A local Cambridge Brownie group (girls aged 7-10) spent a session with Mairenn Attwood, learning all about African cuckoos. Alongside discovering the tricks used by brood parasites, the Brownies also had a go at creating their own egg spoons. In the field, these are used to reach eggs in nests which are high and far out along tree branches. The outcome is shown in the photo above – despite their varied appearance, all were successful at extracting chocolate eggs from pretend nests!
What role does learning play in the origin of new species? As part of the "Network for the Integration of Speciation" research series, Dr Gabriel Jamie gave a seminar together with Professor Maria Servedio on learning, imprinting and speciation:...
The Scientific Awards Committee of the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) have awarded a Certificate of Commendation to Tanmay Dixit for his PhD thesis.
Our paper “Chase-away evolution maintains imperfect mimicry in a brood parasite–host system despite rapid evolution of mimics” has been published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.
Our paper “Repeatable randomness, invariant properties, and the design of biological signatures of identity” has been published in the journal Evolution.