My research focuses on how the surrounding environment influences the gastrointestinal tract and digestion in fish species. As a comparative physiologist I look at a number of different fish species, both marine and freshwater, and as an integrative physiologist I use a wide variety of techniques in this pursuit – from molecular biology to behavioural studies. Specifically, my research aims to seek a mechanistic and functional understanding of how animals cope with challenges associated with, and during, feeding and starvation to ultimately answer the question – why do animals have the digestive physiology they do? To answer this my research focuses on two reciprocal questions. How does the environment affect the physiology of the gastrointestinal tract and digestion and why have these responses evolved? How does the physiology of the gastrointestinal tract and digestion affect an organism’s interaction with its environment and why have these responses have evolved? My research is based on three key biological fields: physiology, behavior, and evolution with an emphasis on physiology. While I investigate questions founded solely within each discipline, I also explore questions that exist in the overlap between the disciplines, using a variety of techniques across numerous biological levels.
