I’m a behavioural ecologist and evolutionary biologist with a particular interest in the evolution of sociality, life histories, and how these interact. My research uses birds as study models and a combination of long-term studies (on sociable weavers and southern ground-hornbills, both in South Africa), field-based experiments and comparative analyses. I am fascinated by islands and the research possibilities that they offer as the archetypal laboratories in ecology and evolution. My work on island birds investigates patterns of adaptation to the island environment and the underlying mechanisms. The topics investigated cover the evolution of reproductive life histories, sociality, immunity and morphology and whether these relate to niche enlargement.