Students

Marcus Vinicius Muller

My areas of interest in herpetology are ecophysiology, biogeography and conservation of reptiles and amphibians. I am interested in using them as a tool for research in these areas the modeling of space niches as a way to predict the influence of environmental variables on populations. I am currently developing a project that analyzes the relationship between latitude and climate vulnerability of Mozambican lizard species., and support possible conservation measures.

Caetano Luis de Oliveira Mourao

I am very interested in evolution and ecology in general, I aim to understand how animal populations distributions are limited by environmental factors and how those populations answer to changes in the environment. I am also interested in modeling these processes and predicting possible outcomes in a climate changing scenario. I am pursuing an undergraduate project on how phylogenetic history and latitudinal distribution may relate to the climate envelope of anuran species.

Caroline Molina

My areas of interest in scientific research are: population ecology, ecophysiology, ethology, bioacoustics, conservation and natural history of neotropical anurans. I am interested in understanding adaptations of amphibians and reptiles through processes of phenotypic and / or adaptive plasticity in relation to the dynamics in their environment, emerging diseases and climate change. At the moment my masters project evaluates the relation between descriptors of thermal tolerance and the loss of locomotor function in anurans, in stressful thermal and water conditions. This study is necessary to understand climate-driven population reductions in anurans, and how different levels of hydration can influence their thermal tolerance. That information should be useful to support conservation plans for anuran species.

Juan Camilo Díaz

I am widely interested in herpetology, specially of amphibians and reptiles of the Colombian Amazonia. I would like to aid the conservation of herps by studying their natural history, behavior and geograhic distribution, but I am also interested in the manipulation and venom extraction of neotropical elapids and viperids. Right now, I am preparing my PHD project relating the distribution of South American pit vipers with their thermal physiology and behavior

Cleverson Souza

My interest areas include conservation, thermobiology, ecology, physiology and ethology. My study aims to understand how to measure behavioral and physiological thermal tolerance in Brazilian gardener ants (Gen. Atta), and try predict potential consequences of climate warming for their nests.

Refat Jayyusi

I am incredibly interested in conservation biology, in specific to the changes in biodiversity, ecophysiology, and behavioral physiology that come with climate change. Using the voluntary maximum temperatures of differing species of lizards from around the world, we can attempt to plot trends in thermal physiology and changes in their geographic range area. I recently graduated from Arizona State University with a B.S. in Biological Sciences, and am now choosing to attempt to continue my career path in the medical field. Even though this is the case, the importance of this scientific research is directly related to the well being of all living things. In my view, this fully coincides with the main tenets of the world of medicine.