I studied biology at the University of Aveiro, Portugal (1990 to 1995), where I also carried out a Master Degree on Sciences of Coastal Zones (1999) and taught practical classes of ecology to undergraduates. In 2004, I was awarded a DPhil at the Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology, University of Oxford, as a result of my study on “Breeding ecology, moult and migration of Savi’s Warblers (Locustella luscinioides) in Portugal”.

Then I carried out two long post-docs (2005 to 2014) based at CIBIO/UP (Research Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, University of Porto), Portugal, and also at the Department of Animal Ecology, Lund University, Sweden (hosted by Prof. Dennis Hasselquist).

Currently, I’m employed as a Researcher to work on avian malaria and MHC diversity in House Sparrows (Passer domesticus) within an ERC project awarded to Helena Westerdahl; and on the effect of avian malaria on telomere dynamics in Great Reed Warblers (Acrocephalus arundinaceus) within an experimental setup funded by an ERC project awarded to Prof. Dennis Hasselquist.

I have a broad interest in behavioural ecology and evolutionary biology, and work mostly on natural populations of marshland passerines. My research involves a lot of fieldwork (bird ringing/banding, nest finding, collection of blood and feather samples), lab work (genetics, stable isotope analysis), and statistics. Specific research lines include:

• the life-history trade-offs between breeding, moult and migration;
• the use and analysis of ringing data;
• extra-pair paternity, sexual selection and sex allocation (in my study population of Savi’s Warblers Locustella luscinioides);
• the genetic population structure and migratory connectivity of marshland passerines;
• local adaptation and the evolution of reproductive barriers (in Reed Buntings Emberiza schoeniclus)
• spatial and temporal variation in avian malaria parasites

In addition, I am a member of the Aquatic Warbler Conservation Team and carry out research on this species mostly during the migration period.