I am an evolutionary ecologist whose research takes a multi-disciplinary, integrative approach to understanding evolutionary diversification. Focusing on the diversity of lizards in the genus Anolis, my group combines studies of ecology, behavior, functional morphology, genomics and systematics to address why the evolutionary radiation of anoles (400+ species) has been so successful and how particular species adapt to their environments. To address these questions, my colleagues and I conduct experimental studies of evolution in nature, sequence genomes, observe animals in their natural habitats to study behavior and ecology, and bring lizards into the laboratory for biomechanical, physiological and developmental studies.
Awards and Achievements
- Theodosius Dobzhansky Prize, Society for the Study of Evolution ( 1991)
- David Starr Jordan Prize ( 1998)
- Forty Under Forty Award, St. Louis Business Journal ( 1999)
- John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship ( 2005)
- Edward Osborne Wilson Naturalist Award, American Society of Naturalists ( 2009)
- Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal, National Academy of Sciences ( 2012)
- Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences ( 2012)