(Cornell Ph.D. student) I work at the interface between population-level processes and macroevolutionary pattern, using approaches from population genetics, phylogenetics, and evolutionary ecology. My specific research interests include (1) the role of landscape heterogeneity and ecological specialization in the diversification of Australia's arid-zone lizards, (2) factors influencing variation in diversification rates among clades, (3) the role of evolutionary history in structuring local communities, and (4) systematics and biodiversity of squamate reptiles.
 Crotalus adamanteus, Ocala National Forest, Florida.
I would also like to understand how extrinsic ecological factors and intrinsic (species or individual level) traits affect speciation and extinction rates. It is increasingly apparent that non-random patterns of cladogenesis and extinction can leave a large “footprint” both on extant biodiversity and on the raw material available for future evolutionary processes. My work in this area currently involves developing computational tools for the analysis of diversification rates. For my M.S. research (at Penn State), I studied the systematics of Australian blindsnakes (Ramphotyphlops), and I maintain an interest in the evolution and ecology of this fascinating but poorly known group.
 Crotalus viridis lutosus, Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, Utah.
|
 Dan with desert tortoise in southwestern Utah.
I am using a comparative population genetic approach to determine how ecological breadth and dispersal ability interact with habitat diversity to influence population structure in several species of Australian desert lizards. This region is home to some of the most species-rich lizard communities on the planet, yet we know remarkably little about the evolutionary and ecological factors that contribute to this diversity.
 Amazon sunset, Parque Nacional Yasuní, Ecuador.
|
What We Do
People