Shay Rotics Lab
Shay Rotics
Principal investigator​
Email: shay.rotics@gmail.com
Shay Barkan
Lab maneger
​Email: barkansh@tauex.tau.ac.il
Tao Liang
Postdoc.
Email: liangtrep@126.com
Tracking snakes using accelerometers: movement, digestion
Global and Local Movement of Great White Pelicans (Pelecanus onocrotalus)
Migrating Through Israel
Spatial Behavior and Decision-Making in Subterranean Rodents: The Impact of Seasonality, Resources, Social Structure, and Climatic Conditions
My research focuses on how subterranean rodents (Fukomys damarensis and Spalax ehrenbergi) use underground space. I collect body acceleration data and repeatedly map their burrows with ground-penetrating radar (GPR) to study tunneling-based foraging. By analyzing changes in burrow structure, activity patterns, and movement, I aim to understand their spatial decision-making and its links to seasons, resources, social structure, and climate.
Rada Ber
MsC student
Email: radaber100@gmail.com
Doron Natan
MsC student
Email: doron0n2@gmail.com
Hila Schulman
MsC student
Email: hilaschul@gmail.com
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The meerkats’ weight peak in October: investigating its cause, timing, extent,
and significance
My research focuses on a recurring October weight peak in wild meerkats (Suricata
suricatta) in the Kalahari, at the end of the dry season. I combine long-term data
from the Kalahari Meerkat Project with field observations on foraging behavior during the peak, to better understand this phenomenon- why it occurs, what drives it, and how it may help meerkats cope with different environmental challenges.
Tom Apelbaum
Research assistant
Email: apelbaum.tom@gmail.com
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Studying the social behavior and climate effect on Damaraland mole-rats using body acceleration data
This study investigates the social behavior of Damaraland mole rats (Fukomys damarensis) in the wild and the influence of climatic factors throughout the year. Wild-caught individuals are fitted with data loggers to collect body acceleration data, revealing their behavioral repertoire. By sampling year-round, we aim to understand their annual behavioral cycle, including seasonal variations and the effects of reproduction on intra-group labor division.