I have worked at the Konrad Lorenz Institute for Ethology (Vienna) and at the Experimental Station of Arid Zones (EEZA-CSIC, Almeria). During my research career, I have studied the adaptations of snails to arid environments and life-history evolution in house sparrows (Passer domesticus). Currently, I continue studying life-history evolution in different vertebrates, and also work on the evolution of animal communication, mainly begging behaviour in nestlings, but also processes under sexual selection. Lastly, I am interested in the processes of local adaptation in Mediterranean environments.