Marwa Kavelaars

Marwa Kavelaars is a Visiting Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development's Adaptive Rationality research group, specializing in animal behavior and foraging ecology. Her work integrates field ornithology with advanced tracking technologies to study decision-making processes in seabirds.

Education:

• PhD in Biological Sciences, University of Antwerp (2015-2020)
• MSc Biological Sciences, University of Amsterdam (2011-2013)
• BSc Biology, University of Groningen (2007-2011)

Her research centers on foraging behaviour, cooperation dynamics, and social decision-making in avian species, particularly colonial seabirds. Using GPS tracking and experimental manipulations, she investigates how environmental constraints shape behavioral flexibility, parental investment strategies, and navigation mechanisms. Her work bridges theoretical models of adaptive rationality with empirical field data, revealing how ecological pressures drive evolutionary adaptations in complex decision environments.

Analysis of her publication record shows consistent focus on seabird movement ecology across 10 major studies (2016-2022), with increasing methodological sophistication in GPS tracking and experimental design. Her research demonstrates how anthropogenic changes affect foraging patterns, while maintaining strong connections to fundamental questions about behavioral adaptation and energy optimization in natural systems.

Professional Experience:

• Postdoctoral Fellow, Max Planck Institute for Human Development (2023-present)
• Senior Editor, Sovon Center for Field Ornithology (2021-2023)
• Research Assistant, University of Oxford (2014)