Here are the areas in which my lab is currently working, with summaries of past and ongoing research to help guide inquiries by interested students and collaborators, and to efficiently synthesize and disseminate our findings to the research community and general public.

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1. Molecular phylogenetics. Efforts include delimiting and

     describing new species, and placing all taxa in an evolutionary

     framework using molecular data. Our goal is a robust phylogeny

     with which to revise sacoglossan systematics, and for comparative

     studies of trait coevolution and lineage diversification. Click on:

    

     Phylogenetic systematics of Sacoglossa

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     Species discovery and description

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     Comparative analyses: trait evolution, diversification

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2. Larval biology. We continue to investigate the causes and

     consequences of shifts in larval development from dispersive

     to non-dispersive strategies, and the effects of larval type on

     realized gene flow. Check out:

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     Variable larval development (poecilogony)

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     Larval dispersal, behavior and connectivity

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3. Kleptoplasty and sacoglossan ecology. We study

     the ecological and evolutionary consequences of being a

     photosynthetic animal using kleptoplastic species of slugs

     that store functional algal chloroplasts within their cells.
     We are interested in understanding how the functional

     and mechanistic differences among non-retaining, short-

     short-term and long-term retaining kleptoplastic species.

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4. Range limits and local adaptation. Using estuarine

     species along the Californian coast, we investigate the

     ecological and evolutionary factors that set range limits

     and affect local adaptation to range-edge stressors. Such

     studies can yield important insight into predicting range

     shifts in response to ongoing climate change.

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5. Marine chemical ecology. I am interested in diverse

     ecological interactions mediated by chemical signalling

     in the sea, including larval settlement cues, defense from

     predation, and pheromonal cues that affect reproduction.