Dr Krishna N. Balasubramaniam

Krishna investigates the links between wildlife behaviours and wildlife-human interaction, and the acquisition and sharing of both pathogenic and commensal microbes (specifically gut bacteria, and to a lesser extent respiratory viruses) among wildlife. He takes the view that microbes are integral, naturally embedded components of ecosystems that have shaped the evolution of animal sociality and group-living.

Thus, Krishna’s research, pedagogical, and synergistic activities, further to advancing fundamental knowledge of the evolutionary ecology of animal sociality, also promote and support the sub-field of ‘conservation behaviour’, through assessing the links between behavioural ecology, health and disease risk, and human-wildlife interactions and conflict management.

Krishna completed an undergraduate (Bachelor of Technology or B-Tech) degree in Biotechnology in Chennai, India. In his final year, he procured an internship to study social insects at the Center for Ecological Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bangalore, India.

Following this, Krishna moved to the United States in August 2007, and completed a Master's followed by a PhD in Evolution Ecology & Behaviour (EEB) at the University at Buffalo, the State University of New York (SUNY).

Between 2015 and 2021, Krishna worked first as a Postdoctoral Scholar (five years) and then as an Assistant Project Scientist (1.5 years) at the University of California at Davis, specifically in the Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis.

In January 2022, Krishna joined the School of Life Sciences at Anglia Ruskin University as a Lecturer in Conservation and Animal Behaviour. He was promoted to Senior Lecturer’in September 2023. Krishna is currently spearheading the development of ARU’s new Primatology & Conservation course that is set to start recruiting in September 2027.

Krishna represents ARU at the Cambridge Conservation Forum, through which he co-organises research, pedagogical, outreach, and employability-focused activities at the nexus conservation science, education and policy.

• English
• Tamil

• Behavioural ecology
• Evolutionary biology
• Biological anthropology
• Social behaviour
• Microbial and infectious disease ecology
• Human-wildlife interactions
• Conservation behaviour
• Social-ecological systems
• Primatology

Krishna routinely supervises students (undergraduate, Master's) and early-career researchers (postgraduate research students, postdoctoral scholars) with diverse research interests that, broadly conceived, overlap with his research interests summarised above.

If you are interested in joining Krishna's research group, discussing research opportunities stemming from his ongoing projects, and exploring funding availability or opportunities, please email [email protected]. Initially, please send a brief email (4-5 sentences) introducing yourself and summarising your interests.

Krishna leads, or teaches on, modules across levels 4-7 on the following courses:

• BSc Animal Behaviour
• BSc Ecology & Conservation
• BSc Zoology
• BSc Biology
• MSc Animal Behaviour Applications for Conservation
• MSc Applied Wildlife Conservation

He is also playing a lead role in the development of ARU’s new Primatology & Conservation course that is set to start recruiting in September 2027.

Krishna is the Module Leader for:

• MOD002790 Evolutionary Bases of Behaviour (level 5)
• MOD002899 Human-Animal Interactions (level 6)
• MOD005755/MOD008407 Applied Animal Behaviour & Animal Welfare (level 6 and 7)
• MOD008407 Applied Animal Behaviour & Animal Welfare (level 7)

• Assistant Project Scientist, Department of Population Health & Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California at Davis, CA, USA, 2019-21
• Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Population Health & Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California at Davis, CA, USA, 2015-19
• PhD in Evolution, Ecology & Behavior, University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, NY, USA, 2009-14
• MSc in Evolution, Ecology & Behavior, University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, NY, USA, 2007-09
• Bachelor of Technology (B-Tech) in Biotechnology, Anna University, 2003-07

Krishna serves as an Associate Editor for the journals American Journal of Primatology (AJP: from 2022) and Animals (2021-2022). As an Associate Editor of AJP Krishna’s tasks include overseeing manuscript reviews by inviting reviewers and taking decisions on work submitted by his peers, and judging an annual ‘Best Student Article’ competition organised through the journal.

Krishna is also a grant reviewer for the following research funding organisations: the National Science Foundation (NSF) – USA, the European Science Foundation, the Leakey Foundation, and the Leverhulme Trust.

Krishna regularly reviews manuscripts for several academic journals: between 1-3 articles for journals such as Science Advances, Current Biology, Biology Letters, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Conservation Biology, Global Ecology and Conservation, Conservation Letters, Proceedings of the Royal Society – Biology, Behavioural Ecology, International Journal of Primatology, and Scientific Reports, and 10+ articles for the journals Animal Behaviour and the American Journal of Primatology.

Krishna served on the Organising and Scientific Committee of the European Congress of Behavioural Biologists international conference, held at ARU in June 2026. In 2023 Krishna also co-organised the annual meeting of the Primate Society of Great Britain (PSGB) that was held at ARU in Cambridge in May 2023.

• 2025: RIDO Conference Attendance Grant, School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, £1,000
• 2023 - 2025: ARU – Research Pump-Priming Award, School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, £10,000
• 2022: Conference Attendance Grant, School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, £1,090
• 2022: V1 Research Development Grant, School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, £10,000
• 2021-: National Institute of Health Award R01 HD104529-01 (PI: McCowan); Effects of Altering Social Connectedness on Health: Accepted pending administrative review; Co-Investigator
• 2015 – 2020: National Science Foundation Award 1518555 (PI: McCowan); Drivers and Mechanisms Underlying Human-Macaque Coupled Systems Across a Sociocultural Gradient; $1,134,560; Co-Principal Investigator
• 2012 – 2014: National Science Foundation Award 1231145; Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant; Variation in Macaque Hierarchical Steepness from Socioecological and Biological Markets Perspectives; $20,000; Co-Principal Investigator
• 2013 - 2014: College of Arts and Sciences Dissertation Fellowship, $6,000 University at Buffalo SUNY; Principal Investigator
• 2012 - 2013: Michael Matsumunyane Travel Scholarship Award, $500 Department of Anthropology, University at Buffalo SUNY; Principal Investigator

Journal articles (currently under review)

Balasubramaniam, K. N., de Vittoris, S., Bliss-Moreau, E., Marty, P., Kaburu, S. S. K., Beisner, B. A., & McCowan, B. (2026). Implementing Coupled Human Natural Systems to understand the behavioural aspects of human-nonhuman primate interfaces. People & Nature, under review.

Kesh, J., Aiempichitkijkarn, N., Atwill, R., Malaivijitnond, S., McCowan, B., Nimnual, J., Sawaswong, V., Visedthorn, S., Payungporn, S., & Balasubramaniam, K. N. (2026). Impact of sociality on microbiome diversity and relative taxonomic abundance among wild long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis). Ethology, under review.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Kesh, J., Aiempichitkijkarn, N., Atwill, R., Malaivijitnond, S., McCowan, B., Nimnual, J., Sawaswong, V., Visedthorn, S., & Payungporn, S. (2026). Sociality drives gut bacterial co-occurrence and community structure among free-living long-tailed macaques in Thailand. Ecology & Evolution, under review.

Aiempichitkijkarn, N. Pritchard, A., Meesawat, S., Malaivijitnond, S., Balasubramaniam, K. N., & McCowan, B. (2026). Using epidemiological modelling to assess the relative effects of exposure and susceptibility on Tuberculosis (Mycobacterium sp.) acquisition among wild long-tailed macaques in Thailand. Royal Society Open Science, under review.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Muller-Klein, N., Vink, T., Clutton-Brock, T. H., Manser, M., & Sommer, S. (2026). Kinship effects on gut microbiomes among wild meerkats (Suricata suricatta) in the Kalahari. Proc. R. Soc. B, under review.

Chakraborty, B., Kaburu, S. S. K., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Marty, P. R., Beisner, B. A., Bliss-Moreau, E., Mohan, L., Rattan, S. K., & McCowan, B. (2026). Intragroup sociality drives individual participation in intergroup competition in an urban-dwelling nonhuman primate. Royal Society Open Science, under review. Pre-print available here: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.06.556573v1.abstract

Journal articles (published)

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Muller-Klein, N., Vink, T., Clutton-Brock, T. H., Manser, M., & Sommer, S. (2025). Impact of socioecology on gut microbial communities: insights from wild meerkats in the Kalahari. Journal of Animal Ecology, 94, 2687-2703. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.70168.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Navarrete Macias, I., Islam, S., Wells, H., Tubbs, C., Randhawa, N., Rostal, M., Epstein, J., Darpel, K., Horton, D., Islam, A., & Anthony, S. (2025). Anthropogenic factors and social organization drive picobirnavirus communities in wild rhesus macaques. Ecology & Evolution, 15(7): e71727. 10.1002/ece3.71727.

Aiempichitkijkarn, N., Balasubramaniam. K. N., Meesawat, S., Malaivijitnond, S., & McCowan, B. (2024). Assessing the sociodemographic factors associated with Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex infection among free-ranging long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) in Thailand. American Journal of Primatology, 87(3): e70023. 10.1002/ajp.70023.

De Moor, D., MacaqueNet (Balasubramaniam, K. N.), Skelton, M., Schulke, O., Ostner, J., Neumann, C., Duboscq, J., & Brent, L. J. N. (2024). MacaqueNet: advancing comparative behavioural research through large-sale collaboration. Journal of Animal Ecology, 94, 519-534. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.14223.

Huang, P., Arlet, M., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Beisner, B. A., Bliss-Morean, E., Brent, L., Duboscq, J., Garcia-Nisa, I., Kaburu, S. S. K., Kendal., R., Konecna, M., Marty, P. R., McCowan, B., Micheletta, J., Ostner, J., Schulke, O., Schine, G., & Majolo, B. (2024). Relationship between dominance hierarchy steepness and rank-relatedness of benefits in primates. Behavioural Ecology, 35(5), arae066, https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arae066.

Pritchard, A., Bliss-Moreau, E., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Kaburu, S. S. K., Marty, P. R., Arlet, M., Beisner, B. A., & McCowan, B. J. (2024). Personality trait structures across three species of Macaca, using survey ratings of responses to conspecifics and humans. PLoS ONE 19(9): e0309946. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.03099462023.

Dunn, J. C., Miller, R., Akcay, C., Balasubramaniam, K. N., & Wascher C. (2023). Conceptualization, context, and comparison are key to understanding the evolution of fear. Invited Commentary: Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 46, E61 doi: 10.1017/S0140525X22001789.

Kaburu, S. S. K., Balasubramaniam. K. N., Marty, P. R., Beisner, B. A., Rattan, S., Mohan, L., Bliss-Moreau, E., Fujii, K., & McCowan, B. J. (2023). Effect of behavioural sampling methods on local and global social network metrics: A case-study of three macaque species. Royal Society Open Science, 0(12):231001. doi: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.231001.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Aiempichitkijkarn, N., Kaburu, S. S. K., Marty, P. R., Beisner, B. A., Arlet, M., Bliss-Moreau, E., Atwill, E. A., & McCowan, B. J. (2022). Impact of joint interactions with humans and social interactions with conspecifics on the risk of zooanthroponotic outbreaks among peri-urban wildlife populations. Scientific Reports, 12, 11600. doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-15713-6.

McCowan, B. J., Vandeleest, J., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Hsieh, F., Nathman, A., & Beisner, B. A. (2022). Measuring dominance certainty and assessing its impact on individual and societal health in a nonhuman primate model: A network approach. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 377, 20200438. doi: https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2020.0438.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Kaburu, S. S. K., Marty, P. R., Beisner, B. A., Bliss-Moreau, E., Mohan, L., Rattan, S., Ruppert, N., Sah, S. A. M., Kodandaramaiah, U., & McCowan, B. (2021). Implementing social network analysis to understand the socio-ecology of wildlife co-occurrence and joint interactions with humans in anthropogenic environments. Journal of Animal Ecology, 90, 2819-2833, doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13584.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Beisner, B. A., McCowan, B., & Bloomsmith, M. (2021). Female social structure influences, and is influenced by, male introduction and integration success among captive rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Behaviour, 158, 1007-1042, doi: https://doi.org/10.1163/1568539X-bja10109.

Holzner, A., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Ruppert, N., & Widdig. A. (2021). Oil palm cultivation critically affects sociality in an endangered Malaysian primate. Scientific Reports, 11, 10353, doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-89783-3.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Bliss- Moreau, E., Beisner, B. A., Marty, P. R., Kaburu, S. S. K., & McCowan, B. J. (2021). Addressing the challenges of research on human-wildlife interactions using the concept of Coupled Natural & Human Systems. Biological Conservation, 257, 109095, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109095.

Arlet, M., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Saha, R., Beisner, B. A., Marty, P. R., Kaburu, S. S. K., Bliss- Moreau, E., Kodandaramaiah, U., & McCowan, B. J. (2021). Infant survival among free-living bonnet macaques (Macaca radiata) in southern India. International Journal of Primatology, 42, 220-236, doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-021-00198-3.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Malaivijitnond, S., Kemthong, T., Meesawat, S., Hamada, Y., Jeamsripong, S., Srisamran, J., Kuldee, M., Thaotumpitak, V., McCowan, B., & Atwill, E. (2021). Prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae among wild long-tailed macaques in Thailand. International Journal of Primatology, doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-021-00209-3.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Marty, P. R., Samartino, S., Sobrino, A., Saha, R., Gill, T., Ismail, M., Beisner, B. A., Kaburu, S. S. K., Bliss-Moreau, E., Arlet, M., Ruppert, N., Ismail, A., Sah, S. A. M.,   Mohan, L., Rattan, S., Kodandaramaiah, U., & McCowan, B. (2020). Impact of individual demographic and social factors on human-wildlife interactions: A comparative study of three macaque species. Scientific Reports, 10, 21991, doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-78881-3.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Marty, P. R., Arlet, M. E., Beisner, B. A., Kaburu, S. S. K., Bliss- Moreau, E., Kodandaramaiah, U., & McCowan, B. J. (2020). Impact of anthropogenic factors on affiliative behaviors among bonnet macaques. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 171, 704-717, doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24013.

Marty, P. R., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Kaburu, S. S. K., Hubbard, J., Beisner, B. A., Bliss- Moreau, E., Arlet, M., Ruppert, N., Arlet, M. E., Sah, S. A. M., Ismail, A., Mohan, L., Rattan, S. K., Kodandaramaiah, U., & McCowan, B. J. (2020). Individuals in urban dwelling primate species face unequal benefits associated with living in an anthropogenic environment. Primates, 61, 245-259, doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-019-00775-4.

Invited talks (external)

(Plenary speaker) European Federation for Primatology, June 2026, Montpellier, France.

Symposium on comparative studies in animal behaviour at the XXXVIII International Ethological Congress: Behaviour 2025, August 2025, Kolkata, India.

School of Life Sciences, April 2024, Nottingham Trent University, UK.

School of Environmental & Natural Sciences, April 2024, Bangor University, UK.

School of Life Sciences, February 2024, University of Warwick, UK.

Biological Anthropology Seminar Series, October 2023, University of Cambridge, UK.

Evolutionary Anthropology Seminar Series, January 2023, University College London, UK.

Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour (CRAB) Seminar Series, November 2022, University of Exeter, UK.

Institute of Evolutionary Ecology & Conservation Genomics, July 2022, Ulm University, Germany.

Behavioural Ecology Seminar Series, Department of Zoology, April 2022, University of Cambridge, UK.

Conference oral presentations

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Mueller-Klein, N., Vink, T., Clutton-Brock, T. H., Manser, M., & Sommer, S. (September 2026). Kinship effects on gut microbiomes among wild meerkats (Suricata suricatta) in the Kalahari. European Conference for Behavioural Biology (ECBB), Cambridge, UK.

Balasubramaniam, K. N. (August 2026). Understanding the evolutionary and adaptive underpinnings of animal sociality: insights from comparative studies on macaques. XXXVII International Ethological Congress Behaviour 2025, Kolkata, India.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Muller-Klein, N., Schmid, D., Risely, A., Wilson, H., Clutton-Brock, T. H., Manser, M., & Sommer, S. (July 2024). Social organization and environmental factors drive bacterial co-occurrence and community ecology among wild meerkats (Suricatta suricata) in the Kalahari. European Congress for Behavioural Biology (ECBB), Zurich, Switzerland.

McCowan, B. J., Balasubramaniam, K. N., Vandeleest, J., Beisner, B. A., Kaburu, S. S. K., Marty., P. R., Chakraborty, B., Aiempichitkijkarn, N., Hubbard, J., & Atwill, E. (August 2023). NPRC-based research on captive macaques informs primate conservation efforts using a combined social network and human-monkey coupled systems’ approach. International Primatology Society (IPS) meetings, Kuching, Malaysia.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., De Vittoris, S., Bliss-Moreau, B., Kaburu, S. S. K., Marty, P. R., Beisner, B. A., & McCowan, B. (August 2023). Using a Coupled Natural and Human Systems framework to address evidence-gaps in our understanding of the behavioural aspects of human-nonhuman primate interfaces. International Primatology Society (IPS) meetings, Kuching, Malaysia.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Aiempichitkijkarn, N., Kaburu, S. S. K., Marty, P. R., Beisner, B. A., Bliss-Moreau, E., Atwill, E., & McCowan, B. (March 2023). Anthropogenic factors and social interactions affect infectious disease outbreaks among urban wildlife populations. People, Animals & Waste Systems Web Start (PAWS-Web) Conference, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.

Balasubramaniam, K. N., Aiempichitkijkarn, N., Kaburu, S. S. K., Marty, P. R., Beisner, B. A., Bliss- Moreau, E., Atwill, E. A., & McCowan, B. J. (Jul 2022). Anthropogenic factors and social interactions affect zoonotic outbreak risk among (peri)urban wildlife populations. International Society for Behavioural Ecology (ISBE) Congress, Stockholm, Sweden.

Daily Mail: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-11275697/Wild-monkeys-disease-SUPERSPREADERS-animal-kingdom-study-finds.html

Newsweek: https://www.newsweek.com/wild-monkeys-superspreaders-animal-kingdom-study-1749437

Phys.Org: https://phys.org/news/2022-10-disease-human-wildlife-hotspots.html

Invited virtual talk on the Utility of Social Networks in Behavioral Ecology, hosted by the Association of Indian Primatologists. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm2_49v_lYk&t=1s

Guest on the Arch & Anth Podcast: https://archandanth.com/episode-140-interview-with-krishna-balasubramaniam/