Inaugural Lecture: A career in molecular ecology and evolution: from parasites to pleopods (via pectorals and polyps)

I will walk us through a career in molecular ecology and track my route from researching highly pathogenic African parasitic trypanosomes responsible for sleeping sickness in humans to an understanding of genetic variation in Caribbean spiny lobsters that can inform the selection of brood stock animals for aquaculture. The journey will take us from flies that hang around sheep’s bottoms, through quantification of genetic variation in wild populations of trout in the rivers of Devon and Cornwall, and out to the high seas to explore how we can use genetics to gauge the fidelity of salmon returning to their native rivers, and finally to exploring gene flow in the pink sea fan, a charismatic gorgonian native to the shores of southwest Britain. And, last of all, to the not so humble lobster, where, again, genetics can play a key role in helping to guide the conservation and sustainable exploitation of these delicious creatures. Aside from the organisms we meet along the way, I am also proud to introduce you to some of the wonderful people I have met on my journey, many of whom are now picking up the scientific baton to continue conservation-focused ecological research using the latest genetic and genomic tools.