I am interested in anthropogenic effects on the ecology of terrestrial species and how these interact with parasites and diseases. My main study systems are Avipoxvirus in Dunnocks, and flat/louse flies (Diptera: Hippoboscidae) as vectors of avian disease. However, working on a neglected group of ectoparasites, such as the Hippoboscidae, has required me to resolve issues with taxonomy and to determine species current ranges and host associations. I have recently expanded the citizen science approach used to study louse flies on birds in the “Mapping the UK’s Flat Flies Project” to include other members of family Hippoboscidae, the bat flies and keds which are found on mammals.
My research is funded by a Department of Biology Varley-Gradwell Travelling Fellowship in Insect Ecology, a British Deer Society Major Grant, and a British Ornithological Union (BOU) Small Research Grant. It also benefits greatly from my collaborations with researchers both within the Department of Biology, and outside it, including those at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), Darwin Tree of Life Project, University of Bath, University of Bristol, Keele University, Sorbonne Université Paris, National Museum of Natural Sciences Madrid, and elsewhere. I am also grateful to all the citizen scientists who collect specimens for my projects - without them there would be no research.
UK Recorder for Hippoboscidae
