Recent News
Hot off the presses is “Using pictographs as traits to explore morphological diversity in sharks ” in Ecology and Evolution. Building off approaches we developed in our last collaborative publication—"Functional and phylogenetic diversity of sharks in the Northeast Pacific"—we showcase methods and validation of using scientific drawings, formally called pictographs, in trait-based ecology and evolution analyses. We captured 473 pictographs from 67 species of Carcharinidae (requiem sharks), Sphyrnidae (hammerhead sharks), and Lamniformes (mackerel sharks) from 12 sources (field-guides, reports, and posters) and 9 illustrators . Not only did pictograph-based measurements match those collected on actual specimens but illustrators were remarkably similar facilitating the broader use of these valuable scientific illustrations. Article is open access so feel free to read.
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About Me
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I am a quantitative ecologist and fisheries scientist studying patterns across the ecological hierarchy in search of the processes that link individuals to populations, populations to communities, and communities to ecosystems. I specialize in integrating analytical methods into synthetic models aimed at providing robust inference and filling data gaps. I have applied these integrated models in a broad set of interdisciplinary problems ranging from building risk maps for conservation and natural resource priority species to estimating life history characteristics of data-deficient species. Above all, I enjoy solving puzzles across the natural sciences. With a background in biology and chemistry, it is no wonder that my other interests feature these subjects prominently. I am an avid gardener with a collection of Zingiberales and orchids. I take much of my gardening inspiration by exploring the natural world and especially enjoy hunting for rare plants in situ. I try my hand at photography both in the garden and out exploring so the photos featured here are my own. |
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My Background I received a B.S. in Biology and B.A in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina Wilmington in 2013, staying on for my M.S. studying the spatial and movement ecology of Basking Sharks in the Bay of Fundy. I completed my PhD at the University of Florida in 2017 studying the role of habitat in structuring aquatic interactions. I stayed on as a postdoctoral researcher from 2018-2020 before becoming an assistant research scientist working on an ecosystem-based fisheries management initiative in collaboration with NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center.
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