Red X iconGreen tick iconYellow tick icon

Robert Poulin

Tel +64 3 479 7983
Email robert.poulin@otago.ac.nz

Teaching

Research interests

Ant affected by a parasite 186
Parasitic incursion on an ant.

Professor Poulin's research interests extend across parasitism, ecology, evolution and marine ecosystems:

  • Evolutionary ecology of parasites
  • Effect of parasites on communities and ecosystems
  • Manipulation of host phenotype by parasites

Learn more about this research:
Evolutionary and Ecological Parasitology research group website

Robert is also a member of the Coastal People: Southern Skies collaboration that connects communities with world-leading, cross-discipline research to rebuild coastal ecosystems.
Coastal People: Southern Skies

Postgraduate projects

Thaumamermis zealandica in its amphipod host 186
Thaumamermis zealandica in its amphipod host.

  • Parasitism of molluscs and community structure in marine intertidal ecosystems
  • Impact of parasitism on coastal crustacean species
  • Evolution of abbreviated life cycles in parasitic trematodes
  • Manipulation of invertebrate behaviour by parasites, including the physiological mechanisms involved
  • Molecular genetics of helminth parasite

Publications

Li, C.-H., & Poulin, R. (2025). Biased availability of genetic data for parasites: It's all about the host. International Journal for Parasitology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2025.05.007 Journal - Research Article

Li, C.-H., Wang, Y. R., Lesack, K., Xiao, X., Pollock, S. M. J., Jonsdottir, T. K., … Poulin, R. (2025). Perceptions of parasites: Reflections from a new parasitology outreach initiative. Trends in Parasitology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.pt.2025.05.006 Journal - Research Other

Poulin, R., & Bennett, J. (2025). Evolutionary biology of aquatic parasites. In N. J. Smit & B. Sures (Eds.), Aquatic parasitology: Ecological and environmental concepts and implications of marine and freshwater parasites. (pp. 277-295). Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-83903-0_11 Chapter in Book - Research

Hasegawa, R., Poulin, R., & Salloum, P. M. (2025). Testing for consistency in co-occurrence patterns among bacterial taxa across the microbiomes of four different trematode parasites. Microbial Ecology, 88, 45. doi: 10.1007/s00248-025-02545-w Journal - Research Article

Correia, S., Fernández-Boo, S., Vera, M., Poulin, R., & Magalhães, L. (2025). Advances, challenges, and applications of laboratory culture of digenean trematode parasites. Advances in Parasitology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/bs.apar.2025.04.001 Journal - Research Article

Back to top