Research Interests

I am interested in understanding the historical processes that generate patterns of diversity and led to species radiations in Southern African reptiles and amphibians. Although I am involved in multi-taxa projects (see links below), most of my time and thoughts are directed toward chameleons, especially the dwarf chameleons (Bradypodion). In particular, I am working on landscape genetics, phylogenetics, and taxonomy in this family of lizards. Recently, I have begun to incorporate climatic models with landscape genetics although this is a field still in its infancy. Further research relates to habitat fragmentation (past, present, and future) and how this affects migration and gene flow. This idea is especially relevant from a conservation standpoint, as the modern day African landscape is highly fragmented and degraded due to human activities. For this work, we are combining fine-scale genetic data with spatial data on chameleon movements (through mark-recapture) to try and assess whether gene flow is impeded across the urban and agricultural landscape.

Visit our South African Amphibian and Reptile Research pages

One of my main collaborative research projects at present is the South African Reptile Speciation Project