Biography

My PhD research at Cambridge integrated genetic and behavioural studies to address questions related to the function and evolution of song in Neotropical birds. One aim of my research was to understand the function of avian duets, joint acoustic displays between a mated pair of birds. The second aim of my research was to explore the role of learned songs in the process of speciation. The unifying goal is to increase our understanding of the processes that generate and maintain biological diversity, particularly in tropical ecosystems. I am a member of the Yanayacu Natural History Research Group in Ecuador whose aim is to describe the natural histories of little-known tropical species in order to contribute to a deeper understanding of tropical ecology, evolutionary biology, and the diversity of organisms that share our planet.