Hello and welcome!
I’m a naturalist and explorer at heart, fascinated by biodiversity and its evolution. I recently finished my PhD in Zoology at the University of British Columbia with Prof. Wayne Maddison, working on the systematics and taxonomy of jumping spiders (Salticidae).
My doctoral research focused on two salticid groups, the plexippines and the aelurillines. Using ultraconserved element (UCE) data, I reconstructed their phylogenies, tested how well the current classification holds up, and revised the limits of their genera. Right now I’m preparing my plexippine generic review for submission and working with Dr. Galina Azarkina on a generic revision of the aelurillines. Along the way, I’ve also published a number of smaller taxonomic papers on jumping spiders, which you can find under Publications.
I’ll be starting a postdoc soon, so stay tuned for more on those projects!
With biodiversity, and the taxonomists who describe it, disappearing fast, progress in taxonomy depends on collaboration. If you’d like to chat about salticid taxonomy, systematics, or a potential project, please get in touch.