VRAY Sarah

About

I am a biologist with strong interests in conservation biology, biodiversity monitoring, landscape ecology, and ethology. My Master’s thesis examined the influence of personality on social strategies in the Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica). During my PhD, I investigated how climate change, landscape structure, and land-use changes have affected bumblebee (Bombus) populations in Belgium over the past century. I am currently involved in several projects related to biodiversity monitoring in Luxembourg, including the Luxembourg Pollinator Monitoring Scheme (LUPoMS).

Mission

As a Senior R&T Engineer, I conduct field inventories primarily focused on pollinators, particularly butterflies and bumblebees. I am also responsible for the management and curation of databases associated with several of these surveys. Building on these datasets, I develop species distribution maps using GIS tools and perform statistical analyses to better understand ecological patterns and trends in species populations. In addition, I work with bioacoustic data as part of biodiversity monitoring activities. Alongside these research tasks, I co-coordinate the Luxembourg Pollinator Monitoring Scheme (LUPoMS) and coordinate the CITIPOL project, which aims to engage citizens in monitoring wild pollinators in Luxembourg.

Skills and expertise

  • Ecology
  • Pollinators
  • Statistical analysis
  • Geographic Information Systems
  • Database management

Latest Publications

A standardised protocol for measuring farmland biodiversity outcomes across European Farmer Cluster landscapes

Nichols R.N., Begg G.S., Cantú-Salazar L., Holland J.M., Martin Y., Tzilivakis J., Vray S., Warner D.J., Zuta A., McHugh N.M.

Plos One, vol. 21, n° 3 March, art. no. e0345691, 2026

EU Grassland Butterfly Index 1991-2023 Technical report

<p>Chris A.M. Van Swaay, Reto Schmucki, David B. Roy, Emily B. Dennis, Sue Collins, Richard Fox, Zdravko D. Kolev, Cristina G. Sevilleja, Martin S. Warren, Aidan Whitfield, Irma Wynhoff, Harriet J.H. Arnberg, Maksims Balalaikins, José M. Barea-Azcón, Andreas M.B. Boe, Simona Bonelli, Marc S. Botham, Nigel A.D. Bourn, Juan P. Cancela, Roger Caritg, Leonardo Dapporto, André Ducry, Goran Dušej, Mathieu de Flores, Claude Dopagne, Ruth Escobés, Anne E. Eskildsen, Zdenek F. Fric, José M. Fernández-García, Benoît Fontaine, Primož Glogovčan, Jostein Gohli, Ana Gracianteparaluceta, Andrea Grill, Alexandre Harpke, Colin Harrower, Janne K. Heliölä, Toke T. Høye, Michelle Judge, Vassiliki Kati, Harald W. Krenn, Elizabeth Kühn, Mikko Kuussaari, Andreas Lang, Daniela Lehner, Liam Lysaght, Dirk Maes, Denise McGowan, Yolanda Melero, Xavier Mestdagh, Ian Middlebrook, Yeray Monasterio, Eva Monteiro, Aitor Montes, Miguel López Munguira, Martin Musche, Francisco J. Olivares, Ozge Ozden, Clara Pladevall, Alois Pavličko, Lars B. Pettersson, Laszlo Rákosy, Tobias Roth, Johannes Rüdisser, Martina Šašić, Stefano Scalercio, Manfred Schönwälder, Josef Settele, Izabela Sielezniew, Marcin Sielezniew, Gaëlle Sobczyk-Moran, Constanti Stefanescu, Giedrius Švitra, András Svabadfalvi, Anu Tiitsaar, Nicolas Titeux, Elli Tzirkalli, Olga Tzortzakaki, Andreu UbachPermanyer, Eglė Vičiuvienė, Sarah Vray, Konstantina Zografou</p>

<p>Butterfly Conservation Europe</p>

Using Image-based AI for insect monitoring and conservation - InsectAI COST Action

<p>August T.; Balzan M. V.; Bodesheim P.; Brehm G.; Cantú-Salazar L.; Castro S.; Chipperfield J.; Ghisbain G.; Gomez-Segura A.; Goulnik J.; &nbsp;Groom Q.; Hogeweg L.; Huijbers C.; Kamilaris A.; Kazlauskis K.; Koch W.; Korsch D.; Loureiro J.; Martin Y.; Martinou A. F.; McFarland K. P.; Mestdagh X.; Michez D.; Outhwaite C. L.; Pegoraro L.; Pernat N.; Pettersson L. B.; Pipek P.; Preda C.; Rolnick D.; Roth T.; Roy D. B.; Roy H. E.; Runnel V.; Šašić M.; Schigel D. S.; Koch Sheard J.; Svenningsen C.; Teixeira H.; Titeux N.; Tscheulin T.; Tzirkalli E.; van der Velde M.; van Klink R.; Vereecken N. J.; Vray S.; Høy T. T.</p>

<p>Research Ideas and Outcomes</p>

Multi-decadal improvements in the ecological quality of European rivers are not consistently reflected in biodiversity metrics

Sinclair J.S., Welti E.A.R., Altermatt F., Álvarez-Cabria M., Aroviita J., Baker N.J., Barešová L., Barquín J., Bonacina L., Bonada N., Cañedo-Argüelles M., Csabai Z., de Eyto E., Dohet A., Dörflinger G., Eriksen T.E., Evtimova V., Feio M.J., Ferréol M., Floury M., Forio M.A.E., Fornaroli R., Goethals P.L.M., Heino J., Hering D., Huttunen K.L., Jähnig S.C., Johnson R.K., Kuglerová L., Kupilas B., L’Hoste L., Larrañaga A., Leitner P., Lorenz A.W., McKie B.G., Muotka T., Osadčaja D., Paavola R., Palinauskas V., Pařil P., Pilotto F., Polášek M., Rasmussen J.J., Schäfer R.B., Schmidt-Kloiber A., Scotti A., Skuja A., Straka M., Stubbington R., Timm H., Tyufekchieva V., Tziortzis I., Vannevel R., Várbíró G., Velle G., Verdonschot R.C.M., Vray S., Haase P.

Nature Ecology and Evolution, vol. 8, n° 3, pp. 430-441, 2024

Changes in caddisflies community composition and distributio along 60 years timespan monitoring in Luxembourg

Dohet A., Vray S., L’hoste L.

Contributions to Entomology, vol. 73, n° 2, pp. 279-288, 2023

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