I studied in the UK where I received my MSci degree in Marine Biology and Zoology from Bangor University in 2018. After graduating, I followed my passion for coral reef science and moved to the Seychelles where I had the chance to work on a marine conservation field station monitoring the shallow coral reefs around Seychelles’ inner islands. Moving back to the UK in 2019, I have since worked for a deep-sea research institute investigating the mesophotic and deeper reefs of the Western Indian Ocean region. I have always been fascinated by sharks and their role in coral reef ecosystems. Having witnessed the decline of these charismatic predators first-hand over the last years, my project aims to help build an understanding of their relationship with healthy reef systems and how to manage and conserve their preferred habitats.

My thesis investigates the relationship between reef habitat complexity and habitat use in different species of reef sharks. By combining benthic habitat zonation and structural complexity metrics, prey availability surveys, and acoustic tracking of reef sharks, I want to assess how changes to reef structure and associated changes in reef fish communities can affect fine-scale habitat suitability choices of coral reef top predators.