The age longevity gap and having fun in the field with plants

Zoe at her field site in Madrid, Spain

Men die younger than women. Is it the unhealthy lifestyle, the cigarettes, the alcohol, the higher suicide rate? Our guest found it’s all in the Y chromosome, an inferior chunk of DNA that’s just not up for the challenge.

Also, our guest lived a researcher’s dream and traveled for nine months to collect samples of plants all over Europe. Shortly after, she collected the same plants back home in Australia, here they are invasive. Our guest sought to find out how invasive plants fair in their new environment without natural predators and pollinators.

Chantelle and Cat chat to Zoe about her research and her magical time in the field in Europe.

Listen in to Zoe’s story!

A buff-tailed bumblebee pollinating an oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) in Northampton, UK

Liked this episode? Like us on Facebook or Twitter (@BoilingPointFM)!

Resources:

The press release on Zoe’s paper on the age longevity gap: https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/science-tech/why-men-and-other-male-animals-die-younger-it%E2%80%99s-all-y-chromosome

Zoe’s blog on her fieldwork adventures in Europe: https://zoexiro.com/blog/