History

Dec 2015-present: Personal Professor in Zoology, Zoology, NUIG

Oct 2021-Sept 2025. Head, School of Natural Sciences, University of Galway

2010-Mar 2015: Head of Zoology, School of Natural Sciences, NUIG.

2004-Dec 2015: Senior Lecturer, Zoology Dept. NUIG, Galway, Ireland.

2001-Sept 2004: Lecturer, Biology Dept. NUI, Maynooth, Co. Kildare, Ireland.

Mar 2000- Oct. 2001:Postdoctoral Molecular Biologist, Health Protection Agency, London

Nov 1997- Mar 2000: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Zoology Dept., NHM, London, UK.

June 1998: PhD Zoology University College Galway

Oct 1993: BSc Zoology, University College Galway.

My group are interested in evolution. We explore evolutionary relationships at different taxonomic levels and in different organisms. The main projects currently running in the lab are focused on the evolution of marine sponges and honeybees.

Honeybee Research: We use multiple molecular approaches to understand the population genetics of the bees in Ireland showing that pure Apis mellifera mellifera is still widespread in Ireland. We have found many hundreds of honeybee colonies living in the wild over multiple years and are carrying out further study on these to determine how they can survive in the presence of Varroa and its viruses without chemical treatment. We have been investigating the plants that bees feed on, and how they may be linked to microbiome diversity and honeybee health. Finally we have introduced the use of genomics data science to investigate further questions on detecting hybridisation and genomic signatures of selection.

Sponge Research: We include approaches/information that will inform our understanding of evolution, e.g. ultrastructure of cells and tissues using electron microscopy, the types and functional roles of microbes living inside sponges, the genes and proteins used by sponges to make their skeletons. We now also include the use of OMICS (transcriptomics, genomics, and with collaborators, metabolomics) both for systematics and in the search for novel gene clusters coding for novel chemicals that may be of pharmacological use.

Current team:

Alex Valentine is carrying out a PhD project on a Frontiers for the Future project funded by Research Ireland, called Outside the Box: this project focuses on understanding better the diversity and adaptation of wild honey bees in Ireland using a variaety of approaches including monitoring of wild colonies, investigation of pathogen prevalance in them and managed colonies, assessing impact of introgression on the Irish population and generating genomic data for investigating selection.

Mick Verspuij is carrying out a PhD project on a Biodiversa+ project co funded by the EU and the EPA called FREE-B. This projects seeks to understand patterns of wild honey bee ditribution and density in Ireland and Europe and to investiate using multiple appraoaches patterns of survival and adaptation across a latitudinal gradient. Micks specific project also focuses on habitat use of wild colonies in Ireland and the characterisitcs of the trees and their cavities and locations that facilitate the selfsustain population in Ireland.

Vickie Henshaw works on two projects. She is the beekeeping advisor and assistant on the National Apiculture Programme that is part funded by the EU and part funded by the Deapartment of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Vickie helps manage the experimental hives used to generate data on a low intervention beekeeping approach where we don't treat colonies with acarides to control Varroa and we don't do supplementary feeding. She also generates social media and other educational outputs and liaises with beekeeping groups. She also works on the FREE-B project , a Biodiversa+ project co-funded by the EU and the EPA where she assists in monitoring of wild colonies, and managing the hives containing survivor stock.

SWARM: Sustainable Ways to Advance Reproductive Management in honey bees. US-Ireland r&d pARTNERSHIP CALL in agriculture TRIPARTITE. Total funding  $ 999,860.00, to UoG=€ 350,000. 2026-2031

FREE-B: Studying FREE-living honey Bee colonies in Europe: nature-based solutions to safeguard diversity, ensure resilience, and promote transformative change in beekeeping. Biodiversa+ and the Environmental protection Agency. Consortium leader. Total funding=  €1,157,980.00. Total to University of Galway= €299,938.20. 2025-2028

Project: PROBEE: protecting Irish bees through field trials and metagenomics- informed strategies. Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine & the EU.  National Apiculture Programme (€203,713) Collaborator. 2024-2027

Outside the Box; Diversity and Adaptation of wild honey bees in Ireland. Funded by Research Ireland; 2021-2026

I currently teach courses related to my research activity. These include introducing students to systematics and evolution, particularly animal diveristy, in 2nd year as part of the Evolution and Tree of Life module, in 3rd year I teach topics such as population genetics, selection and speciation within the Evolutionary Biology module and in 4th year I teach phylogenetics and its application to conservation. I also teach Reproduction and Development; an introduction, to 1st year Biology students.

Of course there are a range of other teaching activities like supervising projects also.

I have been also been teaching honey bee genetics as part of the Diploma in Scientiifc Studies (Apiculture).