My research focuses on the evolution of parasitic and carnivorous plants, and plant diversity in floristic hotspots including the Mediterranean Basin, Macaronesia, Southeast Asia, and Japan. Specifically, I am interested in speciation and adaptive radiations in cryptic parasitic and carnivorous plant groups, as well as taxonomic diversity in biodiversity hotspots. A more recent research focus, working with scientists from other disciplines, is on technological applications of plants, or ‘biomimetics’ (the synthesis of synthetic materials or systems that mimic biological processes). I supervise PhD/DPhil/MSc and undergraduate projects on a range of topics linked to my research. These include, for example: interdisciplinary projects examining the trapping mechanisms of carnivorous pitcher plants, biomimetics, and the evolution of parasitism in plants. My students work on plant collections housed at the Botanic Garden and Arboretum.
