Research

Research overview

My research aims to understand how behavioural and morphological traits evolve, particularly in birds, and how ecological and evolutionary processes shape their diversity across species and environments. I integrate phylogenetic comparative methods and evidence synthesis to study ecogeographical rules, correlated evolution among traits, and variation in both trait means and variances.

Research themes

Evolution of bird behaviour and morphology

A central theme of my research is understanding how behavioural and morphological traits have evolved in birds. I am particularly interested in how ecological and evolutionary factors interact to shape trait diversity. My PhD work focused on visual preferences and plumage pattern evolution in estrildid finches, combining behavioural experiments with comparative analyses (Mizuno & Soma 2023), and shaped my broader interest in trait evolution across species.

My current work examines ecogeographical rules and asks how morphology, behaviour, ecology, and environmental conditions have evolved together. One recent example tests a broad-scale ecogeographical pattern across birds while accounting for seasonal migration (Mizuno et al. 2026, preprint). More broadly, I aim to examine long-standing hypotheses in behavioural ecology and the correlated evolution of multiple traits across species.

Comparative and methodological frameworks

Another major component of my research is the development and application of phylogenetic comparative methods. I use these approaches to study correlated evolution among discrete traits (Mizuno et al. 2025) and to characterise variation in continuous traits using phylogenetic location-scale models (Nakagawa et al. 2025).

I am also interested in generalised linear latent variable models (GLLVMs) for multivariate ecological and evolutionary data, including how the choice and structure of the response matrix affect the biological question being addressed (Nakagawa et al. 2026, preprint). Together, these methods allow me to study large-scale evolutionary patterns while representing multiple traits and different sources of biological variation.

Evidence synthesis and meta-science

I am also involved in evidence synthesis and meta-science in ecology and evolution. Using systematic reviews and maps, meta-analyses, and second-order meta-analyses, I integrate results across studies. Examples include mapping the evidence base on animal cognition (Mizuno et al. 2025) and examining how biological and methodological decisions affect conclusions drawn from meta-analysis (Mizuno et al. 2026).

This work is motivated by an interest in cumulative and transparent science, and in developing synthesis-based approaches that can inform both evolutionary theory and empirical research practices.

Ongoing and future directions

Looking ahead, I aim to connect ecogeographical rules, correlated trait evolution, and variation in trait means and variances within a shared comparative framework. I am particularly interested in how climatic and ecological contexts shape large-scale evolutionary patterns and how these patterns may change under ongoing environmental change.