Projects per year
Personal profile
Research interests
Evolution of animal conflict and cooperation, focusing on the origin of altruism using fieldwork and theory.
My research website is here: www.patrickckennedy.com.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Padraig_Kennedy
My aim is to use field experiments and theory to explore social evolution, focusing especially on the amazing "primitively eusocial" wasps of the world. I'm a Junior Fellow of the Simons Society of Fellows, New York City, and a Marie Curie Global Fellow based in the US and UK (in Dustin Rubenstein's Lab at Columbia and Andy Radford's Lab at Bristol). Slightly surprisingly, I've been called a wasp-catching "slow-mo ninja" by National Geographic. For an overview of why I believe wasps are so fascinating, see this interview on the Simons Foundation website.
Endlessly fascinating Belonogaster wasps, Ghana (PK)
What links climate and cooperation?
Across social animals, links are emerging between climatic variation and the evolution of sociality. My research aims to contribute to this debate using experiments and theoretical modelling (e.g., theory for altruism in fluctuating environments). I am conducting field experiments with African wasps, with colleagues in Cameroon, South Africa, and Kenya.
What role do threats and coercion play in social evolution?
Can organisms use Machiavellian tactics to coerce others into cooperation? I have recently published on the evolution of 'blackmail' between family members, and I am developing experiments in the evolution of dominance hierarchies.
What explains paradoxical acts of cooperation?
Some social behaviours seem especially challenging to explain. I'm intrigued by these surprising acts of cooperation. My research includes using RFID radio-tags and longitudinal monitoring to solve the enigma of paper wasps helping neighbour colonies in Central America.
2021-now Marie Curie Global Fellow, Columbia University (USA) & University of Bristol (UK)
2021-now Junior Fellow of Simons Society of Fellows, Columbia University (USA)
2019-2020 Postdoc, Radford Lab, University of Bristol (UK)
2015-2019 PhD, University of Bristol (UK)
2014 Field assistant, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), Panama
2010-2013 BA (Hons.) Biological Sciences, Brasenose College, University of Oxford (UK)
External positions
Junior Fellow (Columbia University), Simons Society of Fellows, New York City, Simons Foundation
1 Jan 2021 → 31 Dec 2023
Marie Curie Global Fellow, Columbia University
Keywords
- altruism
- cooperation
- social evolution
- wasps
- eusociality
- conflict
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Projects
- 1 Active
Research output
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Diminishing returns drive altruists to help extended family
Kennedy, P., Sumner, S., Botha, P., Welton, N. J., Higginson, A. D. & Radford, A. N., Apr 2021, In: Nature Ecology and Evolution. 5, 4, p. 468-479 12 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article (Academic Journal) › peer-review
Open AccessFile7 Citations (Scopus)44 Downloads (Pure) -
Altruism in a volatile world
Kennedy, P., Higginson, A. D., Radford, A. N. & Sumner, S., 15 Mar 2018, In: Nature. 555, 7696, p. 359-362 4 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article (Academic Journal) › peer-review
Open AccessFile34 Citations (Scopus)313 Downloads (Pure) -
Kin Blackmail as a Coercive Route to Altruism
Kennedy, P. & Radford, A. N., 1 Feb 2021, In: International Behavioural Ecology Congress Abstracts.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article (Academic Journal) › peer-review
Prizes
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West-Eberhard Award for a Junior Scientist
Kennedy, Patrick (Recipient), 2022
Prize: Prizes, Medals, Awards and Grants
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Thesis
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Uncertainty and the evolution of altruism: theory and fieldwork in the paper wasps of Central and South America
Author: Kennedy, P., 23 Jan 2019Supervisor: Radford, A. (Supervisor) & Sumner, S. (External person) (Supervisor)
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis › Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
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