A5009010510- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Gut microbiota and health
- Primate Behavior and Ecology
- Animal Vocal Communication and Behavior
- Plant and animal studies
- Avian ecology and behavior
- Amphibian and Reptile Biology
- Physiological and biochemical adaptations
- Hereditary Neurological Disorders
- Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Reproductive tract infections research
- Child and Animal Learning Development
- Animal Behavior and Welfare Studies
- Parasite Biology and Host Interactions
- Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress and Disease
- Fish Ecology and Management Studies
- Genetic Neurodegenerative Diseases
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Infant Health and Development
- Environmental Education and Sustainability
- Heat shock proteins research
- Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies
- Insects and Parasite Interactions
- Human-Animal Interaction Studies
University College Cork
2017-2024
University of East Anglia
2023-2024
University of Cambridge
2013-2024
Norwich Research Park
2024
Google (United States)
2018
National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery
2012
University College London
2010-2012
Max Planck Research Unit for Neurogenetics
2012
MRC Prion Unit
2010
Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT) is a clinically and genetically heterogeneous group of diseases with approximately 45 different causative genes described. The aims this study were to determine the frequency in large cohort patients CMT devise guidelines for genetic testing practice.The known cause sequenced 1607 (425 attending an inherited neuropathy clinic 1182 whose DNA was sent authors testing) proportion subtypes UK population.A molecular diagnosis achieved 62.6% clinic; 80.4% CMT1...
Abstract The microbial community in the gut is influenced by environmental factors, especially diet, which can moderate host behaviour through microbiome-gut-brain axis. However, ecological relevance of microbiome-mediated behavioural plasticity wild animals unknown. We presented wild-caught great tits ( Parus major ) with a problem-solving task and showed that performance was weakly associated variation microbiome. then manipulated microbiome feeding birds one two diets differed their...
Abstract Natal body mass is a key predictor of viability and fitness in many animals. While variation therefore juvenile may be explained by genetic environmental factors, emerging evidence points to the gut microbiota as an important factor influencing host health. The known change during development, but it remains unclear whether microbiome predicts fitness, if does, at which developmental stage affects traits. We collected data on two traits associated with wild nestling great tits Parus...
Abstract The gut microbiota have important consequences for host biological processes and there is some evidence that they also affect fitness. However, the complex, interactive nature of ecological factors influence has scarcely been investigated in natural populations. We sampled wild great tits ( Parus major ) at different life stages allowing us to evaluate how varied with respect a diverse range key two broad types: (1) state, namely age sex, history variables, timing breeding,...
Adapting to environmental change is a major challenge faced by animals and the role of individual behavioural differences in facilitating this process currently focus much research. Innovation, generation novel behaviour or use known context, one form that enables respond change. By deciphering mechanisms underlying innovativeness, especially those explain consistent between individuals, we can further understand consequences variation. We tested whether motivation, experience, inhibitory...
Abstract Organisms are constantly under selection to respond effectively diverse, sometimes rapid, changes in their environment, but not all individuals equally plastic behaviour. Although cognitive processes and personality expected influence individual behavioural plasticity, the effects reported highly inconsistent, which we hypothesise is because ecological context usually considered. We explored how one type of foraging flexibility, was associated with inhibitory control (assayed using...
Strong selection pressures are known to act on animal coloration. Although many animals vary in eye colour, virtually no research has investigated the functional significance of these colour traits. Passeriformes have a range iris colours, making them an ideal system investigate how and why evolved. Using phylogenetic comparative methods, we tested hypothesis that conspicuous passerine birds evolved response (a) coordination offspring care (b) cavity nesting, two traits thought be involved...
Animals often respond fearfully when encountering eyes or eye-like shapes. Although gaze aversion has been documented in mammals avoiding group-member conflict, the importance of eye coloration during interactions between conspecifics yet to be examined non-primate species. Jackdaws ( Corvus monedula ) have near-white irides, which are conspicuous against their dark feathers and visible seen from outside cavities where they nest. Because jackdaws compete for nest sites, may act as a warning...
Cognition arguably drives most behaviours in animals, but whether and why individuals the wild vary consistently their cognitive performance is scarcely known, especially under mixed-species scenarios. One reason for this that quantifying relative importance of individual, contextual, ecological social factors remains a major challenge. We examined how many these factors, sources bias, affected participation performance, an initial discrimination learning experiment two reversal experiments...
Abstract Knowledge about the causal relationship between objects has been studied extensively in human infants, and more recently adult animals using differential looking time experiments. How knowledge object support develops non-human yet to be explored. Here, we ontogeny of relations Eurasian jays ( Garrulus glandarius ), a bird species known for its sophisticated cognitive abilities. Using an expectancy violation paradigm, measured responses possible impossible video image stimuli. We...
Although the evolution of cognitive differences among species has long been interest in ecology, whether natural selection acts on processes within populations only begun to receive similar attention. One key challenges is understand how consistently traits any one domain are expressed over time and across different contexts, as this direct implications for way which might act variation. Animal studies typically measure a using task context assume that captures likely expression contexts....
Inhibitory control is one of several cognitive mechanisms required for self-regulation, decision making and attention towards tasks. expected to influence behavioural plasticity in animals, example the context foraging, social interaction or responses sudden changes environment. One widely used inhibitory assay ‘detour task’ where subjects must avoid impulsively touching transparent barriers positioned front food, instead access food by an alternative but known route. However, because detour...
Mutations in the gene HSPB1 , encoding small heat shock protein 27 (HSP27), are a cause of distal hereditary motor neuropathy (dHMN) and axonal Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth disease (CMT2). dHMN CMT2 differentiated by presence sensory latter although case this division is artificial as secondary to mutations predominantly with only minimal involvement. A recent study mice has suggested that C‐terminus result phenotype resembling dHMN, whereas at N‐terminus CMT2‐like phenotype. However, we present...
The producer-scrounger game is a key element of foraging ecology in many systems. Producing and scrounging typically covary negatively, but partitioning this covariance into contributions individual plasticity consistent between differences to understanding population-level consequences strategies. Furthermore, little known about the role cognition plays game. We investigated these alternative tactics wild mixed-species flocks great tits blue tits, using production learning task which we...
Empirical studies from laboratory systems and humans show that the gut microbiota is linked to host health. Similar evidence for effects on traits fitness in nature rare, not least because experimentally manipulating challenging. We isolated, characterized, cultured a bacterial strain, Lactobacillus kimchicus APC4233, directly wild bird (the great tit Parus major ) provided it as self-administered dietary supplement. assessed impact of treatment community, weight, tested whether affected...
Personality research suggests that individual differences in risk aversion may be explained by links with life-history variation. However, few empirical studies examine whether repeatable avoidance behaviour covary traits among individuals natural populations, or how these vary depending on the context and way is measured. We measured two different behaviours (latency to enter nest inspection time) wild great tits (
Research into proximate and ultimate mechanisms of individual cognitive variation in animal populations is a rapidly growing field that incorporates physiological, behavioural evolutionary investigations. Recent studies humans lab animals have shown the enteric microbial community plays central role brain development functioning. The ‘gut-brain axis’ represents multi-directional signalling system encompasses neurological, immunological hormonal pathways. In particular it tightly linked with...