Principal Investigator

Jessica E. Light
​Jessica is interested in evolution, systematics, and population genetics of vertebrates and invertebrates. She’s particularly interested in investigating cospeciation between mammals and their parasitic lice to determine which factors are important in driving their associations. email: jlight2 *at* tamu.edu

Graduate Students

Adrian Castellanos
Adrian is a 6th year PhD student and his research is focused on a comparative phylogeographic study of mammals across Central America. Relying almost entirely on museum specimens, Adrian is collecting molecular and morphological data from two different mammal species. Adrian will include ecological niche modeling and advanced analyses using R to test biogeographic hypotheses across Central America. Adrian is set to defend August 2019.
​email: acastellanos *at* tamu.edu

Natalie Hamilton
Natalie is 1st year PhD student, co-advised by Dr. Michael Morrison. Natalie received her master's in Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology from The Ohio State University. While undertaking her MS research, Natalie focused on big-picture evolutionary questions in sea anemones, with a focus on a parasitic lineage. At Texas A&M, Natalie hopes to use her skills as a geneticist to understand patterns of relationships and migration in populations of the Townsend's big-eared bat. Long-term, Natalie intends to use ecological and genetic tools to aid in the conservation and management of at-risk species. Learn more about Natalie here.

Lacie LaMonica
Lacie is 1st year PhD student, and recently graduated with her B.S. from Texas A&M University. Lacie is interested in mammals, parasites, and loves fieldwork and work at the Biodiversity, Research, and Teaching Collections.  Currently, Lacie is leading up a field team in South Texas searching for the elusive Nelson's pocket mouse.

Brittany Kerr
Brittany is a 2nd year non-thesis MS student, and received her B.S. from Texas A&M University in 2014 (with an emphasis in Vertebrate Zoology). Upon graduating, Brittany was hired by the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine in the Pathobiology Department, Currently, Brittany is a supervisor of a pathology lab in Fairbanks, Alaska. Brittany is interested in the genetics and evolution of cheetahs, Acinonyx jubatus. Long term, Brittany would like to go to veterinary school and would eventually like to work with the Cheetah Conservation Fund. Brittany is set to graduate in December 2019.

Emily McCarthey
Emily is a 1st year non-thesis MS student, and received her B.S from Texas A&M University in 2017. She is currently a 7th grade science teacher in Mesquite Independent School District. Emily is interested in focusing her master’s degree on the impact humans have on biodiversity. Her ultimate goal is to receive her doctoral degree in Higher Education and become a college professor.

Whitney Preisser
Whitney is a 6th year PhD student and she is broadly interested in host-parasite coevolution. For her dissertation, Whitney will be examining parasite communities of cricetid rodents across latitudinal gradients.  To undertake her research, Whitney is diving into the parasite literature, doing a lot of field work (so far, she's collected in Texas, Nebraska, Canada, Costa Rica, and Mexico), performing intensive dissections and preparing specimens for accession into the BRTC. Whitney recently defended and is graduated August 2019. She's off for a post doc with Chelsea Wood at the University of Washington. We'll miss you Whitney! email: wpreisse*at*tamu.edu

Leila Siciliano-Martina
Leila is a 4th year PhD student interested in evolutionary changes in the morphology of mammal species due to anthropogenic drivers. She has a masters degree in zoology from Michigan State University, where she studied maternal relationships and stress behaviors in captive giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis). Prior to joining Texas A&M, Leila was an adjunct biology instructor for Our Lady of the Lake University (San Antonio, TX). Leila’s research is being co-advised by Michelle Lawing (ESSM). email: sicilia77*at*tamu.edu

Undergraduate Students

Abby Adams
Abby is a senior Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences student concentrating in vertebrate zoology. Abby started interning at the BRTC during the spring 2019 semester and she is reorganizing the mammal collection and helping with field work. After obtaining her Bachelor's degree, Abby hopes to pursue a career in veterinary medicine or go back to school for another Bachelor's degree.

Emma Dohnalik
Emma is a junior Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences student. Emma has been working in the lab for a year and a half, undertaking a project using morphology to differentiate species of Peromyscus mice found in Texas. Emma also is training in the laboratory and may continue to work in the field on several different projects. Emma recently attended her first academic meeting (American Society of Mammalogists) where she presented some of her research.

Shelby Fischer
Shelby is a senior Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences student, focusing on wildlife conservation with a graduation date of December 2019. Shelby is interested in natural history collections and she has volunteered at the Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History and has spent the last nine years as an animal care taker. During the summer of 2019, Shelby is interning at the Biodiversity, Research, and Teaching Collections, and doing a smashing job organizing specimens in the mammal collection. In the future, Shelby hopes to work at a natural history museum or zoo, specifically in collected-based or animal care work.

Julia Mendez
Julia is a senior, majoring in Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, and graduating in December 2019. This semester, she is working with Dr. Light through Texas Ecolabs studying the co-evolutionary relationship between pocket gophers and their ectoparasites. Although she is new to Light Lab, she has been volunteering at two non-governmental conservation organizations since 2017, and is sub-permitted through Texas Parks and Wildlife to rehabilitate native mammal species. After obtaining her Bachelor’s degree, she plans on pursuing a career in wildlife conservation.

​Grace Vielleux
Grace is a junior Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences major and she has been working in the Light lab for the past year on several projects aiming to morphologically differentiate Peromyscus species. Along with undertaking laboratory work in the Light lab, Grace also is working with Dr. Jason Martina on a wetland model to help to better understand how to restore biodiversity in wetland ecosystems. After Grace finishes her Bachelor's degree, she hopes to go to graduate school to continue her education. Grace recently attended her first academic meeting (American Society of Mammalogists) where she presented some of her research.

Laboratory Alumni - Postdoctoral Researchers and Graduate Students

Bridgett Benedict, MS 2018
Bridgett was a MS student hailing from California. She received her Bachelor's degree in environmental biology from the University of California Davis. For her thesis research, Bridgett explored the phylogeography of the Heermann's kangaroo rat, Dipodomys heermanni. Read more about D. heermanni here. We're happy Bridgett's next step is staying right here at Texas A&M: Bridgett is pursuing a PhD with Dr. Perry Barboza.

Nina Heunis
Nina was a postdoctoral researcher in the Light lab. She obtained her doctorate from the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa. Nina is interested host-parasite co-evolution using rodents and lice as a model system. For her postdoc, Nina worked on the phylogenetics of two sucking louse genera (Hoplopleura and Polyplax) and a population genetics study of Polyplax arvicanthis using next-generation techniques (ddRADSeq).

Aleyda Galán, MS 2016
For her Master's research, Aleyda examined small mammal biodiversity across East Foundation properties in South Texas. Aleyda spent a lot of time in the field, lab, and BRTC collections examining mammalian, ectoparasite, and pathogen diversity across habitat types and East Foundation properties. As a result of her thesis research, Aleyda is expecting to have at least 4 publications (WOW!).

Oona Takano, MS 2016
Oona recently completed her MS degree exploring avian louse diversity across Africa. Her thesis exploree host-parasite associations, identified new species, and hypothesize relationships among avian lice distributed in South Africa, Benin, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Oona has one accepted manuscript as part of her thesis research (see Publications page), and several otehr manuscripts in preparation. Oona is currently a collections assistant in invertebrate paleontology at the Florida Museum of Natural History.

Justin Henningsen
Justin was a postdoctoral researcher in the Light, Voelker, and Hibbitts lab, examining biodiversity across East Foundation properties in South Texas. Justin received his PhD in 2013 in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Massachusetts where he examined whole-organism performance and signals in green anole lizards. Justin is broadly interested in ecology and evolution.

Jaime Rodriguez, MS 2014
Co-advised by Dr. Sarah Hamer in Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at Texas A&M, Jaime completed a field, lab, and analytically intensive thesis examining tick-borne pathogens of southeastern Texas. One publication resulting from this work is already published, and several other publications are in the works. Jaime is now in medical school at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Caitlin Nessner, MS 2014
Caitlin started out as an undergraduate volunteer in the lab and we were happy to have her as a graduate student. For her thesis, Caitlin worked on the population genetics of chewing lice parasitizing pocket gophers. She also pursued several side projects including examining bird louse diversity from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. After working as an instructor in the Biology Department at Texas A&M, Caitlin is now a project manager in the Human Genome Sequencing Center at Baylor College of Medicine.

John Andersen, MS 2012
John began his time in the Light Lab as an undergraduate researcher, working on a phylogeographic and taxonomic examination of the hispid pocket mouse, Chaetodipus hispidus. For his this work, John continued working on heteromyd rodents, concententrating on population genetics and conservation of kangaroo mice (genus Microdipodops).   John is currently a Watson NLP Algorithms Developer at IBM.

Sarah Welborn, MS 2012
For her thesis work, Sarah examined the population genetics of the Baird’s pocket gopher (Geomys breviceps). To undertake this work, Sarah developed 10 polymorphic microsatellite primers for Geomys breviceps; these markers also amplify in other pocket gopher species. Sarah currently holds a position as a Farm Interpreter at Lyndon B. Johnson State Park and Historic Site (Texas Parks and Wildlife).

Laboratory Alumni - Undergraduate Students
The Light lab has been very fortunate to have had a wonderful group of undergraduate students working in the lab, field, and BRTC.  Many of these students are now in graduate or professional school and many are, or will be, included on peer-reviewed manuscripts. They are all greatly missed!

Past students include (not all are pictured above):
Marcy Ostroff, Jennifer Garner, John Andersen, Caitlin Nessner, Mariana Gonzalez, Samantha (Rosenbaum) Wise, Kamala Lakamsani, Carlos Rodriguez, Chris Sandoval, Michelle Navin, Adrian Castellanos, J.M. Weidler, Josh Olmos, Alicia Byers, Alberto Sanchez, Emily Muehleman, Omar Polio, Lauren Wimbish, Noel Lyon, Steffan Hill, Hudson Berkhouse, Matthew Argo, Melissa Hopkins, Josh Brown, Katelyn Lasater, Hunter Folmar, Preston Mitchell, Sara Stephens, Gabrielle Green, Katie Miller, Ricardo Orozco, Austin Lester, Kelsey Persyn, Ashley Sloan, AnMarie Ulery, Bonner Watson, Rebecca Shine, Ben Anderson, Celeste Wickman, Mary Casillas, Tony Keith, Brianna Mena, Keegan Hottinger, Devon Eldridge, Taylor Duke, Caylie Harris, David Ojeda, Melanie Garduno