Research Overview: Past, Present and Future

 

I am a member of the GLiTRS project (Global Insect Threat-Response Synthesis: A Comprehensive and Predictive Assessment of the Pattern and Consequences of Insect Decline), which aims to assess the relative importance of diverse anthropogenic threats for different insect groups globally. The research that I am leading for this project focuses on the consequences of environmental and trait variables for insect community assembly and spatial and temporal diversity patterns. I also have ongoing research on the consequences of pollination versus seed dispersal for plant spread.

In past postdoctoral research, I have investigated the joint evolution of seed dispersal and self-pollination and the importance of pollinators for plant reproduction. Through student supervision, I have also been involved in theoretical research on the origins of structure in plant-pollinator networks and field research on plant-pollinator networks in agricultural systems.
 

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My PhD at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, focused on the importance of self-fertilisation and plant population size for seed production in invasive species, primarily Lilium formosanum, but also Australian Acacia species. In addition, I documented the pollinators of these species in South Africa and assessed performance of offspring from self-fertilisation in field and shade-house experiments. During my first postdoctoral fellowship in the department of Botany and Zoology at Stellenbosch University in South Africa I synthesised data on pollination of South African plant species, especially those in the Greater Cape Floristic Region, and collaborated on a study assessing the relationship between self-fertilisation and dispersal abilities in annual daisy species in Namaqualand in South Africa. Since then I have had two short postdoctoral fellowships in Europe. At Uppsala University in Sweden I started a project on selection on display size in the orchid Gymnadenia conopsea which is ongiong. During my postdoc  at the Unversity of Lausanne in Switzerland I worked towards my ongoing project on the effects of plant density on pollination success.

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In the future I plan to engage further with how plant mating is affected by plant abundance and spatial distribution in combination with pollinator behaviour, plant size and competitive and facilitative interactions with other plant species in the community. I am planning research to assess the relevance of the population biology concept of the Allee effect to community ecology and macroecology.