I'm PhD candidate in the Chapman Lab at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Science at Stony Brook University working in Conservation Genetics and Molecular Ecology.
For my dissertation I am looking at the genetic diversity of threatened and endangered fishes in the Northwest Atlantic. As populations decline theoretical ecology predicts a decline of genetic diversity which forms the most basic layer of biodiversity. Reduced genetic diversity is expected to result in a decline of population fitness. I am exploring the genetic effects of population decline on a variety of fish species ranging from silversides to white sharks.
Other projects I am involved in include using genetic barcoding to identify shark fins and gut contents as well looking at population structure and taxonomy of various fish species using molecular techniques.
