Projects

Our research broadly applies genetic and genomic approaches to address questions of management and conservation concern across local and regional scales.

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Much of our work focuses on addressing knowledge gaps in marine turtle natural history. Nesting females are iconic for displaying natal philopatry, the ability to navigate to the region where they hatched to lay their eggs. However, oceanic juveniles may disperse across entire ocean basin gyres before returning to coastal areas as juveniles. Upon reaching sexual maturity, these females may nest in close proximity to their foraging home range, or they may make seasonal migrations of hundreds or thousands of kilometers to reach their nesting beaches. Genetic and genomic approaches are fundamental in elucidating this life cycle and identifying plasticity at the individual and population levels.

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Research interests include characterizing the degree of isolation or demographic connectivity among nesting populations and resolving migratory connectivity, the spatial ecology of individuals representing discrete populations throughout their life cycles. Building a cohesive picture of marine turtle natural history and spatial ecology necessitates collaborations across geography and disciplines. We collaborate with researchers employing telemetry, stable isotopes, and other techniques to resolve dispersal and seasonal movements. This interdisciplinary approach addresses fundamental questions in population ecology that also inform management and conservation.