Researchers

My research is focused on how the enduring processes of time, climate, and adaptation have shaped the evolution of one of the Sonoran Desert’s most charismatic reptiles, the desert tortoise, Gopherus morafkai.

I first moved to Tucson in 1992 when I started work in the Department of Mammalogy and Ornithology at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. This was my first introduction to the Sonoran Desert and I’ve been a passionate advocate ever since. In 2003 I received an M.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Science from the School of Natural Resources and the Environment at the University of Arizona and in 2015, I received my doctorate. I am currently employed as an Associate Staff Scientist at the University of Arizona Genetics Core where I am involved in a variety of genetic projects from fish to plants to people. In addition I work with National Geographic and Lindblad Expeditions as a “National Geographic Expert” and have accompanied programs to Costa Rica, Panama, Peru, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. I am a past president of the Tucson Herpetological Society and am currently a Scientific Advisor for the Turner Foundation for the Bolson Tortoise Captive Breeding and Repatriation Project.