I am a Lecturer in Marine Biology at the University and I study coral populations across a broad depth range, from shallow, tropical coral reefs (<30 m), to the relatively unexplored mesophotic coral ecosystems (30-200 m), and beyond to the cold-water corals of the deep sea (>200 m). I am particularly interested in variation in diversity and community structure along the depth gradient, and the horizontal and vertical connectivity of populations via larval dispersal, and the implications of this on conservation and management of the marine environment. 

Currently, I am working on two key projects. I am investigating the changes in diversity and distribution of mesophotic reefs in the British Indian Ocean Territory in relation to depth and oceanographic drivers. In this project, I will assess the genetic connectivity of sessile reef species across the depth gradient from shallow to mesophotic depths to determine the potential of mesophotic reefs to resupply shallow reefs with larvae following mortality. In the second project (DeepLinks), we are investigating how patterns of population connectivity vary with depth in the deep sea, and how this influences species diversity, using a combination of molecular techniques, modelling and community analysis.

International Society for Reef Studies

Society for Conservation Biology

Marine Biological Association

Deep-sea Biology Society

Member - Challenger 150 Marine Megafaunal Imaging Working Group (2021 - present)

Member - Challenger 150 Indian Ocean Regional Working Group (2021 - present)

Member - Challenger 150 North Atlantic Regional Working Group (2021 - present)

Current PhD Students

Past PhD Students

• Clara Diaz (2019- 2023; Director of Studies): "Investigating the distribution and diversity of mesophotic reefs in the Chagos Archipelago" (funded by the Garfield Weston Foundation)
• Nils Piechaud (2016-2019; 2nd Supervisor): "The application of autonomous underwater vehicles to challenges in marine habitat mapping and predictive species distribution modelling"
• Poppy Hesketh Best - (2017-2020; 5th Supervisor): "Deep-sea Discovery - mining marine environments for novel biologics".

My teaching interests include marine ecology, population genetics, conservation, and tropical marine ecosystems. 
I am Programme Leader for BSc Marine Biology and Oceanography, and I teach on and am module leader for:

• MBIO505 Marine Conservation Theory
• MBIO327 Marine Ecology
• BPIE336 Marine Biology related Placements

I also teach on the following modules:

• MBIO120 Introduction to Marine Biology
• MBIO123 Marine Biology Fieldcourse
• MBIO213 Coastal Biodiversity and Ecology Fieldcourse
• MBIO225 Methods in Marine Biology and Oceanography
• MBIO227 Biological Oceanography Fieldcourse 
• PROJ302 Personal Research Project
• MAR532 Marine Conservation Practice
• MAR533 MSc Marine Conservation Project
• MAR524  MSc Applied Marine Science Dissertation Project
• MBAM5109 MRes Dissertation Project

I also supervise around 5 undergraduate student projects and 2 Masters student projects every year.

Past MRes/MSc students:

• Katie Long (2023; The KwaZulu-Natal Sardine Run: evaluating the Wavelet Hypothesis by analysing the movement of sardines along the east coast of South Africa).
• Rebecca Chambers (2022; Development of a workflow to analyse spatial data from fishing vessels in Sri Lanka to inform development of protected areas and artisanal fisheries regulations).
• Maurice Walkes (2022; An investigation of megafauna associated with buttresses of the cold-water coral, Desmophyllum pertusum, on Rost Reef, Norway).
• Taryn Cadena (2022; Coral reef ecosystem resiliency and methods of conservation by coastal indigenous peoples and coastal communities).

Grants and Contracts:

Co-investigator - Garfield Weston Foundation: Oceanographic drivers of ecosystem variability in the Chagos Archipelago (£500,000; 2020-2022).

Co-investigator - Save Our Seas Foundation: Can coral reefs recover at d'Arros? ($15,000 to Plymouth University).

Researcher/Co-investigator - Garfield Weston Foundation: Conservation strategies for biodiversity hotspots and safe havens in a changing climate: oceanographic drivers of ecosystem variability in the Chagos Archipelago (£1,000,000; 2019-2021).

Researcher/Co-investigator - NERC Grant: Influence of population connectivity on depth-dependent diversity of deep-sea benthic biota (£574,000; 2015-2018)

Research expeditions: