Colorado State University

I have diverse research interests, including education research and primary research on the impact of accurate species delimitation on conservation and management issues. I teach a variety of courses in the department, including Mammalogy (BZ 330), Field Mammalogy (BZ 340), Range Shifts in a Changing World (BZ 342), and Principles of Systematic Science (BZ 424). I teach an Honors seminar entitled "Being Human" (HNR 392) and a spring seminar on the role of museums in science and engagement.

As the Director of the Animal Diversity Web and an educator, I am interested in the impact of authentic, data-driven inquiry on student engagement and learning gains in biology classrooms. As a QUBES Mentor, I work with faculty across the United States to improve integration of quantitative and data-driven skills into undergraduate classrooms. I also work directly with dozens of undergraduate educators every year to provide and assess the value of writing-in-the-discipline experiences in natural history.

I study phylogeographic patterns and species delimitation in North American Myotis bats. In particular, I work on the Myotis lucifugus/long-eared Myotis group, which represents a recent, rapid radiation into a variety of ecological roles. This group of species is impacted by white-nose syndrome, an invasive fungal disease that is devastating bat populations in eastern North America. As this disease moves west, it will impact the more fragmented populations of western Myotis species. In addition, I am involved in research on the spatial ecology of North American bats, including hoary bats, big brown bats, and lesser long-nosed bats.

My undergraduate degree is in Integrative Biology from the University of California Berkeley and my PhD is in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Michigan. In both places I studied in a museum collection context and I am passionate about the importance of natural history research collections in science and education.