I grew up on Madeira Island, an experience that profoundly shaped my scientific curiosity and interest in island biogeography and natural history. Being surrounded by endemic species fostered an early fascination with phylogeography, systematics, taxonomy, and zoology, particularly concerning Madeira's lizards and birds. My background as a musician later influenced my work in bioacoustics, focusing on Macaronesian chaffinches. Additionally, I gained hands-on experience through sea turtle rehabilitation. More broadly, I am driven by a desire to understand how ecological, evolutionary, and geographical processes shape biodiversity in both island and continental systems.

Currently, I study the phylogeography of the diademed sand snake (Lytorhynchus diadema), a species complex with poorly resolved genetic diversity and taxonomy. Using genomic data, I investigate its evolutionary history and how arid landscapes have structured populations across its range. This research allows me to expand my focus beyond just island systems while still taking an integrative approach that combines insights from natural history with modern genomic tools. It enables me to explore biodiversity from various perspectives, while informing conservation efforts, and enhancing our understanding of biodiversity in desert ecosystems. 

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