Interdisciplinary Fellow
- 51cg
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- School/Department
- School of Biological Sciences

Biography
I am an evolutionary biologist who studies how innovations in behaviour shape trait distributions across broad swaths of space and time, particularly in birds and mammals. I frequently collaborate with linguists and anthropologists to translate methods developed in biology and palaeobiology to the study of human language/cultural evolution, with a particular interest in the relationship between people and their natural environment.
My Google Scholar page can be found and more information about my research can be found .
Qualifications
- DPhil Zoology2016 - University of Oxford
- BS Mathematics, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology2012 - Yale University
Memberships and Affiliations
- Internal Memberships
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- Member, SBS EDI Committee
- SBS Research Culture Lead
- External Memberships
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- Senior Editor, Global Ecology and Biogeography
- Chair, BES Macro SIG
- Diversity Committee Member, American Society of Naturalists
- Research
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Research Areas
Accepting PhDs
I am currently accepting PhDs in Biological and Environmental Sciences.
Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your research ideas further.
- Teaching
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Teaching Responsibilities
I primarily teach on BI3505: Animal Behaviour and ZO4543: Behavioural Ecology & Conservation, as well as contributing various lectures and practicals in topics across evolution and statistics. I also supervise honours project students.
- Publications
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Flight style and metabolism shape the tempo of genome evolution in birds
PLoS Biology, vol. 24, no. 7, pp. e3003884Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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The functional significance of striping in rodents
Evolution, vol. 80, no. 7, pp. 1583-1591Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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AVONICHE: A Global Dataset of Dietary and Foraging Niches for Birds
Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 35, no. 1, e70197Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
A new time tree of birds reveals the interplay between dispersal, geographic range size, and diversification
Current Biology, vol. 35, no. 16, pp. 3883-3895Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
- [ONLINE]
Global incidence of female birdsong is predicted by territoriality and biparental care in songbirds
Nature Communications, vol. 16, 6157Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Some birds are left behind in a race to beat the heat
Nature Ecology & Evolution, vol. 9, no. 7, pp. 1092-1093Contributions to Journals: Comments and Debates- [ONLINE] DOI:
Viewing conditions predict evolutionary diversity in avian plumage colour
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 292, no. 2044, 20241728Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
- [ONLINE]
Longer wing bones in warmer climates suggest a role of thermoregulation in bird wing evolution
Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 34, no. 4, e70033Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Anthropogenic nest material use in a global sample of birds
Journal of Animal Ecology, vol. 93, no. 6, pp. 691-704Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
- [ONLINE]
The Evolution of Rodent Tail Morphology
American Naturalist, vol. 203, no. 6, pp. 629-643Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Primate coloration and colour vision: a comparative approach
Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, vol. 141, no. 3, pp. 435-455Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE]
- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Limited ecological opportunity influences the tempo of morphological evolution in birds
Current Biology, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 661-669.e4Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
- [ONLINE]
Nest traits for the world's birds
Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 206-214Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
The evolution of enclosed nesting in passerines is shaped by competition, energetic costs, and predation threat
Ornithology, vol. 141, no. 1, ukad048Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Nest architecture influences host use by avian brood parasites and is shaped by coevolutionary dynamics
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 291, no. 2014, 20231734Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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The macroevolutionary dynamics of mammalian sexual size dimorphism
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 290, no. 2011Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE]
- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Beak shape and nest material use in birds
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 378, no. 1884, 20220147Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
- [ONLINE]
Evolution of nest architecture in tyrant flycatchers and allies
Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, vol. 378, no. 1884, 20220148Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Kinbank: A global database of kinship terminology
PloS ONE, vol. 18, no. 5, e0283218Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Global drivers of variation in cup nest size in passerine birds
Journal of Animal Ecology, vol. 92, no. 2, pp. 338-351Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Deterministic assembly and anthropogenic extinctions drive convergence of island bird communities
Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 31, no. 9, pp. 1741-1755Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE]
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Morphological adaptations linked to flight efficiency and aerial lifestyle determine natal dispersal distance in birds
Functional Ecology, vol. 36, no. 7, pp. 1681-1689Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
Avonet: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds
Ecology Letters, vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 581-597Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
- [OPEN ACCESS]
The Evolution of Australian Kin Terminologies: Models, Conditions, and Consequences
Current Anthropology, vol. 63, no. 1, pp. 60-61Contributions to Journals: Comments and Debates- [ONLINE] DOI:
Ecological and behavioural drivers of offspring size in marine teleost fishes
Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 30, no. 12, pp. 2407-2419Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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