@pec-exeter
Working on: the consequences of release and management of gamebirds; the evolution of cognition, using the genius of the bird world - pheasants; and occasionally messing with chickens, ravens, beavers and moths. Tweets by Jo Madden
What are the ecological effects of releasing and managing mallard ducks for hunting?
Our new OA paper with @ecoevoenviro.bsky.social authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...
What did we find? A short 🧵
Mallard release in the UK has been increasing over recent years and now ~1.3-2.6 million are released annually
Problems are likely to be especially acute (and benefits less) on large "driven duck only" days
We call for markedly more research into Mallard release and management
Evidence is currently limited and often weak (especially considering wider ecosystem effects)
Releases and associated management have both positive (e.g. habitat creation, feeding) and negative (e.g. interbreeding, disease, eutrophication) ecological impacts
Millions of Mallard are artificially reared and released annually across the world in UK, Europe and North America
We conducted a literature review (37 papers, 41 effects) of their genetic, direct & associated effects on wild conspecifics, other waterbirds and aquatic ecosystems
What are the ecological effects of releasing and managing mallard ducks for hunting?
Our new OA paper with @ecoevoenviro.bsky.social authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...
What did we find? A short 🧵
New paper out!
Early-life social instability increases aggression in chickens, but does not affect response inhibition 🐤
We discuss what this means for developmental links between social environments, cognition, and social behaviour, highlighting strong context dependence
Full text: rdcu.be/eYOzC
I'm recruiting a PhD student to study how predation shapes animal cognition and the conservation opportunities of animal cognition. Lots of fun field work in beautiful places : )
Please share !!
www.eifwooster.org/opportunities
🐦 EcoBird is hiring a Postdoc in animal cognition!
Join us + @themanybirds.bsky.social to investigate innovation & problem-solving in birds.
📅 Start: as early as Jan 2026
🌍 Funded through UGent’s international mobility scheme
More info & how to apply ↓
www.ugent.be/en/work/scie...
Almost pheasants! A new review that we've contributed to looking at causes and consequences of ranging behaviour in reared chickens, led by @birgitszabo.bsky.social
Many chickens don't seem to want to use the additional space that they are offered. Can we change this?
Less than a week left to apply!
Rather feels like reading my obituary! 😬
But thanks Jen and Sophia for putting that together👍 I really enjoyed working with the ASAB team and recommend any AB folk consider joining and contributing. Looking forward to Edinburgh for the winter meeting. See you there.
The origins and functions of bowers in the Bowerbirds: a review and synthesis | doi.org/10.1080/0158... | Emu | #ornithology 🪶
🚨 Calling researchers, students, technicians in cognition 🚨
We’re running a 10-min anonymous survey on how animal cognition is defined and studied across disciplines (from ecology, ethology, psychology, neurology, etc). 🧠✨
Scan the QR code & share widely
#AnimalCognition #ResearchSurvey #Science
Sam in front of a slide reading Social behaviour, and the evolution of menopause in toothed whales
It may be 9am on Day 5, but of course nobody couldn’t miss @samellisq.bsky.social’s fascinating plenary on menopause in whales! 😍👵🐳 #Behaviour2025
Out last week - our #evidence review and assessment for @jncc.bsky.social of the #data and methods for assessing #sustainability of wild waterbird #harvest from recreational #hunting in the United Kingdom #wildlife #people led by @jomadden.bsky.social with Matt Ellis & myself #ecology #policy
How robust is current hunting bag data, and can we rely on it to manage sustainable harvest of UK waterbirds?
For most species, it's pretty good, but released mallard🦆🦆can confuse the picture
Recent collaboration with @ecoevoenviro.bsky.social and Matt Ellis
Come join us at the @asab.org Winter Conference 2025: how sensory info affects behaviour.
15th & 16th Dec, abstracts due end Aug. More info and registration asabwinter.github.io/2025
Co-hosted with @jtroscianko.bsky.social and Innes Cuthill
Publication alert! ✨ Our recent paper in Ecology & Evolution addresses how to make conferences more inclusive. We collected observational and experimental data during Q&A sessions at the Behaviour 2023 congress hosted by Bielefeld University, and circulated a survey among conference attendees [1/4]
🚨JOB alert🚨 Full-time Managing Editor role for @asab.org journal Animal Behaviour. Applicants must have animal #behaviour background; previous editorial experience would be ideal.
Apply by 31st July 2025.
#publishing #editor #job
More details: www.asab.org/opportunities
PLEASE share widely.
We are seeking a full-time Managing Editor for our journal Animal Behaviour. This editor will be involved in all stages of the publication process & must have a general understanding of the topics covered. Position starts Oct 1, application deadline July 31.
More details:
www.asab.org/opportunities
Cognitive Level
Specificity of Entities
Structure of Cognition
Cognition
Cognitive Entity
Cognitive Performance
What are we talking about when we're talking about "cognition"?
Terminology in this field has become confused and confusing. While writing our recent review, we tried to structure terms for our own sanity, and provide a template in a Glossary
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
The survival of the smartest? Assessing how cognition shapes fitness in animals. A really fun collaboration to be part of—thread below! 👇
Selection Shapes Diverse Animal Minds: our special issue of @royalsocietypublishing.org Phil Trans B on the diverse evolutionary processes underlying cognitive evolution is out today. Thanks to all our contributors! royalsocietypublishing.org/toc/rstb/202...
It forms part of an exciting Special Issue of Phil Trans, "Selection shapes diverse animal minds", edited by @ellileadbeater.bsky.social & @cornishjackdaws.bsky.social
Co-authors include @ecobird.bsky.social @samellisq.bsky.social
royalsocietypublishing.org/toc/rstb/202...
The paper is Open Access royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
Why is the apparent link between cognition and fitness so weak?
Could it be that our proposed causal link between cognition, behaviour and fitness/selection is too simplistic and linear? We discuss possible alternative models
Studies that measured fitness as "survival" (survival to next season, mass gain, foraging success etc) were more likely to report sig relationships than those measuring "reproductive" fitness (attractiveness, provisioning levels, offspring production etc)
Studies that measured "broad" forms of cognition (innovation, problem solving) were more likely to report sig relationships than those measuring more "specific", defined forms (reversal learning, spatial memory etc)