My research focuses on animal responses to environmental change, with a particular emphasis on how behaviour and movement shape zoonotic spillover risk. I am the Scientific Lead of the Horizon Europe project RESTOREID, which investigates how ecosystem degradation and restoration alter infectious disease dynamics, and how nature-based solutions can be leveraged to reduce disease risk.

My work combines movement ecology, behavioural ecology, and disease ecology, developing new tools to uncover the mechanisms linking animal behaviour to pathogen transmission. I use and design biologgers and proximity sensors to test theoretical predictions of spillover risk, including an edge-AI–enabled biologger for monitoring horse movement.

A major strand of my research is acoustic ecology. I have developed passive acoustic monitoring systems using edge AI to analyse soundscapes in real time, with extensive work on bat acoustics, linking social behaviour and movement to vocal activity. I currently lead a multi-partner project mapping bat social soundscapes to behaviour in North Wales.

Beyond Europe, I contribute to applied surveillance, including the development of an Early Warning System for Vector Borne Diseases in Colombia, which uses mosquito blood-meal analysis to identify host communities and track biodiversity change relevant to disease emergence.

RESTOREID (Restoring Ecosystems to Stop the Threat of (Re-)Emerging Infectious Disease) is a Horizon Europe research initiative (2024–2027) funded to explore how ecosystem restoration, biodiversity and disease dynamics intersect. It seeks to understand when, where and through what mechanisms ecological restoration can help prevent or mitigate zoonotic spillover, the transmission of pathogens from wildlife to people, and how restoration may also influence broader ecosystem and human health.

The project recognises that while landscape degradation increases spillover risk, it is not yet clear which restoration actions, scales or contexts effectively reduce that risk, or how restoration changes species interactions, human–environment contact, biodiversity patterns, and pathogen transmission. RESTOREID integrates ecological, social, and health perspectives to fill this knowledge gap.

RESTOREID combines innovative monitoring and modelling methods, including biodiversity diagnostics, acoustic and eDNA assessments, participatory scenario mapping, and social science engagement, to test hypotheses about ecological and behavioural mechanisms affecting disease outcomes. It also develops tools to support policy-relevant decision-making and community engagement, such as interactive games and knowledge platforms, helping translate scientific insight into practical strategies for healthier landscapes and safer coexistence of people and wildlife.

Early Warning System for Vector Borne Diseases in Colombia is  a SNIS funded project investigating how knowledge on biodiversity can be leveraged to provide insights into, and early warnings about vector borne pathogen hazard. Vector-borne diseases like malaria, yellow fever, dengue, and Zika cause over 700,000 deaths annually, a toll worsened by climate change, biodiversity loss, and land-use change. In tropical regions, limited public health capacity means outbreaks are often detected too late.This project is developing an early warning system that combines invertebrate-derived DNA (iDNA) from mosquito blood meals with climate, land-use, and community vulnerability data to predict outbreak risk. In Tolima, Colombia, researchers will detect pathogens and host species from mosquitoes collected across different landscapes, integrating results into spatial models to identify high-risk areas.Co-developed with Colombia’s national surveillance system and in collaboration with the WHO, the approach will produce open-access tools, training materials, and policy guidance to support adoption in other vulnerable regions.The project unites experts from Bangor University (UK), Universidad de los Andes (Colombia), ETH Zurich (Switzerland), the Secretaría de Salud de Tolima, the Civil Society Nature Reserve “Charco Azul”, the Colombian Primatological Association, and other partners.

I teach the following courses:

- Telling Data Driven Stories in Conservation: How to plan, carry out, analyse and report an effective scientific study (MSc)

- Organismal Diversity - Chiropteran diversity (BSc)

- Parasites and Pathogens (BSc)

Student projects with me can cover the following:

• Bat ecology
• Animal movement and behaviour
• Acoustic ecology
• Functional diversity under different ecological conditions
• Parasitology

Supervision: 

PhD

Cato Vangenechten (co-supervised with Joachim Marien, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Belgium and Sophie Gryseels, University of Antwerp, Belgium)

Project title: Restoring nature’s health: Investigating the effects of 
ecosystem restoration on zoonotic disease risk

Baraka Edson Mwamandula (co-supervised with Joachim Marien, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Alfan Riga and Apia Massawe, Sokoine University of Agriculture). 

Project title: Unravelling Zoonotic Pathogen Transmission Among Small Mammals And Their Ectoparasites in Degraded and Restored Habitats

Owen Storer (co-supervised with Alex Georgiev and Amy Ellison, Bangor University)

Project title: Parasites in Zanzibar Red Colobus: Linking Human Disturbance to Infection Patterns

MRes / MSc

Lauren Webster (co-supervised with Amy Ellison)

Project Title: Dietary Preference and Gut Microbiota Composition of Frugivorous Phyllostomids Within Fragmented Landscapes of the Ecuadorian Chocó