Yehuda Ben-Shahar

Yehuda Ben-Shahar

Professor, Biology Department, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Evolutionary, molecular, and genetic analyses of animal behavior and sociality; The genetics of organismal resilience to environmental stress; Drosophila models of neuronal and psychiatric disorders

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Global

Peter Bernhardt

Peter Bernhardt

Research Associate of Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject(s) of interest: Pollination; Anthophilous insects (bees, beetles, syrphid flies, butterflies and moths); flowering plant groups (orchids and other petaloid monocots), montane wildflowers of the Himalayas; Proteaceae of Australia; plant systematics and phytogeography of the floras of southern Australia; redbuds and dogwoods of Missouri; pollination in urban versus rural flora native to North America; popular illustrations and depictions of flora and their pollinators from the 19th-21st century; the history of the writings of Charles Darwin and his contemporaries on floral adaptation/evolution; bee diversity on rural versus urban trees of redbud (Cercis canadensis) and dogwood (Cornus florida) in St. Louis and its counties

Primary geographic area(s) of interest:  United States (Saint Louis, Missouri, Kansas), Australia (New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia), China (Kunming, Lijiang and Yulong (Yunnan))

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savana, Shrubland, Grassland, Montane>3000m

Stephen Blake

Stephen Blake

Assistant Professor, Biology Department, Saint Louis University

Primary subject(s) of interest: Ecology and conservation of mega vertebrates

Primary geographic area(s) of interest:  Congo Basin, Galapagos Islands, Central Africa, Saint Louis, MO

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Grassland, Agricultural land, Urban areas

LEC Seed Grant Projects

Adrianus (Jacco) Boon

Adrianus (Jacco) Boon

Professor, WashU School of Medicine

Primary subject(s) of interest: Virology and virus ecology

Primary geographic area(s) of interest:  USA

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest

LEC Seed Grant Projects

Emily Bowling

Emily Bowling

Conservation Education Liaison, Saint Louis Zoo

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Palm oil sustainability, public education, local conservation

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Tropical rainforests, Forests, Agricultural land, Urban areas

Louise Bradshaw

Louise Bradshaw

Retired Director of Education, Saint Louis Zoo

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Climate change education, enhancing biodiversity, community-based conservation engagement, nature-based education, urban biodiversity

Primary geographic area(s) of interest:  Saint Louis region (Missouri)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Urban biodiversity

John Brinda

John Brinda

Assistant Scientist, Herbarium, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject of interest: Ecology, taxonomy, and conservation of bryophytes

Primary geographic area of interest: USA, Madagascar, Philippines

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savanna, Shrubland, Grassland, Deserts

Bruce Carlson

Bruce Carlson

Professor of Biology, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: Sensory and evolutionary neuroscience in electric fish

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Sub-Saharan Africa

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Freshwater

Gautam Dantas

Gautam Dantas

Conan Professor in Laboratory and Genomic Medicine, WashU School of Medicine

Primary subject(s) of interest:  (1) Understanding how diverse microbiomes respond to chemical and biological perturbations, (2) harnessing these insights to rationally design therapeutic strategies to curtail antibiotic-resistant pathogens and remedy pathological microbiome states, and (3) engineering microbial catalysts to convert renewable biomass into value chemicals such as biofuels and pharmaceuticals.

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States, El Salvador, Peru, Pakistan, Niger, South Africa, Republic of Congo, Netherlands, China, India

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Freshwater, Agricultural lands, Urban areas, Built environment

Karen DeMatteo

Karen DeMatteo

Research Affiliate, WildCare Institute at the Saint Louis Zoo / Academic Advisor, Biology Department, WashU / Conservation Detection Dog Handler/Trainer, A K9 Nose Knows

Primary subject(s) of interest: Ecology, conservation, and management of predator-prey species using noninvasive techniques

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States (South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, Nebraska, and San Francisco), South America (Argentina), & Asia (Bhutan)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Shrubland, Grassland, Agricultural land, Urban areas, Monocultural plantations & fragmented ecosystems

Kate Farley

Kate Farley

Assistant Scientist, William L. Brown Center

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Ethnobotany, traditional ecological knowledge, community-based conservation, North American biodiversity, invasive species

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States (Appalachia, the Ozarks)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Agricultural land

Martha Fischer

Martha Fischer

General Curator and Director of WildCare Institute Center for Conservation in the Horn of Africa, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park

Primary subject(s) of interest: All Horn if Africa wildlife including Grevy's zebra, hirola, black rhino, mountain nyala, giraffe, African wild ass, and Ethiopian wolf; southeast Asian wildlife, such as banteng; local Missouri wildlife and urban biodiversity

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Horn of Africa, including Kenya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somaliland

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Savanna, Grassland, Deserts, Urban areas

LEC Seed Grant Projects

Michael Frachetti

Michael Frachetti

Professor of Archaeology, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: Anthropology, Archaeology, Asia, Human Ecology, Grassland ecology, Tropical jungles

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Asia-Pacific (Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Grassland, Deserts, Urban areas, Mountains

Gayle Fritz

Gayle Fritz

Professor Emerita of Archaeology, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: Agriculture, plant domestication, archaeobotany, ethnobotany, and conservation

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Mexico, United States (Mississippi River valley, St Louis Metro area, SE and Southwest US)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savanna, Grassland, Freshwater, Deserts, Agricultural land, Urban areas

Roy Gereau

Roy Gereau

Assistant Curator and Tanzania Program Director, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Floristics, plant taxonomy, and plant conservation

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Tanzania

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savanna, Shrubland, Grassland, Urban areas

Theresa Gildner

Theresa Gildner

Assistant Professor of Biological Anthropology, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: Human biology, parasitology, host-pathogen coevolution, immune function

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Ecuador, United States

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Agricultural land, Urban areas, Rainforest

Erik Herzog

Erik Herzog

Professor of Biology and Neuroscience, Viktor Hamburger Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: Circadian rhythms, light pollution, preterm birth, brain cancer

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Grassland, Deserts, Urban areas

Paul Hime

Paul Hime

Instructor in Genetics, Department of Genetics and McDonnell Genome Institute, WashU School of Medicine

Primary subject of interest:  Genomics, Genetics, Evolutionary Biology, Phylogenetics

Primary geographic interest:  Global

Sarah Holaday

Sarah Holaday

Director of Animal Care & Conservation, Endangered Wolf Center

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Conservation

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Agricultural land

Nathan Jacobs

Nathan Jacobs

Professor, Computer Science & Engineering, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Computer Vision, Remote Sensing, Species Distribution Modeling

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savanna, Shrubland, Grassland, Deserts, Agricultural land, Urban areas

Ben Jellen

Ben Jellen

Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy

Primary subject(s) of interest: The ecology, physiology, behavior, learning, and conservation of amphibians, reptiles and birds

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Central and eastern Missouri and central and southern Illinois

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Grassland, Freshwater, Urban areas

Elizabeth (Lisa) Kelley

Elizabeth (Lisa) Kelley

Executive Director-WildCare, Director-Center for Conservation in Madagascar, Saint Louis Zoo

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Coordinating wildlife programs and evaluation, wildlife conservation, anthropology, primatology, lemurs

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Madagascar, global

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savana, Deserts

Kieran Lindsey

Kieran Lindsey

Program Director, Online Master of Natural Resources, Virginia Tech

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Urban wildlife, human-wildlife interface

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States, Midwest and Mid-Atlantic

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Urban areas

Monica McDonald

Monica McDonald

Program Scientist, AZA Reproductive Management Center, Saint Louis Zoo

Primary subject of interest: Behavior, genetics, primatology, reproductive management, endocrinology and African Painted Dogs

Primary geographic interest: Kenya, Tanzania, and Zambia

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Zoos and ex-situ habitats their wild counterparts inhabit

LEC Seed Grant Projects

Virginia (Ginger) McKay

Virginia (Ginger) McKay

Assistant Professor, WashU Brown School

Primary subject(s) of interest: Infectious disease, Antimicrobial stewardship, Implementation science

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Urban areas

Kim Medley

Kim Medley

Director, Tyson Research Center, WashU

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States (Missouri)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Grassland, Freshwater, Urban areas

LEC Seed Grant Projects

Mary Merello

Mary Merello

Curatorial Assistant, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Vietnam, Indonesia, Ecuador

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Herbarium

Bob Merz

Bob Merz

Assistant Director, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Critically endangered American burying beetle
(Nicrophorus americanus)

Primary geographic area(s) of interest:  United States (Midwest Region)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Grassland

Jeffrey Meshach

Jeffrey Meshach

Deputy Director, World Bird Sanctuary

Affiliated Institution(s): Saint Louis Zoo, Saint Louis University

Primary subject(s) of interest: Birds, especially birds of prey

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: United States (Missouri)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Freshwater, Urban areas

Eric Miller

Eric Miller

Director Emeritus, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute

Primary subject(s) of interest: Madagascar, animal health as part of One Health, zoo and wildlife medicine, general conservation

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Betampona Natural Reserve, Madagascar

Travis  Mossotti

Travis Mossotti

Assistant Director IT Research Systems, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: Poetry & Environmental Stewardship; Interdisciplinary Conservation Programming; Language of Conservation

Primary geographic interest: United States

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Shrubland, Grassland, Freshwater, Marine, Deserts, Urban areas

Patricia Olynyk

Patricia Olynyk

Florence and Frank Bush Professor in Art, WashU Sam Fox School

Primary subject(s) of interest: Human-animal studies, interspecies communication, environmental narratology, dark sky studies

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Canada, Japan, United States

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Skies

Nezka Pfeifer

Nezka Pfeifer

Museum Curator, Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject(s) of interest: Museum studies, museum exhibitions, history, contemporary art, anthropology, conservation

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Global

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: All

Anya Plutynski

Anya Plutynski

Professor of Philosophy, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: History and philosophy of biology and medicine, conservation, biodiversity, ethics

Amy Pool

Amy Pool

Curatorial Assistant, Latin America, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Floristics, sharing science, the importance of biodiversity and conservation, and the significance of global climate change with the local public, plant taxonomy, natural history collections use and curation

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Central America

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savanna, Shrubland, Grassland, Agricultural land, Collection-based

David  Powell

David Powell

Director of Research, AZA Reproductive Management Center, Saint Louis Zoo

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Animal behavior, animal welfare, human behavior/ethics, reproductive biology

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Global

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Zoos

Jenny Price

Jenny Price

Research Fellow, Sam Fox School, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Public arts and humanities projects--Environment and public space

Primary geographic area(s) of interest:  United States (Los Angeles, Saint Louis, Missouri)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Urban areas

Peter Raven

Peter Raven

Emeritus Professor, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Onagraceae, conservation, sustainable development, plant geography

Rodrigo Reis

Rodrigo Reis

Professor, WashU Brown School

Primary subject(s) of interest: Livability, Built environment, and Public health

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Brazil, United Kingdom, United States (St. Louis), Mexico

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Urban areas

Adam Smith

Adam Smith

Scientist in Global Change & Conservation, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject(s) of interest: Conservation biogeography and global change, using statistical models of populations, species, and ecosystems

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Global

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savanna, Shrubland, Grassland, Deserts, Agricultural land

LEC Seed Grant Projects

Joe Steensma

Joe Steensma

Professor, Brown School, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Environmental health, sustainability, food, security, and biodiversity

Primary geographic interest: Costa Rica, Nigeria, Australia, the United Kingdom, United States

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Savanna, Grassland, Freshwater, Agricultural land

LEC Seed Grant Projects

Charlotte M. Taylor

Charlotte M. Taylor

Senior Curator, Monographic Studies, Latin America, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject(s) of interest: Neotropical Floristics and Biogeography, Taxonomy and Systematics of Rubiaceae

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Mexico, Central America, Antilles, tropical South America, Madagascar

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forests, Savanna, Shrubland

Alan Templeton

Alan Templeton

Charles Rebstock Professor Emeritus of Biology, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Endangered salamanders, reintroduction of wild ass, conservation genetics, landscape genetics and restoration of collared lizards

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Israel (Midreshet Ben-Gurion); United States (Glade communities in the Ozarks)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Savanna, Grassland, Deserts

Mikhail Tikhonov

Mikhail Tikhonov

Assistant Professor of Physics, WashU

Primary subject(s) of interest: Ecosystem coarse-grainability, Emergent simplicity, Microbial eco/evo, Statistical physics

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Lab ecosystem, USA field samples, Global surveys

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Marine, Agricultural land

Thomas Valone

Thomas Valone

Professor of Biology, Saint Louis University

Primary subject of interest: Ecology, Desertification, Communities and behaviors

Primary geographic area of interest: United States (Arizona)

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Grassland, Deserts

Daniel Warren

Daniel Warren

Professor, Saint Louis University

Primary subject(s) of interest:  Comparative Animal Physiology, Ecophysiology, Metabolism, Thermal Biology

Primary geographic area(s) of interest:  Midwestern United States from Missouri to the Canadian border

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Freshwater, Urban areas

Li-Bing Zhang

Li-Bing Zhang

Curator, Missouri Botanical Garden

Primary subject(s) of interest: Taxonomy, phylogeny, and evolution of ferns and lycophytes

Primary geographic area(s) of interest: Old World/Global

Habitats and Ecosystems of interest: Forest, Shrubland, Grassland, Caves and subterranean habitats