Lab Members
Graduate Students
Jackson Phillips
Ph.D. Student
Email: jack.phillips@usu.edu
Insta: @jack.outside
Science interests: macroevolutionary patterns of phenotypic traits, the integration of functional morphology and comparative biomechanics, the evolutionary origin of vertebrate lungs and the history of evolutionary theory.
Thesis focus: Tadpole air-breathing functional morphology and evolution. I study how air-breathing behavior and the associated morphology has evolved across different lineages and ecological guilds.
Other interests: nature photography, travel, and cooking
Julia Soares Parreiras
Ph.D. Student
Email: julia.parreiras@usu.edu
Twitter: @juliasopar
Science interests: Evolutionary processes and environmental pressures that shape anuran traits, especially key innovations that influence phenotypic and ecological diversification (e.g., behavior, shifts to new life habits and colonization of different environments).
Thesis focus: How reproductive strategies and egg laying behavior might have influenced anuran cloacal morphology and physiology diversification across different lineages, life habits and microhabitats.
Other interests: hiking, cooking, baking, plants and gardening, vinyl records and live music
Postdoctoral Researchers
Dr. Sarah McKay Strobel
NSF postdoctoral fellow
Personal website: http://sarahmckaystrobel.com
Email: sarahmckay.strobel@usu.edu
Twitter: @SMcKayStrobel
Science interests: sensory and cognitive processes in animals that experience rapid environmental transitions within their lifetimes and the evolutionary processes that shape morphology, physiology, and behavior to accommodate these transitions
PostDoc: how accelerated growth in early development influences the differentiation of sensory and cognitive systems in anurans (frogs and toads)
Other interests: trail running, mountain biking, baking, sour patch kids
Undergraduate Researchers
Kayla Hancey
Undergraduate Researcher
Utah State University
Scientific Interests: herpetology, organismal physiology, wetland and aquatic ecosystem interactions, all the beautiful happenings involved in ecology and evolutionary biology. I'm interested in maintaining a steady dose of tripping out over life.
Other interests: climbing, mushroom hunting, birding, herping, live music, snowboarding, longboarding, archery, guitar, art history, hockey, reading and learning
Sierra Campbell
Undergraduate Researcher
Utah State University
Scientific Interests: wildlife biology, spatial ecology, forestry
Other interests: fishing, camping, reading, sports, and making treasure hunts for younger siblings
The rest of us
Dr. Molly Womack
Assistant Professor
Email: molly.womack@usu.edu
Twitter: @MollyCWomack
Science interests: macroevolutionary patterns, evolutionary development (evo-devo), trait loss, skeletons, evolutionary constraint, hearing, and sensory ecology
Other interests: dogs and soccer
Salix
Original Lab Dog
Scientific interests: pack life and prey drive
Other interests: most foods and naps
Bufo
Newest Lab Dog
Scientific interests: artificial selection and the microbiome of face folds
Other interests: pretending to be a shark in water and on land
Alumni
Dr. Molly Albecker
Current position: Assistant Professor at University of Houston
Personal website: https://www.albeckerlab.com/
Email: malbecker@gmail.com
Veronica Urgiles Penafiel
Curren position: PhD Student at University of Central Florida (Savage Lab)
Email: vlurgiles@gmail.com
Dr. Genevieve Mount
Current position: Contractor at Magnit Global supporting Boehinger Engleheim
Personal website: https://lizeve.github.io/
Email: ggmountt@gmail.com
