Research Fellow, Biosciences, University of Exeter
I am interested in the complex interactions that govern collective behaviour, ecology, and self-organisation within social insects. My research centres upon the intersection between fundamental investigations of colony functioning, and applied work in ecology and epidemiology. I use ants, honeybees, bumblebees and termites as models to assess network dynamics, with a focus on the role of interindividual heterogeneity.
Currently, I am studying honeybee epidemiology and genetics, the dynamics of parasite-pathogen interactions within insect colonies, collective decision-making in ants, and the detection and behavioural classification of invasive hornets using artificial intelligence.
The central aim of my research is to leverage an understanding of the rules underpinning complex systems; both to solve real-world challenges, and enhance mechanistic knowledge at a variety of scales. I value social insect models, as they provide tractable and fascinating tools with which to investigate applied and fundamental questions in biology.
Electricity from farm waste: how biogas could help Malawians with no power
What the Supreme Court is doing right in considering Trump’s immunity case
US student Gaza protests: five things that have been missed
Will Solomon Islands’ new leader stay close to China?
IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects