Research

Research Interests

My research integrates modern and fossil museum specimens, CT scanning and 3D visualization, fieldwork, and a variety of analytical methods. I'm primarily interested in studying the morphology, (paleo)ecology, biogeography, and systematics of crocodylians and squamates and elucidating the relationships between these reptiles and their environments during the Cenozoic Era (the last ~66 million years of Earth history) in North America.

Squamates

My research on squamates (lizards and snakes) is primarily focused on: (1) exploring modern and fossil squamate biogeography; (2) investigating extant squamate morphology as it pertains to ecological traits and environmental factors; (3) describing squamate fossils from the Paleogene of the Western Interior; and (4) applying ecomorphological methods developed with extant taxa to reconstruct the paleoecology of extinct squamates.

Grant Support

Richard Estes Memorial Grant, Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (2018)

Joyce Davenport Natural History Award, Bell Museum, University of Minnesota (2018)

Thesis Travel Grant, Graduate School, University of Minnesota (2018)

Crocodylians

My research on crocodylians has several main emphases: (1) describing crocodylian fossils and deciphering their phylogenetic relationships; (2) investigating the paleoecology of extinct crocodylians using the stable isotope geochemistry of fossilized tooth enamel; and (3) using the geographic distributions and climatic tolerances of modern crocodylians in concert with crocodylian fossils to reconstruct Cenozoic paleoclimates.

Grant Support

University Scholars Program, Center for Undergraduate Research, University of Florida (2013-2014)

Yatkola-Edwards Student Research Grant, Nebraska Geological Society (2015)

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