Herpetologist and evolutionary biologist. Natural historian. Musician with Adfeilion
Kevin Arbuckle
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Our new natural history note reporting evidence for interactions between these cute little geckos and buthid (dangerously venomous) scorpions in Morocco.
doi.org/10.33256/hb1...
Article for @theconversation.com on our new paper (with Chloe Heys, Matilda Brindle, and Tom Price) on the evolution of masturbation in birds, with a focus on the implications of this for the welfare of captive birds
doi.org/10.64628/AB....
Adfeilion's tour dates continue with Solskin Festival next weekend in the Peak District and our final gig with Albion (a completely folk metal night) in Bristol Exchange the week after.
Our paper on the evolution of sociality in cat-like carnivores, has not only been fully published now but also got the cover!
Although it appeared in early view a few months ago, the paper is available here doi.org/10.1111/jzo.... and represents Izzy Scully's Mres project from a few years ago.
Our results also have implications for the welfare of captive birds. Masturbation is often considered an abnormal response to captivity, but we show that masturbation is very much a natural behaviour that should not usually be discouraged or 'treated' by vets 2/3
www.swansea.ac.uk/press-office...
Our new paper just published today, and one that has been in the works for ~12 years now! Although the evolution of masturbation is a topic that immediately generates a slew of innuendos and puns, it's both an important and biologically interesting subject. 1/3
Paper here: doi.org/10.1002/ece3...
Masturbation is also a 'Darwinian puzzle', a trait that at first glance seems to present a fitness disadvantage, e.g. wasting time, energy, other resources, and opportunities. We find links with mating system that suggest ways that masturbation may have evolved.
www.theguardian.com/science/2026...
Just after my own 9-year-old managed to join Adfeilion's Cardiff gig in Fuel on Saturday, an article on us for the local Swansea Edit magazine was released were the writer also brought her 12-year-old to our Swansea Arena gig: online.fliphtml5.com/anwtl/njcz/#...
Awesome to see our bird masturbation research feature on Mock the Week, now I just have to wait on a reptile, venom or evolution question to come up on Curious Cases so @daraobriain.bsky.social can get me on as a guest to disturb him, with science, once again!
Check out our new paper on the role of stories in attitudes of people to snakes in rural Uganda, and how a narrative workshop can improve preventative behaviours without necessarily reducing fear of snakes: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Paper also available at www.academia.edu/166829751/A_...
