Professor James Cook (Theme Leader - Plants Animals and Interactions)
- Selected Publications
- Contact Details (opens in a new window)
Professor James Cook is leader of the Plants, Animals and Interactions research theme.
His research interests lie in the ecology and evolution of species interactions, and he is particularly interested in how intimate symbiosis influences the biology of the species involved.
Pollinators are a special interest and his current research focuses mainly on insect pollinator communities and their role in pollination of horticultural crops. He is also an expert on specialist pollination systems, such as the classic mutualism between fig trees and wasps, while another research priority centres on insects and their endosymbiotic bacteria.
James is currently leading three projects to better understand the role of insects in pollination of Australian horticultural crops, and develop resilient pollination options in the face of threats to honeybee populations. These projects cover research on crop pollination, stingless bee biology and husbandry, seasonal floral resource use by bees, bee health and diseases, and managed pollination with flies.
His research involves field, laboratory and glasshouse approaches and makes extensive use of molecular methods. His research involves links with collaborators in Australia, India, China, France, UK and USA. James also has wider research interests in animal behaviour, conservation biology and evolutionary genetics.
James has a BA (Zoology) from Oxford University and PhD (Evolutionary Biology) from Imperial College London. His previous academic posts have been at La Trobe University, Imperial College London, and the University of Reading.
Areas of research/teaching expertise
Ecology, evolution, symbiosis, entomology, pollination, parasitism, horticulture
Awards and recognition
- Invited to collaborate in fig/pollinator coevolution with Professor Wan-Jin Liao’s group at Beijing Normal University
- Australian Entomological Society Conservation Committee Member 2017-
- Natural Environment Research Council (NERC, UK) College Member 2007-2010
- Royal Entomological Society Symbiosis Special Interest Group Convenor 2005-2012
- Reviewing Editorial Board Member, Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 2005-2008
- NERC Advanced Research Fellow 1998-2003
- SERC Research Fellow 1993-1995
- Royal 1851 Commission Research Fellow 1991-1993
Grants/ current projects
How will climate change impact mango cultivars and their pollinators?
Co-Researcher: James Makinson
Partner/Funding Body: Australia-India Council
Period: 2022-2025
Crop and varietal data to better understand the importance of pollination
Co-Researchers: James Makinson, Sally Power, Markus Riegler and Ben Moore
Partner/Funding Body: Horticulture Innovation Australia [via Plant & Food Research Australia Pty Limited]
Period: 2022-2026
Precision Pollination: Data-driven enhancements to boost crop yield
Co-Researchers: Alan Dorin, Hazel Parry, Romina Rader and Adel Nadjaran
Partner/Funding Body: Australian Research Council Linkage [via Monash University]
Period: 2022-2025
Entomopathogenic nematodes as biological control agents of important honey bee pests in Australia
Co-Researchers: Markus Riegler, Robert Spooner-Hart, Uffe Nielsen and Clarissa House
Partner/Funding Body: Horticulture Innovation Australia
Period: 2022-2026
Loss of horticultural pollination services from wild insects following bushfires
Co-Researchers: Sally Power, Simon Tierney and Amy-Marie Gilpin
Partner/Funding Body: Horticulture Innovation Australia
Period: 2021-2023
Improving conservation management of the grey-headed flying-fox
Co-Researchers: Justin Welbergen, Jessica Meade, Matthias Boer and Chris Turbill
Partner/Funding Body: Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources
Period: 2021-2023
Decoding audio-visual honeybee hive signals for waggle dance detection and hive health monitoring
Co-Researcher: James Makinson
Partner/funding body: Eva Crane Trust
Period: 2021
Development of Blue-banded bees as managed buzz pollinators
Co-Researchers: Ben Moore, Markus Riegler, Robert Spooner-Hart and Michelle Mak
Partner/funding body: Horticulture Innovation Australia
Period: 2021-2026
Port Augusta QFly Sterile Insect Technology factory pilot operation
Co-Researchers: Markus Riegler, Ian Anderson, Scott Johnson and John Hunt
Partner/funding body: Horticulture Innovation Australia
Period: 2019-2022
Managing flies for crop pollination
Co-researcher: Markus Riegler
Partner/Funding Body: Horticulture Innovation Australia
Period: 2018-2023
Stingless Bees as Effective Managed Pollinators for Australian Horticulture
Co-Researchers: Markus Riegler, Ian Anderson, Robert Spooner-Hart, Markus Riegler, Brajesh Singh, David Tissue and Sally Power
Partner/funding body: Horticulture Innovation Australia, Olam Orchards Australia Pty Ltd, Syngenta Australia Pty Ltd
Period: 2017-2023
Healthy bee populations for sustainable pollination in horticulture
Co-Researchers: Ian Anderson, Markus Riegler, Robert Spooner-Hart, Sally Power, Dr Paul Rymer, Brajesh Singh and Catriona Macdonald
Partner/funding body: Horticulture Innovation Australia, Bayer Australia Limited, Syngenta Australia Pty Ltd
Period: 2016-2021
Testing the potential of Incompatible Insect Technique (IIT) for a haplodiploid insect species, Kelly's Citrus Thrips, a significant citrus pest originating from Australia and invasive in New ZealandCo-researchers: Markus Riegler
Partner/Funding Body: Australia Pacific Science Foundation
Period: 2016-2019
Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation, ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centre
Co-researchers: Markus Riegler and Alexie Papanicolaou
Partner/Funding Body: Australian Research Council Industrial Transformation Training Centre
Period: 2016-2021
Accounting for Biodiversity and Carbon in golf courses within the Hawkesbury-Nepean Catchment area (ABC-golf)
Co-researchers: Sally Power, Catriona Macdonald and Brajesh Singh
Partner/Funding Body: Hawkesbury-Nepean Catchment Management Authority and NSW Department of Trade and Investment
Period: 2014-2015
Moreton Bay Fig: Distribution of native genetic variation and threats from cultivation
Co-researchers: Paul Rymer and Jane De Gabriel
Partner/Funding Body: Australian Flora Foundation
Period: 2014-2016
Psyllid-induced dieback of Grey Box (Eucalyptus moluccana) on the Cumberland Plain
Co-researchers: Markus Riegler, Ben Moore and Paul Rymer
Partner/Funding Body: NSW Environmental Trust
Period: 2013
Shopping for tenants: does co-evolutionary addiction and symbiont meltdown leave jumping plant lice in need of new microbial partners?
Co-researchers: Markus Riegler
Partner/Funding Body: Hermon Slade Foundation
Period: 2012-2015
Selected publications
I have authored six book chapters and over 70 research articles, with further details available at ResearcherID: D-6423-2011; URL:http://www.researcherid.com/rid/D-6423-2011 (opens in a new window).
Liu H, Hall MA, Brettell LE, Wang J, Halcroft M, Nacko S, Spooner-Hart R, Cook JM, Riegler M, Singh B, (2023) 'Microbial diversity in stingless bee gut is linked to host wing size and influenced by the environment', Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, vol.198, p 107909
Bernauer OM, Cook JM, Tierney SM, (2022) 'Division of foraging behaviour: Assessments of pollinator traits when visiting a model plant species', Animal Behaviour, vol.188, pp 169-179
Bernauer OM, Tierney SM, Cook JM, (2022) 'Efficiency and effectiveness of native bees and honey bees as pollinators of apples in New South Wales orchards', Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, vol.3371, Article no.108063
De Gabriel JL, Sutton TL, Finch JTD, Cook JM, (2022) 'Insect community composition varies between temperate and tropical regions but functional structure remains conserved', Insect Conservation and Diversity, vol.15, no.5, pp 583-593
Finch JTD, Watson-Lazowski A, Cook JM, (2022) 'Sex and flowers: testing the resource-dependent selection hypothesis for flower sex allocation', Australian Journal of Botany, vol.70, no.4, pp 323-333
Gilpin AM, Brettel LE, Cook JM, Power SA, (2022) 'The use of trap-nests to support crop pollinators in agricultural areas', Ecological Research, vol.37, no.6, pp 768-779
Gilpin A-M, Brettell LE, O’Brien C, Cook JM, Power SA, (2022) 'Co-flowering species richness increases pollinator visitation to apple flowers', Agriculture, vol.12, no.8, Article no.1246
Gilpin A-M, O'Brien C, Kobel C, Brettell LE, Cook JM, Power SA, (2022) 'Co-flowering plants support diverse pollinator populations and facilitate pollinator visitation to sweet cherry crops', Basic and Applied Ecology, vol.63, pp 36-48
Katlav A, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2022) 'Common endosymbionts affect host fitness and sex allocation via egg size provisioning', Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol.289, no.1971, Article no.20212582
Liew KC, Graves S, Croft L, Brettell LE, Cook J, Botes J, Newton P, (2022) 'First human case of infection with Arsenophonus nasoniae, the male killer insect pathogen', Pathology, vol.54, no.5, pp 664 - 666
Nacko S, Hall M, Spooner-Hart R, Cook J, Bernauer O, Riegler M, (2022) 'Cucurbit crops in temperate Australia are visited more by native solitary bees than by stingless bees', Journal of Apicultural Research, vol.61, no.5, pp 675-687, Special Issue
Sharpe SR, Morrow JL, Brettell LE, Shearman DC, Gilchrist AS, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2022) 'Tephritid fruit flies have a large diversity of co-occurring RNA viruses (vol 186, 107569, 2021)', Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, vol.189, Article no.107732
Brettell LE, Martin SJ, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2021) 'Vulnerability of island insect pollinator communities to pathogens', Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, Article no.107670
Cook JM, (2021) 'Sexual selection on population-level mating opportunities drives morph ratios in a fig wasp with extreme male dimorphism', BMC Ecology and Evolution, vol.21, no.1, Article no.168
Finch JTD, Power SA, Welbergen JA, Cook JM, (2021) 'Staying in touch: how highly specialised moth pollinators track host plant phenology in unpredictable climates', BMC Ecology and Evolution, vol.21, no.1, Article no.161
Hall MA, Brettell LE, Liu H, Nacko S, Spooner-Hart R, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2021) 'Temporal changes in the microbiome of stingless bee foragers following colony relocation', FEMS Microbiology Ecology, vol.97, no.1, fiaa236
Katlav A, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2021) 'Egg size-mediated sex allocation and mating-regulated reproductive investment in a haplodiploid thrips species', vol.35, no.2, pp 485-498
Katlav A, Nguyen DT, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2021) 'Constrained sex allocation after mating in a haplodiploid thrips species depends on maternal condition', Evolution, vol.75, no.6, pp 1525-1536
Sharpe SR, Morrow JL, Brettell LE, Shearman DC, Gilchrist AS, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2021) 'Tephritid fruit flies have a large diversity of co-occurring RNA viruses', Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, vol.186, Article no.107569
Brettell LE, Riegler M, O'Brien C, Cook JM, (2020) 'Occurrence of honey bee-associated pathogens in Varroa-free pollinator communities', Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, vol.171, Article no.107344
Cook DF, Voss SC, Finch JTD, Rader RC, Cook JM, Spurr CJ, (2020) 'The role of flies as pollinators of horticultural crops: An Australian case study with worldwide relevance', Insects, vol.11, no.6, Article no.341, pp 23-31
Cooper L, Bunnefeld L, Hearn J, Cook JM, Lohse K, Stone GN, (2020) 'Low-coverage genomic data resolve the population divergence and gene flow history of an Australian rain forest fig wasp', Molecular Ecology, vol.29, no.19, pp 3649-3666
Finch JTD, Cook JM, (2020) 'Flies on vacation: evidence for the migration of Australian Syrphidae (Diptera)', Ecological Entomology, vol.45, no.4, pp 896-900
Nacko S, Hall M, Duncan M, Cook J, Riegler M, Spooner-Hart R, (2020) 'Scientific note on small hive beetle infestation of stingless bee (Tetragonula carbonaria) colony following a heat wave', Apidologie, vol.51, no.6, pp 1199-1201
Robertson AR, Finch JTD, Young AD, Spooner-Hart RN, Outim SKM, Cook JM, (2020) 'Species diversity in bee flies and hover flies (Diptera: Bombyliidae and Syrphidae) in the horticultural environments of the Blue Mountains, Australia', Austral Entomology, vol.59, no.3, pp 561-571
Ross GM, Horn S, Macdonald CA, Powell JR, Reynolds JK, Ryan MM, Cook JM, Nielsen UN, (2020) 'Metabarcoding mites: Three years of elevated CO2 has no effect on oribatid assemblages in a Eucalyptus woodland', Pedobiologia, vol.81-82, Article no.150667
Finch JTD, Power SA, Welbergen JA, Cook JM, (2019) 'A non-pollinating moth inflicts higher seed predation than two co-pollinators in an obligate pollination mutualism', Ecological Entomology, vol.44, no.6, pp 780-791
Hall AAG, Johnson SN, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2019) 'High nymphal host density and mortality negatively impact parasitoid complex during an insect herbivore outbreak', Insect Science, vol.26, no.2, pp 351-365
Liu H, Macdonald CA, Cook J, Anderson IC, Singh BK, (2019) 'An Ecological Loop: Host Microbiomes across Multitrophic Interactions', Trends in Ecology & Evolution, vol.34, no.12, pp 1118-1130
Nooten SS, Schultheiss P, Rowe RC, Facey SL, Cook JM, (2019) 'Habitat complexity affects functional traits and diversity of ant assemblages in urban green spaces (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)', Myrmecological News, vol.29, pp 67-77
Darwell CT, Segar ST, Cook JM, (2018) 'Conserved community structure and simultaneous divergence events in the fig wasps associated with Ficus benjamina in Australia and China', BMC Ecology, vol.18, Article no.13
Finch JTD, Power SA, Welbergen JA, Cook JM, (2018) 'Two's company, three's a crowd: Co-occurring pollinators and parasite species in Breynia oblongifolia (Phyllanthaceae)', BMC Evolutionary Biology, vol.18, no.1, Article no.193
Fromont C, Rymer PD, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2018) 'An ancient and a recent colonization of islands by an Australian sap-feeding insect', Journal of Biogeography, vol.45, no.10, pp 2389-2399
Kremer JMM, Nooten SS, Cook JM, Ryalls JMW, Barton CVM, Johnson SN, (2018) 'Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations promote ant tending of aphids', Journal of Animal Ecology, vol.87, no.5, pp 1475-1483
Morgan EJ, Sutton TL, Darwell CT, Cook JM, (2018) 'Restructuring of a mutualism following introduction of Australian fig trees and pollinating wasps to Europe and the USA', Biological Invasions, vol.20, no.11, pp 3037-3045
Nooten SS, Schultheiss P, Wright J, Macdonald C, Singh BK, Cook JM, Power SA, (2018) 'What shapes plant and animal diversity on urban golf courses?', Urban Ecosystems, vol.21, no.3, pp 565-576
Segar ST, Mardiastuti A, Wheeler PM, Cook JM, (2018) 'Detecting the elusive cost of parasites on fig seed production', ACTA Oecologica-International Journal of Ecology, vol.90, pp 69-74, Special Issue. SI
Sutton TL, DeGabriel JL, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2018) 'A temperate pollinator with high thermal tolerance is still susceptible to heat events predicted under future climate change', Ecological Entomology, vol.43, no.4, pp 506-512
Taylor GS, Braby MF, Moir ML, Harvey MS, Sands DPA, New TR, Kitching RL, McQuillan PB, Hogendoorn K, Glatz RV, Andren M, Cook JM, Henry SC, Valenzuela I, Weinstein P, (2018) 'Strategic national approach for improving the conservation management of insects and allied invertebrates in Australia', Austral Entomology, vol.57, no.2, pp 124-149
Wang B, Lu M, Cook JM, Yang DR, Dunn DW, Wang RW, (2018) 'Chemical camouflage: a key process in shaping an ant-treehopper and fig-fig wasp mutualistic network', Scientific Reports, vol.8, Article no.1833
Bigot D, Dalmon A, Roy B, Hou CS, Germain M, Romary M, Deng S, Diao QY, Weinert LA, Cook JM, Herniou EA, Gayral P, (2017) 'The discovery of Halictivirus resolves the Sinaivirus phylogeny', Journal of General Virology, vol.98, no.11, pp 2864-2875
Cook JM, Reuter C, Moore JC, West SA, (2017) 'Molecular markers reveal reproductive strategies of non-pollinating fig wasps', Ecological Entomology, vol.42, no.6, pp 689-696
Darwell CT, Cook JM, (2017) 'Cryptic diversity in a fig wasp community-morphologically differentiated species are sympatric but cryptic species are parapatric', Molecular Ecology, vol.26, no.3, pp 937-950
Fromont C, DeGabriel JL, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2017) 'Diversity and specificity of sap-feeding herbivores and their parasitoids on Australian fig trees', Insect Conservation and Diversity, vol.10, no.2, pp 107-119
Fromont C, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2017) 'Relative Abundance and Strain Diversity in the Bacterial Endosymbiont Community of a Sap-Feeding Insect Across Its Native and Introduced Geographic Range', Microbial Ecology, vol.74, no.3, pp 722-734
Hall AAG, Steinbauer MJ, Taylor GS, Johnson SN, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2017) 'Unravelling mummies: cryptic diversity, host specificity, trophic and coevolutionary interactions in psyllid - parasitoid food webs', BMC Evolutionary Biology, vol.17, no.1, pp 1-15
Sutton TL, DeGabriel JL, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2017) 'Local coexistence and genetic isolation of three pollinator species on the same fig tree species', Heredity, vol.118, no.5, pp 486-490
Fromont C, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2016) 'Phylogeographic analyses of bacterial endosymbionts in fig homotomids (Hemiptera: Psylloidea) reveal codiversification of both primary and secondary endosymbionts', FEMS Microbiology Ecology, vol.92, no.12, Article no. fiw205
Hall AA, Morrow JL, Fromont C, Steinbauer MJ, Taylor GS, Johnson SN, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2016) 'Codivergence of the primary bacterial endosymbiont of psyllids versus host switches and replacement of their secondary bacterial endosymbionts', Environmental Microbiology, vol.18, no.8, pp 2591-2603
Sutton TL, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2016) 'One step ahead: A parasitoid disperses farther and forms a wider geographic population than its fig wasp host', Molecular Ecology, vol.25, no.4, pp 882-894
Campbell H, Fellowes MDE, Cook JM, (2015) 'Species diversity and dominance-richness relationships for ground and arboreal ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) assemblages in Namibian desert, saltpan, and savannah', Myrmecological News, vol.21, pp 37-47
Campbell H, Fellowes MDE, Cook JM, (2015) 'The Curious Case of the Camelthorn: Competition, Coexistence, and Nest-Site Limitation in a Multispecies Mutualism', American Naturalist, vol.186, no.6, pp E172-E181
Cook JM, Reuter C, Moore JC, West SA, (2015) 'Fighting in fig wasps: Do males avoid killing brothers or do they never meet them?', Ecological Entomology, vol.40, no.6, pp 741-747
Fromont C, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2015) 'Characterisation of 14 microsatellite markers for the Australian fig psylloid, Mycopsylla fici', Australian Journal of Zoology, vol.63, no.4, pp 233-235
Hall AG, Gherlenda AN, Hasegawa S, Johnson SN, Cook JM, Riegler M, (2015) 'Anatomy of an outbreak: the biology and population dynamics of a Cardiaspina psyllid species in an endangered woodland ecosystem', Agricultural and Forest Entomology, vol.17, no.3, pp 292-301
Kern P, Cook JM, Kageyama D, Riegler M, (2015) 'Double trouble: Combined action of meiotic drive and Wolbachia feminization in Eurema butterflies', Biology Letters, vol.11, no.5, Article no.20150095
Sutton TL, Reuter C, Riegler M, Cook JM, (2015) 'Characterisation of microsatellite markers for fig-pollinating wasps in the Pleistodontes imperialis species complex', Australian Journal of Zoology, vol.63, no.2, pp 122-126
Darwell CT, al-Beidh S, Cook JM, (2014) 'Molecular species delimitation of a symbiotic fig-pollinating wasp species complex reveals extreme deviation from reciprocal partner specificity', BMC Evolutionary Biology, vol.14, no.1, Article No.189
Segar ST, Dunn DW, Darwell CT, Cook JM, (2014) 'How to be a fig wasp down under: The diversity and structure of an Australian fig wasp community', Acta Oecologica, vol.57, pp 17-27
Wang B, Geng X-Z, Ma L-B, Cook JM, Wang R-W, (2014) 'A trophic cascade induced by predatory ants in a fig-fig wasp mutualism', Journal of Animal Ecology, vol.83, no.5, pp 1149-1157
Campbell H, Fellowes MDE, Cook JM, (2013) 'Arboreal thorn-dwelling ants coexisting on the savannah ant-plant, Vachellia erioloba, use domatia morphology to select nest sites', Insectes Sociaux, vol.60, no.3, pp 373-382
Campbell H, Townsend IR, Fellowes MDE, Cook JM, (2013) 'Thorn-dwelling ants provide antiherbivore defence for camelthorn trees, Vachellia erioloba, in Namibia', African Journal of Ecology, vol.51, no.4, pp 590-598
Segar ST, Pereira RAS, Compton SG, Cook JM, (2013) 'Convergent structure of multitrophic communities over three continents', Ecology Letters, vol.16, no.12, pp 1436-1445
Wang H, Ridley J, Dunn DW, Wang R, Cook JM, Yu DW, (2013) 'Biased oviposition and biased survival together help resolve a fig-wasp conflict', Oikos, vol.122, no.4, pp 533-540
Xiao JH, Yue Z, Jia LY, Yang XH, Niu LH, Wang Z, Zhang P, Sun BF, He SM, Li Z, Xiong TL, Xin W, Gu HF, Wang B, Werren JH, Murphy RW, Wheeler D, Niu LM, Ma GC, Tang T, Bian SN, Wang NX, Yang CY, Wang N, Fu YG, Li WZ, Yi SV, Yang XY, Zhou Q, Lu CX, Xu CY, He LJ, Yu LL, Chen M, Zheng Y, Wang SW, Zhao S, Li YH, Yu YY, Qian XJ, Cai Y, Bian LL, Zhang S, Wang JY, Yin Y, Xiao H, Wang GH, Yu H, Wu WS, Cook JM, Wang J, Huang DW, (2013) 'Obligate mutualism within a host drives the extreme specialization of a fig wasp genome', Genome Biology, vol.14, no.12, Article no.R141
Xiao J-H, Wang N-X, Murphy RW, Cook JM, Jia L-Y, Huang DW, (2012) 'Wolbachia infection and dramatic intraspecific mitochondrial DNA divergence in a fig wasp', Evolution (in press)
Al-Beidh S, Dunn DW, Power SA, Cook JM, (2012) 'Parasites and mutualism function: Measuring enemy-free space in a fig-pollinator symbiosis', Oikos, vol.121, no.11, pp 1833-1839
Cruaud A, Ronsted N, Chantarasuwan B, Chou LS, Clement WL, Couloux A, Cousins B, Genson G, Harrison RD, Hanson PE, Hossaert-Mckey M, Jabbour-Zahab R, Jousselin E, Kerdelhue C, Kjellberg F, Lopez-Vaamonde C, Peebles J, Peng YQ, Pereira RAS, Schramm T, Ubaidillah R, van Noort S, Weiblen GD, Yang DR, Yodpinyanee A, Libeskind-Hadas R, Cook JM, Rasplus JY, Savolainen V, (2012) 'An Extreme Case of Plant-Insect Codiversification: Figs and Fig-Pollinating Wasps', Systematic Biology, vol.61, no.6, pp 1029-1047
Oliver TH, Leather SR, Cook JM, (2012) 'Ant larval demand reduces aphid colony growth rates in an ant-aphid interaction', Insects, vol.3, no.1, pp 120-130
Segar ST, Cook JM, (2012) 'The dominant exploiters of the fig/pollinator mutualism vary across continents, but their costs fall consistently on the male reproductive function of figs', Ecological Entomology, vol.37, no.5, pp 342-349
Segar ST, Lopez-Vaamonde C, Rasplus J-Y, Cook JM, (2012) 'The global phylogeny of the subfamily Sycoryctinae (Pteromalidae): Parasites of an obligate mutualism', Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, vol.65, no.1, pp 116-125
von Zum Hof J, Schonrogge K, Cook JM, Gardner MG, (2012) 'Development of microsatellite markers using 454 sequencing for the rare socially parasitic hoverfly, Microdon mutabilis', Australian Journal of Zoology, vol.60, no.2, pp 108-110
Yang CY, Xiao JH, Niu LM, Ma GC, Cook JM, Bian SN, Fu YG, Huang DW, (2012) 'Chaos of Wolbachia Sequences Inside the Compact Fig Syconia of Ficus benjamina (Ficus: Moraceae)', PLOS ONE, vol.7, no.11, Article Number e48882
Sun X, Xiao JH, Cook JM, Feng G, Huang DW, (2011) 'Comparisons of host mitochondrial, nuclear and endosymbiont bacterial genes reveal cryptic fig wasp species and the effects of Wolbachia on host mtDNA evolution and diversity', BMC Evolutionary Biology, vol.11, p 86
Cook JM, Segar ST, (2010) 'Speciation in fig wasps', Ecological Entomology, vol.35, pp 54-66
Bailey R, Schonrogge K, Cook JM, Melika G, Csoka G, Thuroczy C, Stone GN, (2009) 'Host Niches and Defensive Extended Phenotypes Structure Parasitoid Wasp Communities', PLoS Biol, vol.7, article no. e1000179
Lopez-Vaamonde C, Rasplus JY, Machado C, Weiblen GD, Cook JM, (2009) 'Molecular dating and biogeography of fig-pollinating wasps', Mol. Phylogen. Evol, vol.52, pp 715-726
Stone GN, Hernandez A, Nicholls J, di Pierro E, Pujade J, Melika G, Cook JM, (2009) 'Extreme host plant conservatism during at least 20 million years of host plant pursuit by oak gallwasps', Evolution, vol.63, pp 854-869
Wang RW, Ridley J, Dunn DW, Cook JM, Yu DW, (2009) 'Interference competition and high temperature reduce the 'virulence' of fig wasps and contribute to the stability of a fig-wasp mutualism', Plos One, vol.4, e7802
Dunn DW, Yu DW, Ridley J, Chan R, Segar S, Crozier RH, Cook JM, (2008) 'A role for parasites in stabilising the fig-pollinator mutualism', PLoS Biol, vol.6: e59
Moore JC, Obbard DJ, Reuter C, West SA, Cook JM, (2008) 'Fighting strategies in two species of fig wasp', Animal Behaviour, vol.76, pp 315-322
Oliver TH, Leather SR, Cook JM, (2008) 'Macroevolutionary patterns in the origin of mutualisms involving ants', J. Evol. Biol, vol.21, pp 1597-1608
Ronsted N, Weiblen GD, Savolainen V, Cook JM, (2008) 'Phylogeny, biogeography, and ecology of Ficus section Malvanthera (Moraceae)', Mol. Phylogen. Evol, vol.48, pp 12-22
Haine E, Martin J, Cook JM, (2006) 'Deep mtDNA divergences indicate cryptic species in a fig-pollinating wasp', BMC Evol. Biol, vol.6, p 83
Haine E, Cook JM, (2005) 'Evidence from three genes for horizontal transfer of Wolbachia in Drosophila-parasitoid communities', Ecological Entomology, vol.30, pp 464-472
Haine ER, Cook JM, (2005) 'Convergent incidences of Wolbachia infection in fig wasp communities from two continents', Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B, vol.272, pp 421-429
Ronsted N, Weiblen G, Machado C, Cook JM, Savolainen V, (2005) '60 million years of co-cladogenesis in the fig-pollinator symbiosis', Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B, vol.272, pp 2593–2599
Cook JM, Bean D, Power SA, Dixon DJ, (2004) 'Evolution of a complex coevolved trait: active pollination in a genus of fig wasps', J. Evol. Biol, vol.17, pp 238-246
Cook JM, Rasplus J-Y, (2003) 'Mutualists with attitude: coevolution of fig wasps and figs', Trends Ecol. Evol, vol.18, pp 241-248
Lopez-Vaamonde C, Godfray HCJ, Cook JM, (2003) 'Evolutionary dynamics of host-plant use in a genus of leaf-mining moths', Evolution vol.57, pp 1804-1821
Cook JM, Rokas A, Pagel M, Stone GN, (2002) 'Evolutionary shifts between host oak sections and host-plant organs in Andricus gallwasps', Evolution, vol.56, pp 1821-1830
Stone GN, Cook JM, (1998) 'The structure of cynipid oak galls: patterns in the evolution of an extended phenotype', Proc. Royal Soc. London B, vol.265, pp 979-988
Cook JM, Compton SG, Herre EA, West SA, (1997) 'Alternative mating tactics and extreme male dimorphism in fig wasps', Proc. Royal Soc. London B, vol.264, pp 747-754
Cook JM, Crozier RH, (1995) 'Sex determination and population biology in the hymenoptera', Trends In Ecology & Evolution, vol.10, pp 281-286
Cook JM, (1993) 'Sex determination in the Hymenoptera: a review of models and evidence', Heredity, vol.71, pp 421-435