I started at UB in September 2007, after finishing two post-doctoral stints at Brigham Young University (advisor: Michael Whiting), and the University of Wyoming (advisor: David Liberles). I completed my Ph.D. at the University of Leipzig, in Germany, at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, in the Department of Parasitology (advisor: Regine Ribbeck). My doctoral dissertation work was conducted in Peru, and focused on ectoparasites of Cavia spp..

At UB, I am a faculty member of the Department of Biological Sciences, as well as the Graduate Program in Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior <HERE>.

My research interests have always centered around parasites, and the evolution of parasitism. I would define myself broadly as an evolutionary biologist, and I am particularly interested in understanding the connection between the molecular and the phenotypic world.  In order to grasp in both specific and general ways the synergy between gene, protein structure, and organismal phenotype, model systems to explore sequence-function relationships are needed. Such models are for instance bloodsucking parasites, because adaptation not only occurs (often convergently) to their respective hosts, but also related to their function as a vector of certain pathogens. This is why I currently concentrate on studies of two phylogenetically unrelated groups, - the Siphonaptera (fleas), and the bat flies (Nycteribiidae and Streblidae).

Apart from this main focus, I am interested in evolutionary adaptation in general, independent of the organism involved. That is why I am part of projects dealing for instance with the evolution of cave adaptation, the evolution of protein kinases, or paleoparasitology.