Research Interests
Our research uses a multidisciplinary approach to investigate how animal societies evolve, combining observational data with genetic, ecological and biochemical data. In particular, our work has focused on four interconnecting themes relating to the evolution of animal societies 1) exploring the evolution of cooperation 2) understanding the importance of inbreeding and inbreeding avoidance in cooperative species 3) investigating the role of scent communication in cooperation and breeding decisions, and 4) understanding the genetic structure of mammalian societies. Our work has extensively used population genetic techniques and is currently expanding to use genomic methods (such as RADseq and SNP data) to address these themes as they provide a powerful tool to understand the genetic basis of traits associated with social evolution.
For more information, please explore the research interests tab above.
For more information, please explore the research interests tab above.