Dr Andrew Young

I am an evolutionary ecologist with an interest in Social Evolution and Senescence (Ageing)
My research group use long-term field studies of wild social vertebrates (e.g. weaver birds in the Kalahari and European badgers in the UK) and laboratory studies of social microbes to advance our understand of sociality and ageing. For more info see below and www.animalsocieties.org

I am based at Exeter's Centre for Ecology & Conservation (CEC) in Cornwall, UK, where I am:
- Director of Research (with Chris Bass)
- Programme lead for our renowned MSc in Evolution, Behaviour & Ecology

Away from the office, I am a rock climber, sea kayaker, photographer, mammalwatcher & father of twins.

RESEARCH
I am an evolutionary ecologist with particular interests in Social Evolution and Senescence (Ageing), and my team study both via long-term field studies of wild social vertebrates, including cooperative weaver birds in the Kalahari desert and European badgers in the UK. We also collaborate with microbiologists to study the evolutionary origins of ageing in unicellular organisms using timelapse microfluidics. We ask both evolutionary and mechanistic questions, given the potential for each to inform the other. For full details check out animalsocieties.org

Recent findings from our research on cooperation:

Architectural traditions in the structures built by cooperative weaver birds Science

Evolution of sex differences in cooperation can be explained by trade-offs with dispersal PLOS Biology

Mothers in a cooperatively breeding bird lay larger eggs when they'll have more help feeding their nestlings PLOS Biology

Cooperative breeding allows a Kalahari bird to cope with unpredictable rainfall Science Advances

TEACHING

I am a passionate educator and ecologist, enjoying teaching and discovery in the wild as much as the class-room. Most of my research is conducted in the Kalahari desert, but I have taught fieldcourses in a variety of places, from Costa Rica, Kenya, South Africa & India to Scotland, Switzerland & the Isles of Scilly, right here in Cornwall.

I lead the following taught modules & am a Fellow of Higher Education Academy
MSc - Evolutionary & Behavioural Ecology: Frontiers & Approaches
L2 - Animal Ecophysiology
L2 - Isles of Scilly Fieldcourse (St Agnes)

CAREER
2016-now Associate Professor of Evolutionary Biology, Exeter
2010-2016 BBSRC David Phillips Research Fellow, Exeter
2007-2010 NERC Blue Skies Research Fellow, Exeter
2004-2007 Magdalene College Research Fellow, Cambridge
2000-2003 PhD, Cambridge

QUALIFICATIONS

2003 PhD Zoology, University of Cambridge
1997 BA (Hons) + MA (Cantab), University of Cambridge

I started my career in Cambridge, completing my Honours degree and PhD at St John's, and then holding a Fellowship at Magdalene. I then won a NERC Blue Skies Research Fellowship to move to Exeter’s newly formed Centre for Ecology and Conservation in Cornwall in 2007, to set up the sparrow weaver project, followed by a BBSRC David Phillips Research Fellowship in 2010.