Whole Genome Sequence Data are Here!

I just received my first lane of whole genome sequence data from the DNA Sequencing Center at BYU! It will be a serious task to begin assembling 80 GB of data, but it will be a great challenge!

DDIG Acquired!!

I got the AWESOME phone call a couple weeks ago from a NSF program officer with the notification that my NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant application to study hybrid zones in Liolaemus was funded!! I will be returning to Argentina in the fall to collect lizards in three hybrid zones with fine-scale sampling. Read more about this research in my research page.

Fieldwork in Argentina

I have just come back from two weeks of field work in Chubut province, Argentina. My collaborator (Luciano Avila) and I were based out of Puerto Madryn, but we made daily excursions eastward to sample a putative hybrid zone involving Liolaemus melanops and Liolaemus chehuachekenk. These samples will be used to examine comparative genomic divergences between 5 species of Liolaemus. Besides catching lizards, I saw many other cool animals including flamingos, penguins, vipers, southern sea lions, and elephant seals! You can read my post about this trip at the Burke Museum blog, and see more photos and videos on facebook!

NSF DDIG Submitted!

I have just submitted an NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant! I am requesting funds to examine hybrid zone dynamics and speciation within a radiation of Liolaemus lizards in South America. Funding rates have been pretty good over the past 35 years, so let’s hope that it comes through for me this time! Good luck to everyone else who is also applying!