(PI: Patrick Kennedy, patrick.kennedy [AT] bristol.ac.uk)
Postdocs
Dr Salamatu Abdu
Postdoctoral Field Manager
ERC postdoc
Salamatu is an ERC-funded postdoc, coordinating field teams to explore social evolution in African wasps
Dr Louis Bell-Roberts
NERC-NSF Pushing the Frontiers postdoc
Louis is a NERC-funded postdoc, exploring caste differentiation and evolution using African wasps
Research students
Teun de Jong
University of Bristol PhD Scholarship for Collaboration with the University of Cape Town
Lead supervisor: Patrick Kennedy
Co-supervisor: Andy Radford
Teun is a second-year PhD student exploring social evolution in the Belonogaster wasps of Africa
Ayla Webb
Bristol-Macquarie Cotutelle
PhD Scholarship
Bristol supervisor: Patrick Kennedy
Macquaurie supervisor: Adam Stow
Ayla is a second-year PhD student exploring social evolution in the Ropalidia wasps of Australia
Teun on fieldwork prior to his PhD in Panama
Ayla on fieldwork (not with a wasp)
Ropalidia wasp, Credit: Ayla Webb
Abby Bryce
Bristol-Macquarie Cotutelle
PhD Scholarship
Bristol supervisor: Patrick Kennedy
Macquaurie supervisor: Adam Stow
Abby is a first-year PhD student exploring the social evolution of dispersal using theory and fieldwork with Australian cooperatively breeding birds
Ellie Trelfa Stewart
NERC DLTP PhD Scholarship
Lead supervisor: Patrick Kennedy
Co-supervisors: Andy Radford, Andrew Higginson
Ellie is a first-year PhD student exploring dominance in African wasps
Dylan Thatcher
Masters by Research
Dylan is a research masters student developing theoretical models of social evolution
Claire des Pallieres
Biological Sciences PhD
Main supervisor: Prof Stephanie King (Bristol)
Claire is a first-year PhD student working on social behaviour with the famous Shark Bay dolphins of Western Australia
Avon the lab mantis
Lead supervisor: Ayla Webb
Likes: Flies, working out
Dislikes: Being the right side up
Joined the lab group on 22nd Feb 2026
Pronounced Ah-vuhn
Avon is a spiny flower mantis from South Africa, and the lab group's only non-human member.
Keletso Malebye
University of Pretoria, South Africa
Keletso has recently completed her degree at the University of Pretoria, and has been working in the field with PhD student Teun de Jong to study the wonderful wasps of South Africa
Intern students and field teams
Keletso greeting one of our study participants in South Africa
Fieldwork in South Africa
Silor Kengne
University of Douala Cameroon
Silor has recently completed his PhD at the University of Douala, and has been working in the field with PhD student Teun de Jong to study the wasps of Cameroon
Samuel Makon
University of Yaounde 1, Cameroon
Samuel is conducting his PhD at the University of Yaounde 1, and has been working in the field with PhD student Teun de Jong to study the wasps of Cameroon
Samuel and Silor in Cameroon
Romuald Tcheutchoua
Romuald was a field assistant in Cameroon, and went on to do his PhD looking at whether wasps may be useful in agriculture.
Romuald in action in the field in Cameroon
Olivia Brown
Macquarie University, Australia
Olivia is a Masters student at Macquarie University (Sydney), recently working in the field with PhD student Ayla Webb to explore wasp behaviour on the New South Wales coast
Sarielle Kapmegne
Sarielle was a field assistant in Cameroon, working with Patrick to run field experiments with social wasps