journal of Avian Medicine and Surgery, 40(1), 39–45. (link)

  • Setyawan, E., Erdmann, M. V., Mambrasar, R., Ambafen, O., Hasan, A. W., Izuan, M., Mofu, I., Putra, M. I. H., Sianipar, A. B., Constantine, R., Stevenson, B. C., and Jaine, F. R. A. (2024) Spatial connectivity of reef manta rays across the Raja Ampat archipelago, Indonesia. Royal Society Open Science, 11(4), 230895. (link)

  • van Dam-Bates, P., Papathomas, M., Stevenson, B. C., Fewster, R. M., Turek, D., Stewart, F. E. C., and Borchers, D. L. (2024) A flexible framework for spatial capture-recapture with unknown identities. Biometrics, 80(1), ujad019. (link)

  • Durbach, I., Chopara, R., Borchers, D. L., Phillip, R., Sharma, K., and Stevenson, B. C. (2024) That's not the Mona Lisa! How to interpret spatial capture-recapture density surface estimates. Biometrics, 80(1), ujad020. (link).

  • Martin, L. H., Hepinstall-Cymerman, J. H., Chandler, R. B., Cooper, R. J., Parrish, M. C., Hao, L., and Stevenson, B. C. (2024) Estimating owl population density using acoustic spatial capture-recapture. Journal of Raptor Research, 58(1), 1–13. (link).

  • McGrath, S., Liu, J., Stevenson, B. C., and Behie, A. M. (2023) Density and population size estimates of the endangered northern yellow-cheeked crested gibbon Nomascus annamensis in selectively logged Veun Sai-Siem Pang National Park in Cambodia using acoustic spatial capture-recapture methods. PLoS ONE, 18(11), e0292386. (link).

  • Stevenson, B. C., Fewster, R. M., and Sharma, K. (2022) Spatial correlation structures for detections of individuals in spatial capture-recapture models. Biometrics, 78(3), 963–973. (link)

  • Setyawan, E., Stevenson, B. C., Erdmann, M. V., Hasan, A. W., Sianipar, A. B., Mofu, I., Putra, M. I. H., Izuan, M., Ambafen, O., Fewster, R. M., Aldridge-Sutton, R., Mambrasar, R., and Constantine, R. (2022) Population estimates of photo-identified individuals using a modified POPAN model reveal that Raja Ampat's reef manta rays are thriving. Frontiers in Marine Science, 9(1), 1014791. (link)

  • Borchers, D. L., Nightingale, P., Stevenson, B. C., and Fewster, R. M. (2022) A latent capture history model for digital aerial surveys. Biometrics, 78(1), 274–285. (link)

  • Setyawan, E., Erdmann, M. V., Mambrasar, R., Hasan, A., Sianipar, A., Constantine, R., Stevenson, B. C., and Jaine, F. R. A. (2022) Residency and use of an important nursery habitat, Raja Ampat's Wayag Lagoon, by juvenile reef manta rays (Mobula alfredi). Frontiers in Marine Science, 9(1), 815094. (link)

  • Setyawan, E., Stevenson, B. C., Izuan, M., Constantine, R., and Erdmann, M. V. (2022) How big is that manta ray? A novel and non-invasive method for measuring reef manta rays using small drones. Drones, 6(3), 63. (link)

  • Baron, H. R., Stevenson, B. C., and Phalen, D. N. (2021) Comparison of in-clinic diagnostic testing methods for Macrorhabdus ornithogaster. Journal of Avian Medicine and Surgery, 35(1), 37–44. (link)

  • Stevenson, B. C., van Dam-Bates, P., Young, C. K. Y., and Measey, J. (2021) A spatial capture-recapture model to estimate call rate and population density from passive acoustic surveys. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 12(3), 432–442. (link)

  • Samaniego, A., Griffiths, R., Gronwald, M., Holmes, N. D., Oppel, S., Stevenson, B. C., and Russell, J. C. (2020) Risks posed by rat reproduction and diet to eradications on tropical islands. Biological Invasions, 22(4), 1365–1378. (link)

  • Baron, H. R., Stevenson, B. C., and Phalen, D. N. (2020) Inconsistent efficacy of water soluble Amphotericin B for the treatment of Macrorhabdus ornithogaster in a budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus) aviary. Australian Veterinary Journal, 98(7), 333–337. (link)

  • Stevenson, B. C., Borchers, D. L., and Fewster, R. M. (2019) Cluster capture-recapture to account for identification uncertainty on aerial surveys of animal populations. Biometrics, 75(1), 326–336. (link)

  • Baron, H. R., Leung, K. C. L., Stevenson, B. C., Sabater Gonzalez, M., and Phalen, D. N. (2019) Evidence of Amphotericin B resistance in Macrorhabdus ornithogaster in Australian cage-birds. Medical Mycology, 57(4), 421–428. (link)

  • Jones-Todd, C. M., Caie, P., Illian, J. B., Stevenson, B. C., Savage, A., Harrison, D. J., and Bown, G. L. (2019) Identifying prognostic structural features in tissue sections of colon cancer patients using point pattern analysis. Statistics in Medicine, 38(8), 1421–1441. (link)

  • Measey, G. J., Stevenson, B. C., Scott, T., Altwegg, R., and Borchers, D. L. (2017) Counting chirps: Acoustic monitoring of cryptic frogs. Journal of Applied Ecology, 54(3), 894–902. (link)

  • Kidney, D., Rawson, B. M., Borchers, D. L., Stevenson, B. C., Thomas, L., and Marques, T. A. (2016) An efficient acoustic density estimation method with human detectors applied to gibbons in Cambodia. PLoS ONE, 11(5), e0155066. (link)

  • Fewster, R. M., Stevenson, B. C., and Borchers, D. L. (2016) Trace-contrast models for capture-recapture without capture histories. Statistical Science, 31(2), 245–258. (link)

  • Borchers, D. L., Stevenson, B. C., Kidney, D., Thomas, L., and Marques, T. A. (2015) A unifying model for capture-recapture and distance sampling surveys of wildlife populations. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 110(509), 195–204. (link)

  • Stevenson, B. C., Borchers, D. L., Altwegg, R., Swift, R. J., Gillespie, D. M., and Measey, G. J. (2015) A general framework for animal density estimation from acoustic detections across a fixed microphone array. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 6(1), 38–48. (link)

  • Stevenson, B. C., and Millar, R. B. (2013) Promising the moon? Evaluation of indigenous and lunar fishing calendars using semiparametric generalized mixed models of recreational catch data. Environmental and Ecological Statistics, 20(4), 591–608. (link)


Links


Software

The R packages acre and ascr fits a range of acoustic spatial capture-recapture models. Find their homepages at here and here.

The R package palm fits various point processes via maximisation of the Palm likelihood, and is available on CRAN. Find its homepage here.

Other software projects can be found on my GitHub page; see the link above.