RESEARCH PROJECTS:

I am presently working on multiple projects in both temperate and tropical systems. The basic question underlying my research is how do organisms adapt to changing environmental conditions and what factors facilitate and constrain adaptation?

A major component of my research involves studying evolutionary diversification of Alaskan threespine stickleback. Threespine stickleback are rapidly becoming one of the most important systems in evolutionary biology. My research includes contemporary evolution of a recently established lake population, the interplay between geneflow and natural selection in a diverse lake-stream system, and the osteological basis of body shape evolution. You can learn more by clicking on the link below:

The Pattern and Process of Evolutionary Diversification: Lessons from a Threespine Stickleback Adaptive Radiation

I'm also interested in tropical systems, particularly in northwestern South America. I am presently developing research projects on the evolutionary biology of freshwater fishes in western Ecuador. The fauna was isolated by the rise of the Andes millions of years ago and is quite old and specialized. It is also under severe threat from anthropomorphic pressures. Western Ecuador has been severely impacted by deforestation, over fishing, and pollution from agricultural run off. You can learn more about this aspect of my research by clicking here:

The Freshwater Fishes of Western Ecuador

Other:

These are research topics that I haven't actively worked on in a while. They may be of interest nonetheless.

The Neotropical Sciaenidae
Fish Otoliths, Hearing, and Growth
Skeletal Anomalies of Ecuadorian Marine Mammals

Last Updated: December 1, 2007