Professor Adam Hart studied Zoology at Churchill College, Cambridge, before gaining a PhD at the University of Sheffield where he investigated the co-operative behaviour of social insects. He became very interested in insects and subsequently completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education at the University of Gloucestershire.
He lectures on many aspects of biology (he won the Student Union Outstanding Lecturer Award in 2012), and he carries out research into all manner of things, including birds, mammals, ecology, Citizen Science and evolution, as well as his first biological love, insects.
Prof Adam Hart | TV and Radio
Adam has presented a number of documentaries for Radio 4 and the BBC World Service. He co-presented BBC4’s Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony, which went on to be nominated for Broadcast Digital and Royal Television Society Awards. Other credits include the BBC’s two-part series Hive Alive alongside Chris Packham, The Tree Scientists, and On the Trail of the American Honeybee.
For BBC Radio 4 and World Service, he has hosted programmes on topics including honey, swarm robots, migratory beekeeping, tree diseases, de-extinction, gut bacteria, trophy hunting, the concept of free will in biology, and animal personality.
In 2018, Adam wrote and presented the BBC Radio 4 documentary Inside the Killing Jar, which explored the fact that entomologists often have to kill what it is they are studying. The documentary looked into the controversial idea that insects may feel pain, and it was later extended into a full series.
Adam is building up a great profile on radio regionally with his regular science Q+A slot called ‘Ask Adam’ on BBC Radio Gloucestershire. He was also a regular “bug man” on BBC Three Counties Radio and BBC Radio Sheffield. His other radio credits include The Genius of Accidents, Off the Menu, and Tooth and Claw.
Prof Adam Hart | Writing
He also writes monthly columns for his local paper and for Cotswold Life magazine, as well as publishing his first popular-science book The Life of Poo, a look at the human relationship with bacteria, in 2015. He followed this up in 2020 with Unfit for Purpose, which details mismatches between human evolution and the modern world. His third book The Deadly Balance: Predators and People in a Crowded World was published in 2023 and looks at the difficult realities of conservation.
He co-authored the Oxford textbook Applied Ecology, and is the co-author of the textbook Introducing Forensic and Criminal Investigation. He has also served as editor-in-chief of the Ecological Entomology Journal, and associate editor of the Entomological magazine Antenna.
He has written over 120 scientific papers in his career on everything from entomology, disease, hygiene, citizen science, thermal imaging, grassland management, climate change, spiders, ants, ladybirds, tree diseases, banana disease, trophy hunting, poaching, African conservation, and economics.
Prof Adam Hart | Awards and Accolades
– Elected a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society
– Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology
– Made Vice President of the Royal Entomological Society
– Royal Society of Biology Science Communicator of the Year
– National Teaching Fellowship in recognition of his communication work
– Green Gowns Award for Research with Impact
– 2023 British Ecological Society’s Marsh Ecology Book of the Year
Prof Adam Hart | Public Speaking
Adam is a popular public speaker, talking about everything from social insects to trophy hunting, for schools, public audiences, and special-interest groups. In 2013, he delivered a 24-hour long lecture on social insects as part of the Royal Society’s National Biology Week.
Adam is a regular at the Cheltenham Science Festival and has given countless talks and lectures to groups across the UK. He has appeared at the Edinburgh, Northern Ireland, and Malta Science Festivals, the New Scientist Live Event, EU Cost Science Night, and events for the Royal Society.
