Tracey has worked at or with the Taronga Conservation Society Australia since 1998. As a researcher she is interested in biological thinking about behaviour. The common thread of her rather diversified research is the attempt to marry theories and experimental work. Most of her work includes a little modelling and trialling new ideas with captive populations and then applying these in the field.

Tracey is interested in using multidisciplinary approaches to understand the ecology of marine mammals, particularly Antarctic seals. We are examining the potential impacts of climate warming on the Southern Ocean ecosystem and how these changes will influence the pack-ice seals. We use a number of different techniques for studying the foraging patterns, reproductive behaviour and spatial movements of marine mammals. These techniques include stable isotope analysis, stress and reproductive hormone analysis, satellite telemetry and acoustic surveying.

Tracey has worked in the Antarctic since the early 1990s, which has offered enormous challenges and many rewards including wonderful collaborations and friendships.

Members of her group differ in their relative inclinations towards these fields, since some are true muddy-booted field biologists and veterinarians while others are more theoretical modeller types, or ragged-jeaned theoreticians, but cross pollination breeds a cross-disciplinary approach to thinking about ecology and evolution in whatever topic she was dealing with. 

Outside work she is trying to survive sleep deprivation as she holds onto the roller coaster of parenthood, as she watches her little ones morph into people before her eyes. Tracey has a strong bias towards reading good novels, good food, coffee, a little too much wine, while enjoying lots of chat with family and friends.