Kevin Burns

Contacts

TTR 326, Te Toki A Rata, Gate 7, Kelburn Parade, Wellington, 6012, New Zealand

Geographic Location:
New Zealand

Email:
Kevin.Burns@vuw.ac.nz

Web References:
Personal Site
Orcid

I'm a field biologist who's interested in a wide range of topics involving the ecology and evolution of plants and animals. Rather than focus on a single type of organism, study site, methodology or hypothesis, my research directions result spontaneously from field observations. As a result, my research program encompasses a diverse array of disciplines in evolutionary ecology, from comparative psychology, animal cognition and behaviour, to plant-animal interactions, plant morphometrics, plant macroecology and plant macroevolution.

There are several overarching threads to my research. First, most of my field observations are made on isolated islands. Therefore, much of my research focuses on convergent evolution of island organisms. Second, because my research includes both plants and animals, I regularly take concepts, hypotheses and methodologies that were developed on animals and apply them to plants, and vice versa. My goal for this multi-taxon approach is to generate new insights into evolutionary ecology that transcend the plant and animal kingdoms.

Profile Information

Institution Associated University of Wellington

Taxonomic Group Several

Studied Region New Zealand; Pacific islands

Ecology; Biogeography