Michelle Spierings

Michelle Spierings is an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Biology Leiden (IBL) within Leiden University, focusing on animal cognition and the evolution of language. Her research compares pattern recognition abilities across species, emphasizing vocal learning in songbirds and parrots. She collaborates with computational linguists and cognitive neuroscientists through the Dynamates project funded by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF).

• Bachelor in Biology, Leiden University
• Master in Neuroscience & Cognition, Utrecht University
• Ph.D. in Behavioral Biology, Leiden University (collaborative with linguists and computational linguists)

Her research explores the cognitive underpinnings of language evolution, including rhythm perception in birds (granted Veni-2021) and dynamic decision-making in marmosets. She investigates how developmental history shapes social-learning strategies in zebra finches and budgerigars.

Scientific awards include the Veni-grant (2021) for studying avian rhythm perception. Her work has been published in journals like Animal Behaviour, Current Biology, and Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.

As a Ph.D. candidate, she studied theory of mind in rooks with Nicola Clayton (Cambridge University). Postdoctoral work (2016–2020) at Tecumseh Fitch’s lab compared language perception in pigeons, marmosets, and humans. She currently runs a lab at Leiden University, inviting parrot participation in the Bird Singalong project.