Why big brains? A comparison of models for both primate and carnivore brain size evolution (2021)
Journal Article
Chambers, H., Heldstab, S., & O'Hara, S. (2021). Why big brains? A comparison of models for both primate and carnivore brain size evolution. PLoS ONE, 16(12), e0261185. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0261185

Despite decades of research, much uncertainty remains regarding the selection pressures responsible for brain size variation. Whilst the influential social brain hypothesis once garnered extensive support, more recent studies have failed to find supp... Read More about Why big brains? A comparison of models for both primate and carnivore brain size evolution.

Evaluation of Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B ocean land colour instrument green instantaneous fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (2021)
Journal Article
Gobron, N., Morgan, O., Adams, J., Brown, L., Cappucci, F., Dash, J., …Marioni, M. (2021). Evaluation of Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B ocean land colour instrument green instantaneous fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation. Remote Sensing of Environment, 270, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2021.112850

This article presents the evaluation of the Copernicus Sentinel-3 Ocean Land Colour Instrument (OLCI) operational terrestrial products corresponding to the green instantaneous Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FAPAR) and its a... Read More about Evaluation of Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B ocean land colour instrument green instantaneous fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation.

Sex‐related differences in aging rate are associated with sex chromosome system in amphibians (2021)
Journal Article
Cayuela, H., Lemaitre, J., Lena, J., Ronget, V., Martinez-Solano, I., Muths, E., …Miller, D. (2022). Sex‐related differences in aging rate are associated with sex chromosome system in amphibians. Evolution, 76(2), 346-356. https://doi.org/10.1111/evo.14410

Sex-related differences in mortality are widespread in the animal kingdom. Although studies have shown that sex determination systems might drive lifespan evolution, sex chromosome influences on aging rates have not been investigated so far, likely d... Read More about Sex‐related differences in aging rate are associated with sex chromosome system in amphibians.

Meta-analysis enables prediction of the maximum permissible arsenic concentration in Asian paddy soil (2021)
Journal Article
Mandal, J., Sengupta, S., Sarkar, S., Mukherjee, A., Wood, M., Hutchinson, S., & Mondal, D. (2021). Meta-analysis enables prediction of the maximum permissible arsenic concentration in Asian paddy soil. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 9, 760125. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.760125

It is now well-established that not just drinking water, but irrigation water contaminated with arsenic (As) is an important source of human As exposure through water-soil-rice transfer. While drinking water As has a permissible, or guideline value,... Read More about Meta-analysis enables prediction of the maximum permissible arsenic concentration in Asian paddy soil.

The School Farms Network in the UK : history, context, and adding value (2021)
Book Chapter
and adding value. In A. Farag, S. Badawi, G. Lalli, & M. Kamareddine (Eds.), School farms : feeding and educating children (67-83). London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003176558-7

Alongside recent renewed interest in urban agriculture, there has been an increased focus on school farming. The School Farms Network has a large membership base and interest from other green space organisations across the UK. Using contributions fro... Read More about The School Farms Network in the UK : history, context, and adding value.

Next‐generation phylogeography resolves post‐glacial colonization patterns in a widespread carnivore, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), in Europe (2021)
Journal Article
McDevitt, A., Coscia, I., Browett, S., Ruiz‐González, A., Statham, M., Ruczyńska, I., …Wójcik, J. (2022). Next‐generation phylogeography resolves post‐glacial colonization patterns in a widespread carnivore, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), in Europe. Molecular Ecology, 31(3), 993-1006. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.16276

Carnivores tend to exhibit a lack of (or less pronounced) genetic structure at continental scales in both a geographic and temporal sense and this can confound the identification of post-glacial colonization patterns in this group. In this study we u... Read More about Next‐generation phylogeography resolves post‐glacial colonization patterns in a widespread carnivore, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), in Europe.

Uncertainty regarding species delimitation, geographic distribution, and the evolutionary history of south-central Amazonian titi monkey species (Plecturocebus, Pitheciidae) (2021)
Journal Article
Byrne, H., Costa-Araujo, R., Farias, I., Silva, M., Messias, M., Hrbek, T., & Boubli, J. (2021). Uncertainty regarding species delimitation, geographic distribution, and the evolutionary history of south-central Amazonian titi monkey species (Plecturocebus, Pitheciidae). International Journal of Primatology,

Platyrrhine primate taxonomy is a rapidly evolving area of research. The recent description of the Parecis titi monkey, Plecturocebus parecis, has raised substantial questions regarding the taxonomy, distribution, and evolutionary history of titi tax... Read More about Uncertainty regarding species delimitation, geographic distribution, and the evolutionary history of south-central Amazonian titi monkey species (Plecturocebus, Pitheciidae).

Let's Talk about COP26 with Prof Andy Miah and Marta Strzelecka (2021)
Presentation / Conference
Miah, A. (2021, November). Let's Talk about COP26 with Prof Andy Miah and Marta Strzelecka. Presented at Live Conversations from COP26, Online

Genetic and morphological data demonstrate hybridization and backcrossing in a pair of salamanders at the far end of the speciation continuum (2021)
Journal Article
Arntzen, J., Jehle, R., & Wielstra, B. (2021). Genetic and morphological data demonstrate hybridization and backcrossing in a pair of salamanders at the far end of the speciation continuum. Evolutionary Applications, 14(12), 2784-2793. https://doi.org/10.1111/eva.13312

Deeply diverged yet hybridizing species provide a system to investigate the final stages of the speciation process. We study a hybridizing pair of salamander species — the morphologically and genetically drastically different newts Triturus cristat... Read More about Genetic and morphological data demonstrate hybridization and backcrossing in a pair of salamanders at the far end of the speciation continuum.

New phiocricetomyine rodents (Hystricognathi) from the Jebel Qatrani Formation, Fayum Depression, Egypt (2021)
Journal Article
Al-Ashqar, S., Seiffert, E., de Vries, D., El-Sayed, S., Antar, M., & Sallam, H. (2021). New phiocricetomyine rodents (Hystricognathi) from the Jebel Qatrani Formation, Fayum Depression, Egypt. PeerJ, 9, e12074. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.12074

Background The rich rodent assemblages from the Eocene–Oligocene deposits of the Jebel Qatrani Formation (Fayum Depression, Egypt) have important implications for our understanding of the origin and paleobiogeography of Hystricognathi, a diverse clad... Read More about New phiocricetomyine rodents (Hystricognathi) from the Jebel Qatrani Formation, Fayum Depression, Egypt.

Ancient DNA of the pygmy marmoset type specimen Cebuella pygmaea (Spix, 1823) resolves a taxonomic conundrum (2021)
Journal Article
Boubli, J., Janiak, M., Porter, L., de la Torre, S., Cortés-Ortiz, L., da Silva, M., …Roos, C. (2021). Ancient DNA of the pygmy marmoset type specimen Cebuella pygmaea (Spix, 1823) resolves a taxonomic conundrum. Zoological Research, 42(6), 761-771. https://doi.org/10.24272/j.issn.2095-8137.2021.143

The pygmy marmoset, the smallest of the anthropoid primates, has a broad distribution in Western Amazonia. Recent studies using molecular and morphological data have identified two distinct species separated by the Napo and Solimões-Amazonas rivers.... Read More about Ancient DNA of the pygmy marmoset type specimen Cebuella pygmaea (Spix, 1823) resolves a taxonomic conundrum.

Reversing a downward trend in threatened peripheral amphibian (Triturus cristatus) populations through interventions combining species, habitat and genetic information (2021)
Journal Article
O'Brien, D., Hall, J., Miro, A., O'Brien, K., Falaschi, M., & Jehle, R. (2021). Reversing a downward trend in threatened peripheral amphibian (Triturus cristatus) populations through interventions combining species, habitat and genetic information. Journal for Nature Conservation, 64, 126077. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnc.2021.126077

Conserving genetic diversity in wild species is vital for preserving adaptations to local environmental conditions. We conducted a habitat creation project for a flagship European Protected Species of amphibian (northern great crested newt Triturus c... Read More about Reversing a downward trend in threatened peripheral amphibian (Triturus cristatus) populations through interventions combining species, habitat and genetic information.

Widespread loss of mammalian lineage and dietary diversity in the early Oligocene of Afro-Arabia (2021)
Journal Article
de Vries, D., Heritage, S., Borths, M., Sallam, H., & Seiffert, E. (2021). Widespread loss of mammalian lineage and dietary diversity in the early Oligocene of Afro-Arabia. Communications Biology, 4(1), 1172. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-021-02707-9

Diverse lines of geological and geochemical evidence indicate that the Eocene-Oligocene transition (EOT) marked the onset of a global cooling phase, rapid growth of the Antarctic ice sheet, and a worldwide drop in sea level. Paleontologists have esta... Read More about Widespread loss of mammalian lineage and dietary diversity in the early Oligocene of Afro-Arabia.

How did the toad get over the sea to Skye? Tracing the colonisation of Scottish inshore islands by common toads (Bufo bufo) (2021)
Journal Article
(Bufo bufo). Herpetological journal, 31, 204-213. https://doi.org/10.33256/31.4.204213

Processes of island colonisation have long been of interest to biologists. Colonisation events themselves are rarely observed, but the processes involved may be inferred using genetic approaches. We investigated possible means of island colonisation... Read More about How did the toad get over the sea to Skye? Tracing the colonisation of Scottish inshore islands by common toads (Bufo bufo).

Bat phylogenetic responses to regenerating Amazonian forests (2021)
Journal Article
Farneda, F. Z., Rocha, R., Aninta, S. G., López‐Baucells, A., Sampaio, E. M., Palmeirim, J. M., …Meyer, C. F. J. (2021). Bat phylogenetic responses to regenerating Amazonian forests. Journal of Applied Ecology, 59(8), 1986-1996. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.14041

Throughout the tropics, regenerating secondary forests occupy vast areas previously cleared for agriculture and cattle ranching. However, despite the importance of regenerating forests in mitigating the pervasive negative consequences of forest loss... Read More about Bat phylogenetic responses to regenerating Amazonian forests.

Enabling urban social farming : the need for radical green infrastructure in the city (2021)
Journal Article
Mitchell, L., Houston, L., Hardman, M., Howarth, M., & Cook, P. (2021). Enabling urban social farming : the need for radical green infrastructure in the city. Cogent Social Sciences, 7(1), 1976481

With the global population set to reach 9.8 billion by 2050, there are concerns that health services are beginning to be stretched beyond working limits, particularly in the Global North, where many nations face ageing populations and similar obstacl... Read More about Enabling urban social farming : the need for radical green infrastructure in the city.

Using games in geographical and planning-related teaching : serious games, edutainment, board games and role-play (2021)
Journal Article
Robinson, G., Hardman, M., & Matley, R. (2021). Using games in geographical and planning-related teaching : serious games, edutainment, board games and role-play. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 4(1), 100208. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2021.100208

This paper reviews the use of games in geographical teaching, including prior to the emergence of computer-based (digital) games. The growing popularity of ‘serious games’ and ‘edutainment’ is addressed, focusing on their perceived advantages in cl... Read More about Using games in geographical and planning-related teaching : serious games, edutainment, board games and role-play.

Vulnerability of island insect pollinator communities to pathogens (2021)
Journal Article
Brettell, L., Martin, S., Riegler, M., & Cook, J. (2021). Vulnerability of island insect pollinator communities to pathogens. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 186, 107670. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jip.2021.107670

Island ecosystems, which often contain undescribed insects and small populations of single island endemics, are at risk from diverse threats. The spread of pathogens is a major factor affecting not just pollinator species themselves, but also posing... Read More about Vulnerability of island insect pollinator communities to pathogens.

Chapitre 4. Guérilla jardinière, résistance et espace public (Chapter 4. Guerrilla gardening, resistance and public space) (2021)
Book Chapter
(Chapter 4. Guerrilla gardening, resistance and public space). In L. Granchamp, & S. Glatron (Eds.), Militantismes et potagers (Activists and vegetable gardens). Presses Universitaires du Septentrion

There is a small but emerging area of research that explores the impact of ‘guerrilla gardening’, an activity which involves actors occupying land, often in the public realm, without permission. Whilst several recent studies have charted the impact o... Read More about Chapitre 4. Guérilla jardinière, résistance et espace public (Chapter 4. Guerrilla gardening, resistance and public space).

Characteristics of iron-containing magnetic particles in household dust from an urban area : a case study in the megacity of Shanghai (2021)
Journal Article
Chen, Y., Zhang, W., Dong, C., Hutchinson, S., & Feng, H. (2022). Characteristics of iron-containing magnetic particles in household dust from an urban area : a case study in the megacity of Shanghai. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 424(Part A), 127212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127212

In order to characterize the magnetic properties and trace sources of household dust particles, magnetic measurements, geochemical and SEM/TEM analyses were performed on vacuum dust from 40 homes in Shanghai, China. Iron-containing magnetic particles... Read More about Characteristics of iron-containing magnetic particles in household dust from an urban area : a case study in the megacity of Shanghai.