I studied BSc zoology (1999), and completed a PhD in invertebrate neuroethology (2003), at Newcastle University. Prior to joining IBERS, I had postdoctoral research positions at Newcastle University (2003-2006), and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (2006-2008), and a lectureship in biology at the University of Limerick (2008-2010). I joined IBERS as a lecturer in zoology in 2010.

I am interested in animal behaviour, and the neural mechanisms that underlie it. At the moment I am especially interested in understanding visually-guided behaviour, and I mainly conduct my research on insects and arachnids. My investigations use a range of electrophysiological, behavioural, and computational techniques.