Personnel

Michael (Michi) Tobler

E. Desmond Lee Professor in Zoological Studies

Michi graduated with a Ph. D. from the University of Zürich. He is interested in a wide range of questions in evolutionary biology. His current work leverages livebearing fishes as a model to ask questions about the origins of functional trait diversity and speciation. He strives to make science – and biology in particular – accessible to broad audiences.

Postdoctoral researchers

Bethany Williams

NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Bethany received her PhD from the Ohio State University in 2023. She is interested in understanding how multiple stressors shape organismal responses and whether those responses are predictable. During her PhD she studied the effects of multiple stressors on reproductive physiology and behavior in an African cichlid. Bethany’s current research addresses how multiple stressor tolerance in fish from sulfidic environments arises from the interactions between genotypes, phenotypes, and the environment.

Graduate students

Casey Ernest

PH.D. Student

Casey earned her B.S. in Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology from Purdue. Her research interests are how life histories drive differential survival in endangered species and how these traits can be used to maximize management efficiency. Casey’s masters thesis is focused on assessing the genetic and environmental health of endangered Pecos gambusia in New Mexico.

Erik Johnson

Ph.D. student

Erik received a B.S. in Biology from Brigham Young university in 2022. He is interested in the evolution of asymmetrical traits. His current research focuses on how asymmetric traits influence behavior and how they are maintained broadly in livebearing fish. He also looks at how these morphological asymmetries are connected with other traits such as brain structure and gonopodial complexity.

Soren Johnson

Ph.D. student

Soren received a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from Olivet Nazarene University in 2019. After undergrad he spent a year and a half working for the Illinois Natural History Survey at the Lake Michigan Biological Station as a fisheries technician. He then went on to receive his Master of Science in Biology from Southeastern Louisiana University in 2022. He is broadly interested in genomics and ichthyology and is specifically interested in how adaptation to an extreme environment occurs across a gradient.

Undergraduate students

Zoe Ellis

Zoe earned her Associate’s in Marine Environmental Technology, Certificate of Research Scuba Diving, and PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor Certificate in 2022 from The College of the Florida Keys. She is now pursuing a B.S. in Biology through UMSL. She hopes to continue to a graduate program focusing on coral reef ecology and conservation.

 

Allison Lendman

Allison completed her Associate of Science in General STEM Transfer Studies during high school and is now pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biology at the University of Missouri – St. Louis. Her current focus involves studying habitat-driven behavior plasticity through her experience in fish care. Allison is passionate about advancing her research involvement throughout her academic journey and aspires to earn an MD in Gynecology. 

 

Kegan Morrow

Kegan is attending the University of Missouri – Kansas City pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biology. He is interested in how phenotypes change in invasive species due to the new selective pressures of non-native ranges. He is starting the application process for the UMSL PhD program. 

 

 

Kyliyah Walker

Kyliyah has earned her Associates at Jefferson College and transferred to UMSL to complete her Bachelor’s degree in biology. She is currently studying the ability of sulfidic fish to withstand multiple stressors based on their diet. She aspires to conduct research and preserve African wildlife through conservation after she graduates with her degree.