I am interested in mating behaviour of spiders, specifically sexual conflict and mate choice. Within the MSCA Global Fellowship, I investigate the mating tactics of males of the brown widow spider Latrodectus geometricus. In this species, males mate not only with adult females but also with immature females before they molt to the adult stage. I am exploring the costs and benefits of these mating tactics for both sexes.

In the Uhl lab at the University of Greifswald, I started working on Latrodectus mate choice. During my current outgoing phase of the MSCA, which I spend at the University of Toronto in the Andrade lab, I explore different aspects of mate choice and mating success of the two mating tactics in L. geometricus. Upon return to Greifswald - during the MSCA incoming phase - I will investigate the mechanistic and functional aspects of the mating tactics using morphological methods (histology, SEM, MicroCT, TEM). Within the project, I further closely collaborate with Yael Lubin from the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.