My research focusses on the evolution and phylogenetics of molluscs, using a broad range of tools and sources of data, from genetics to anatomy and physiology to palaeontology.

For up to date information please see: http://www.qub.ac.uk/qml/People/Sigwart

In particular I use the Polyplacophora (also called chitons or coat-of-mail shells) to test ideas about diversity and evolution under morphological constraint. Chitons are 'living fossils' that have changed little in their external morphology for hundreds of millions of years; because of this they make excellent models to investigate what we can (and cannot) understand about evolution from different sources of biological data.