Bio
Elena Belli, PhD Evolutionary Cognition since September 2024, Master in Ethology and Animal Biology at Linköping University in Sweden with master thesis on cooperation and prosociality in Barbary macaque. Before starting the PhD, I worked at the Inkawu Vervet Project in South Africa investigating risk-taking behaviour in wild vervet monkeys, where I spent 8 months in the field.
Research focus/description
I am part of the NCCR evolving language and I am exploring the relationship between mutual gaze, vocal communication and amygdala anatomy in common marmosets and other primate species. I am particularly fascinated by the evolutionary mechanisms that created the incredible variety in cognitive skills and social complexity among primate species.