Leigh is deep-sea ecologist specialising in the acquisition, processing and analysis of ROV and AUV imagery and remote sensing data for vulnerable marine ecosystems in the deep ocean.

She graduated in 2013 with a PhD in hydrothermal vent ecology and has participated in over 21 research and field expeditions across the world´s oceans, to explore and investigate a range of deep-sea habitats including seamounts, canyons and chemosynthetic environments.

In 2015, Leigh joined the EV Nautilus to explore the hydrothermal vents and seamounts of the Galapagos Marine Reserve and continues to work with CDF to investigate the abundance and distribution of the animals associated with these relatively inaccessible environments.