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Paul Martin Brakefield FRS (born 31 May 1952,
Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...
) is a British evolutionary biologist and Professor of Zoology at the
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
, where he is also Fellow of
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
and until 2019 was director of the
Museum of Zoology The Museum of Zoology () of National Taiwan University (NTU) is a museum about zoology at the NTU main campus in Da'an District, Taipei, Taiwan. History The museum was originally established in 1928 during the Japanese rule. In the early days ...
. He previously held the Chair in Evolutionary Biology at
Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...
in the Netherlands, and was President of the
Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript a ...
from 2015 to 2018. He is best known for his research on butterfly eyespots.


Career

In 1987 Brakefield became a Professor of Evolutionary Biology at
Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...
. In 2010 he left Leiden after serving as a professor for 23 years to become director of the
Cambridge University Museum of Zoology The University Museum of Zoology is a museum of the University of Cambridge and part of the research community of the Department of Zoology. The public is welcome and admission is free (2018). The Museum of Zoology is in the David Attenborough ...
. In 2011, Brakefield was elected a Fellow of
Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...
. On 22 May 2015 Brakefield became President of the
Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript a ...
, serving until May 2018.


Research

Brakefield works mostly with butterflies and insects. Amongst other topics his research focuses on eyespots on butterflies, especially ''
Bicyclus anynana ''Bicyclus anynana'' (squinting bush brown) is a small brown butterfly in the family Nymphalidae, the most globally diverse family of butterflies. It is primarily found in eastern Africa from southern Sudan to Swaziland, Eswatini.Bicyclus brakefieldi'' is named after him.


Honours and awards

Brakefield was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 2010. He was elected a foreign member of the
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...
in 2011. Brakefield was elected a member of the
European Molecular Biology Organization The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) is a professional, non-profit organization of more than 2,100 life scientists. Its goal is to promote research in life science and enable international exchange between scientists. It co-funds cour ...
in 2014.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brakefield, Paul 1952 births Living people 20th-century British zoologists 21st-century British zoologists British evolutionary biologists Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Academic staff of Leiden University Members of the European Molecular Biology Organization Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Presidents of the Linnean Society of London People from Woking