People

Craig Albertson (PI)

Generally speaking, my lab seeks to understand how genotype is translated to phenotype over development, with implications for both adaptation and disease. Our approach to this mission is integrative, as we work within several different theoretical frameworks, focus on multiple levels of biological organization, and utilize many different experimental methods. Image: Craig at the Burgress Shale (2017) standing atop a pile of Cambrian fossils! (photo credit: I. Dworkin).

rcraigalbertson@gmail.com; rcalbert@umass.edu

Andy Conith (Postdoc)

My research focuses on investigating the ecological and evolutionary dynamics that influence phenotypic diversity in cichlids, with a particular emphasis on understanding the roles of modularity and integration in shaping morphological evolution of the skull. I am particularly interested in how changes in the level of integration (the degree of covariation among sets of traits) can influence morphological disparity and the rate of morphological evolution. To this end, I use a variety of approaches to illuminate how cichlids have achieved such a great taxonomic, trophic, and morphological diversity including geometric morphometrics, quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis, and phylogenetic comparative analysis. The ultimate goal of my research is to gain a more holistic understanding of how developmental, morphological, and functional parameters contribute to constraining or facilitating vertebrate biodiversity. Analyzing these factors together will provide a means to test how certain trait complexes have arisen, persist, and perform as a unit.

ajconith @bio.umass.edu

Personal Website:

http://people.umass.edu/ajsmi1/index.html

Researchgate for publication PDFs:

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andrew_Conith

Google Scholar Profile:

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=DmhfavEAAAAJ&hl=en