The nervous system of vertebrate species evolved to navigate diverse social and environmental terrain. Our research aims to understand the neurobiology of natural rodent behaviour from an ethological perspective. We are interested in how animals sense and respond to their natural environment through olfaction, somatosensation and have a particular interest in the development of social (kinship) behaviour. 

In recent years, our work in Edinburgh and the Marine Biological Laboratory has uncovered whisker sensory processing for wind stimuli (Mugnaini et al 2023 PLOS Biology) and sensory, behavioural and fur-based drying responses to environmental wetness (Attah et al 2024 Scientific Reports). We elucidated tactile mechanisms and skin sensory afferents for the rat pup transport response (Ni et al 2024 Current Biology) and tactile, vocal and kinship dynamics of rat pup huddling behaviour (Rocha-Almeida et al 2025 Brain and Neuroscience Advances). 

In ongoing research, we are working to understand the sensory, vocal and circuit mechanisms underlying reciprocal offspring-caregiver interactions across rodent species and reproductive states. By pursuing a comparative approach across altricial and precocial rodent species, we aim to elucidate evolutionarily conserved and divergent neurobiological principles which will help us understand the development of the social brain and body interactions within reproductive and environmental contexts.

Read more of our publications and preprints.

news

Ann has joined the scientific board of the European Social Club.

New paper: Ontogeny of Tactile, Vocal and Kinship Dynamics in Rat Pup Huddling is now published in Brain and Neuroscience Advances.

New paper: Tactile mechanisms and afferents underlying the rat pup transport response is now published in Current Biology.

Read the dispatch by Schwarz and Leitch: Parental neurobiology: The 4 Hz lullaby

New paper: Sensory Cues, Behavior and Fur-based Drying in the Rat Wetness Response is now in published in Scientific Reports.

New paper: Supra-orbital whiskers act as wind-sensing antennae in rats is now published in PLOS Biology.