I lead a group of researchers broadly interested in how microbes shape the health of animal hosts. A large focus of our work is on the interaction between host microbiomes and pathogens in wildlife, using amphibians and mammals as model systems. I am also interested in the forces that shape variation among individuals in their microbiome dynamics, and how this variation may influence behaviour, body condition, and response to infection.

As a science hobby / side hustle, I use simulation-based approaches to test how best to apply statistical tools like GLMMs to complex ecological data.

For more information, see the Projects and People pages, and Group News below! Recent papers can be found here

If you’d like to join the lab, please get in touch via email.

Group News

• New Lab Member - Dr April Hayes

April has recently joined the lab as a postdoctoral research fellow on our new UKRI grant investigating the role of migratory birds in the spread of antmicrobial resistance (AMR). Welcome April! More info on the People page.

• PhD Projects for 2027 Start We will soon be advertising for new PhD students to join the lab in 2027 on competitively funded studentships - focussed on wildlide disease and AMR. Watch this space for more information

• New Publication: Gut Microbiome Dynamics and Bovine Tb in European Badgers Tasha’s first first-author publication is now out in Molecular Ecology! Here we examine social group and age effects on gut microbiome in badgers, and ask whether gut microbiome composition predicts susceptibility to bovine Tb. Read the paper here

• NERC PtF Grant: Microbiomes, Scent and Identity in Banded Mongooses We will also soon be recruiting a Postdoc to work on a project examining the role of the microbiome in shaping scent profiles and identity in a social mammal. We want to test the idea that scent-based identity shapes the frequency of conflict and cooperation in animal societies. Lots of lab work and an opportunity to visit the field site in Uganda. Please do get in touch.