I am an evolutionary biologist interested mainly in the process of adaptive evolution in the context of coevolutionary systems. I use diverse methods to study these phenomena, including evolutionary biochemistry, biophysics, and comparative genomics. I am particularly interested in how adaptive coevolution can be understood at the molecular, functional, and phenotypic level. I am currently a NIH TREM Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Minnesota department of  Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior (Lab of Dr Suzanne McGaugh).

Though the study of coevolutionary relationships has been a focal point of evolutionary biology, demonstrating a truly reciprocally evolving interaction at the molecular and functional level in an empirical system has remained elusive. My PhD research focused on understanding the molecular and functional history of traits involved in an interspecific coevolutionary arms races.  My current research is focused on employing comparative genomic methods to uncover the genetic basis of complex adaptive traits in cavefish, with the intent to apply them in the future to diverse systems, including future coevolutionary research. 

I have studied evolutionary dynamics of several systems including marsh grasses, Diamondback Terrapins, and the Vegas Valley Leopard Toad. My PhD work focused on coevolutionary interactions between mammals and venomous snakes. My current work utilizes genomic resources and the unique biology of cavefishes to examine the genetic basis of convergent adaptive evolution.