Research

I am a Juniorprofessor (Evolutionary and Ecological Data Science) at the University of Trier, Germany. My research focuses on understanding how evolutionary innovations and extreme adaptations arise, and how complex phenotypes are encoded and shaped at the genomic level. In particular, I am interested in the extent to which similar traits evolve through shared or distinct genetic mechanisms across independent lineages.

A central model system in my work is the olm (Proteus anguinus), a long-lived cave salamander that exhibits a suite of modifications to subterranean life, including eye and pigmentation loss, elongated morphology, and exceptional longevity. To investigate the genomic basis of these traits, my collaborators and I have generated genomic resources  for this species, enabling us to study how complex cave phenotypes evolve and are maintained over evolutionary timescales.

Another key focus of my research is the repeated evolution of reproductive strategies and colour polymorphisms in common lizards (Zootoca vivipara). These systems provide powerful opportunities to investigate the genomic architecture of major life-history transitions, such as the evolution of parity mode, as well as the mechanisms underlying colour variation and its ecological and evolutionary consequences.

I integrate ecological, phylogenetic, population genetic, and genomic data within a statistical framework to study the origin and genomic architecture of complex traits. A key aspect of my approach is the use of replicate systems in which similar traits have evolved independently, allowing me to disentangle general principles of evolutionary change from lineage-specific processes.

While much of my empirical work focuses on reptiles and amphibians, I also work across a wider range of taxa, including other vertebrates, to test the generality of evolutionary mechanisms. Recent advances in sequencing technologies and analytical methods now make it possible to reconstruct the genomic basis of phenotypic evolution even across deep evolutionary timescales, providing unprecedented insights into how complex traits originate.

If you want to find out more on my research, please check my publications or my Google Scholar or ResearchGate profile