We focus on the causes and consequences of individual variation in life histories and the underlying mechanisms as schematically summarized in the figure above, with an emphasis on senescence. Study organisms are birds, mostly captive zebra finches and free-living jackdaws, that we both study in the context of long-term experiments that modulate ageing and lifespan. The ‘state’ concept is central in our work, and in theory comprises every possible trait, but we concentrate on traits that are of functional importance in the sense that they predict variation in life history decisions or (components of) fitness. In this context we have focused on telomeres in birds and humans, and are now shifting attention to DNA methylation.
Organisation profile
Organisation profile
Fingerprint
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Profiles
-
Merijn Driessen, MSc
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, Pen group - Theoretical Evolutionary Ecology - PhD student
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, Tieleman group - Animal Ecology - PhD student
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, Verhulst group - Evolutionary Biology of Ageing - PhD student
Person: Scientific Staff
-
-
Juliana Sosa Espinosa
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, Van der Kooi lab - Evolutionary Biophysics - PhD student
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, Verhulst group - Evolutionary Biology of Ageing - PhD student
Person: Scientific Staff
-
A robotic falcon induces similar collective escape responses in different bird species
Storms, R. F., Carere, C., Musters, R., Hulst, R., Verhulst, S. & Hemelrijk, C. K., 1-May-2024, In: Journal of the Royal Society Interface. 21, 214, 9 p., 20230737.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Open AccessFile9 Downloads (Pure) -
Association between telomere length and Plasmodium falciparum malaria endemicity in sub-Saharan Africans
McQuillan, M. A., Verhulst, S., Hansen, M. E. B., Beggs, W., Meskel, D. W., Belay, G., Nyambo, T., Mpoloka, S. W., Mokone, G. G., Fokunang, C., Njamnshi, A. K., Chanock, S. J., Aviv, A. & Tishkoff, S. A., 2-May-2024, In: American Journal of Human Genetics. 111, 5, p. 927-938 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Open AccessFile2 Citations (Scopus)6 Downloads (Pure) -
Extra-pair paternity in two passerine birds breeding in a gradient of urbanisation
Di Lecce, I., Sudyka, J., Perrier, C. & Szulkin, M., Sept-2024, In: Molecular Ecology. 33, 17, 14 p., e17481.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Activities
-
Epigenetic clocks as biomarkers of ageing in non-model species: past, present, and future.
Tangili, M. (Invited speaker)
24-Aug-2023Activity: Talk and presentation › Academic presentation › Academic
-
PLOS-One (Journal)
Tangili, M. (Peer reviewer)
Jul-2023Activity: Peer-review and editorial work › Peer-review › Academic
-
DNA methylation as biomarker of biological age in non-model species
Tangili, M. (Speaker)
18-Aug-2022Activity: Talk and presentation › Academic presentation › Academic
Datasets
-
Data from: Covariance of paternity and sex with laying order explains male bias in extra-pair offspring in a wild bird population
Vedder, O. (Creator), Magrath, M. (Creator), van der Velde, M. (Creator) & Komdeur, J. (Creator), University of Groningen, 11-Sept-2013
DOI: 10.5061/dryad.b6428
Dataset
-
Data from: Age-specific offspring mortality economically tracks food abundance in a piscivorous seabird
Vedder, O. (Creator), Zhang, H. (Creator), Dänhardt, A. (Creator) & Bouwhuis, S. (Creator), University of Groningen, 16-Oct-2018
Dataset
-
Data from: Telomere length declines with age, but relates to immune function independent of age in a wild passerine
Roast, M. J. (Contributor), Eastwood, J. R. (Contributor), Hidalgo Aranzamendi, N. (Contributor), Fan, M. (Contributor), Teunissen, N. (Contributor), Verhulst, S. (Contributor) & Peters, A. (Contributor), DRYAD, 27-Apr-2022
DOI: 10.5061/dryad.v6wwpzgwp, https://zenodo.org/record/6502171
Dataset
Press/Media
-
Robotslechtvalk verjaagt vogelzwermen
20/11/2023 → 21/11/2023
2 items of Media coverage, 1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Research › Popular
-
Robot falcon better than drones at clearing flight paths
Storms, R., Hemelrijk, C. & Papadopoulou, M.
06/06/2022 → 02/11/2023
14 items of Media coverage, 1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Research › Popular
-
Het eeuwige leven bestaat, in de Middellandse Zee. Voor andere schepselen komt ouderdom met gebreken
12/10/2023
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment › Popular
Projects
- 5 Finished
-
AL-III: DNA-methylation as an epigenetic clock of biological age: A new tool to study ageing and ecology & evolution of life histories?
Verhulst, S. (PI), Dugdale, H. (PI), Palsboll, P. (PI) & Tangili, M. (PhD student)
01/08/2020 → 01/08/2024
Project: Research
-
AL-II: Parsing developmental plasticity of personality in zebra finches
Verhulst, S. (PI), Boer ,de, S. (PI) & Gerritsma, Y. (PI)
01/10/2017 → 01/02/2023
Project: Research
-
Preventing bird strikes: Developing RoboFalcons to deter bird flocks
Hemelrijk, C. K. (PI), Verhulst, S. (PI), Storms, R. (PhD student) & Papadopoulou, M. (PhD student)
01/04/2017 → 01/04/2021
Project: Research
Prizes
-
Rubicon two year post-doctoral fellowship to visit the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Stulp, G. (Recipient), 2013
Prize: Fellowship awarded competitively › Academic