Faculty

OEB brings together more than 75 faculty, providing critical mass needed for effective graduate training. Our faculty are drawn from 10 departments at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and from across the Five College System (Amherst, Hampshire, Mt. Holyoke, and Smith Colleges), as well as from off-campus institutions. OEB faculty are engaged in cutting edge research, with research clusters in four broad areas:

Animal Behavior

Behavioral ecology, communication, learning

Ecology

Community ecology, population ecology, landscape ecology, conservation biology

Evolutionary Biology

Evolution, phylogenetics, population genetics, molecular evolution

Organismal Biology

Physiology, morphology, paleontology

All OEB faculty are listed below. To help applicants to our graduate program locate a faculty sponsor, the faculty list can be filtered by four broad research areas. A list of faculty who are activiely seeking graduate students can be found HERE

Name	Research Interests
Lynn Adler Professor, Biology	Ecology and evolution of insect-plant interactions
R. Craig Albertson Associate Professor of Biology, University of Massachusetts	Evolutionary Developmental Biology
Dominique R. Alfandari Professor of Developmental Biology, University of Massachusetts	Cell migration in Developmental systems
Peter Alpert Professor, Biology	Ecology of plant invasion, resource capture and utilization by clonal plants.
Anne Averill Professor, Environmental Conservation	Insect pollinators and pollination services in managed ecosystems
Courtney C. Babbitt Assistant Professor and Honors Faculty, Department of Biology	Evolutionary Genomics
Madelaine Bartlett Assistant Professor, Biology	Evolution of plant development; Molecular evolution
Tobias Baskin Professor, Biology	Regulation of Plant Morphogenesis During Growth & Development
Annaliese Beery Assistant Professor, Departments of Neuroscience, Psychology, and Biology, Smith College	Neuroendocrinology of social behavior
Jesse Bellemare Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences, Smith College	Plant ecology, biogeography and evolution
Eric L. Bittman Professor, Department of Biology	Circadian Rhythms, Reproduction, and Seasonal Changes in Brain Function
Jeffrey L. Blanchard Associate Professor, Department of Biology	Microbial cellular and community networks; influence of environmental change on the evolution of molecular processes; systems biology; bioinformatics
Jeffrey D. Blaustein Professor, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences Director, Neuroscience and Behavior Program	Neuroendocrinology, Hormone-Neurotransmitter Interactions, Hormones and Behavior, Reproductive Endocrinology, Peripubertal Stress and Reproduction
Bethany A. Bradley Assistant Professor of Environmental Conservation	Biogeography and spatial ecology of terrestrial plant invasions
Patricia Brennan Research Assistant Professor of Biology and Psychological & Brain Sciences	Evolutionary consequences of interactions between behavior, morphology and the environment
Jill L. Bubier Associate Professor of Environmental Science, Mount Holyoke College	Carbon cycling in northern wetlands
John P. Buonaccorsi Professor of Mathematics and Statistics	Statistical theory, methods and applcations, Quantitative ecology
Bruce Byers Associate Professor of Biology	Acoustic communication in birds
Ana Caicedo Associate Professor, Biology	Evolutionary genomics of adaptation and divergence in wild, weedy and crop plant species
Graham Caldwell Associate Professor of Kinesiology	Muscle mechanics and modeling in human motor performance
Theodore Castro–Santos Adjunct Assistant Professor of Biology	Biomechanics and Behavior of Migratory Fishes; Bioengineering of Fish Passage Structures
Brian S. Cheng Assistant Professor, Environmental Conservation	Marine global change ecology and the dynamics of predator-prey interactions
Ethan D. Clotfelter Associate Professor of Biology, Amherst College	Reproductive behavior of birds and fishes
Erin Conlon Associate Professor of Mathematics and Statistics	Statistical methods in genomics and bioinformatics
Daniel R. Cooley Professor of Plant Pathology, Stockbridge School of Agriculture	Epidemiology, ecology and sustainable management of plant diseases
Cristina Cox Fernandes Adjunct Research Associate Professor and Curator of Fishes, Department of Biology	Ecology and evolutionary diversity of neotropical freshwater fishes, particularly within the Amazon River
Andy J. Danylchuk Assistant Professor of Environmental Conservation	Fish conservation, recreational fisheries, sustainable aquaculture
Kristen M DeAngelis Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology	Community ecology and physiology of soil microbes, climate change, plant-soil interactions
Stephen DeStefano Research Professor of Environmental Conservation USGS Massachusetts Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit Leader	Urban and suburban wildlife, forest wildlife, and human-wildlife interactions
Robert L. Dorit Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, Smith College	Molecular evolution; comparative & statistical approaches to molecular & genome evolution
Gerald B. Downes Associate Professor, Department of Biology	Development and function of spinal cord networks
Joseph S. Elkinton Professor of Environmental Conservation	Population dynamics and biological control of invasive forest insects
Aaron Ellison Senior Research Fellow, Harvard Forest, Harvard University Adj. Res. Professor of Biology, UMass	Assembly and disassembly in ecological systems
John Finn Professor of Environmental Conservation	Network Analysis of Acoustic Telemetry
Lillian Fritz-Laylin Assistant Professor, Biology Department	Evolutionary cell biology of cell motility and differentiation
Todd K. Fuller Professor of Environmental Conservation	Mammalian population ecology and natural history
Alexander R. Gerson Assistant Professor, Biology	Integrative ecological physiology of birds, energetics, water balance, bird migration
Cynthia Gill Associate Professor of Natural Sciences, Hampshire College	Human and comparative physiology, neuroscience, endocrinology, herpetology, conservation biology, and behavioral biology
Gary B. Gillis Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College	Biomechanics and neuromuscular control of vertebrate locomotion
Barry Goodell Professor, Department of Microbiology	Fungal biochemical mechanisms involved in human disease, and also involved in the degradation of lignocellulose biomass and xenobiotics
Steven Goodwin Dean, College of Natural Sciences Professor of Microbiology
Evan Grant Adjunct Assistant Professor of Environmental Conservation Research Wildlife Biologist, Conte Anadromous Fish Lab	Ecology and management of amphibian populations and habitat
Curtice R. Griffin Professor and Department Head of Environmental Conservation	Wildlife ecology and conservation
Joseph Hamill Professor, Department of Kinesiology Professor and Associate Dean of Research, School of Public Health and Health Sciences	Biomechanics of human locomotion
Alex Haro Adjunct Professor of Environmental Conservation Ecologist and Section Leader, Fish Passage Engineering S.O. Conte Anadromous Fish Research Center	Fish behavior and migration; fish passage
Brigitte M. Holt Associate Professor of Anthropology	Biocultural evolution of the genus Homo, functional morphology and biomechanics of the appendicular skeleton, paleoecology, forager ecology, Old World prehistory, Late Pleistocene/Early Holocene ecology, bone mass and physical activity.
Michael Hood Associate Professor of Biology, Amherst College	Evolutionary forces that shape systems of inheritance and disease transmission
Martha Hoopes Associate Professor, Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College	Spread dynamics, impacts, and lag times in invasion ecology, as well as metacommunity dynamics, particularly for plants and herbivores.
Peter W. Houlihan Senior Lecturer in Biology	Animal Behavior, Vertebrate Ecology, and Conservation Biology
Duncan J. Irschick Professor, Department of Biology	Functional Morphology, Evolution, and Behavioral Ecology
Elizabeth M. Jakob Professor, Biology Department	Animal behavior, especially perception, learning, and social behavior
Abigail Jensen Associate Professor, Department of Biology	Molecular and cellular mechanisms of vertebrate retinal development and retinal disease.
Norman A. Johnson Adjunct Research Assistant Professor, Biology & Environmental Conservation	Evolutionary genetics, evolution of development
Adrian Jordaan Assistant Professor, Environmental Conservation	Ecosystems, modeling, tagging, movement, trophic dynamics, diadromous, marine, fisheries, historical ecology
Jason M. Kamilar Assistant Professor of Anthropology	Comparative biology of primates and other mammals
Rolf O. Karlstrom Professor, Department of Biology	Developmental neurobiology; axon guidance and forebrain patterning
Laura A. Katz Elsie Damon Simonds Professor of Biological Sciences, Smith College	Genome evolution and biodiversity studies of microbial eukaryotes
Paul S. Katz Professor, Department of Biology	Neuroethology, central pattern generators, single neuron RNA-seq, developmental neuroscience, evolution of neural circuits, molluscan systems
Diane A. Kelly Adjunct Research Assistant Professor, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences	Neurobiology, biomechanics, and evolution of reproductive systems.
Jane Kent Professor, Department of Kinesiology	Quantifying age, gender, and activity based changes in human skeletal muscle function. Measuring the roles of neural activation, intramuscular metabolism, contractile function and blood flow in the development of muscle fatigue in a variety of populations.
David King Adjunct Research Associate Professor, Environmental Conservation Research Wildlife Biologist USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station, Amherst	Wildlife ecology and conservation
Lisa Komoroske Assistant Professor, Environmental Conservation	Conservation genomics and ecophysiology in marine and freshwater ecosystems
Michael L. Lavine Professor, Mathematics and Statistics	Statistical Theory and Methods
R. Mark Leckie Professor and Department Head, Geosciences	Micropaleontology, Biostratigraphy, Paleoceanography
Susannah B. Lerman Adjunct Research Professor, Dept. of Environmental Conservation	Urban and suburban ecology, wildlife conservation, and citizen science
Benjamin Letcher Adjunct Associate Professor of Environmental Conservation Section Leader, Conte Anadromous Fish Research Center	Population ecology of stream fishes
Rachel A. Levin Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, Amherst College	Plant systematics, biogeography and ecology
Li–Jun Ma Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology	Fungal comparative genomics, eukaryotic genome evolution and organism adaptation
Stephen D. McCormick Adjunct Professor of Biology Research Physiologist, Conte Anadromous Fish Lab	Environmental Physiology of Fish
Kevin McGarigal Professor of Environmental Conservation	Landscape ecology, ecosystem management, wildlife ecology
Jill Miller Associate Professor of Biology, Amherst College	Ecology and evolution of plant reproductive systems, molecular phylogenetic systematics, population and evolutionary genetics, hybridization and speciation
Keith H. Nislow Adjunct Associate Professor of Environmental Conservation Research Fishery Biologist, USDA Forest Service	Ecology and conservation biology of stream fishes and invertebrates
Benjamin Normark Professor of Biology	Evolution of alternative genetic systems; evolution of host range; scale insect systematics
Melinda Novak Professor, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences	Behavior of microtines and primates
Klaus Nüsslein Professsor of Microbiology	Microbial ecology of terrestrial and aquatic environments
Sarah Partan Associate Professor, School of Cognitive Science, Hampshire College	Visual and acoustic communication in mammals
Jeffrey E. Podos Professor, Department of Biology OEB Graduate Program Leader	Mechanisms and evolution of vertebrate behavior, bioacoustics
Adam H. Porter Associate Professor of Biology Admissions Committee Chair, OEB	Evolutionary biology; hybridization, introgression & speciation; ecological genetics; evolution of regulatory genetic pathways; computer and mathematical modeling; invasion and range expansion; insects, especially butterflies and moths
Stan P. Rachootin Professor of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College	Evolution and development, history of evolutionary theory
Luke Remage–Healey Associate Professor, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences	Neural basis of behavior
Stephen Rich Professor of Microbiology	Molecular Evolution and Population Genomics of Arthropod-borne Microbial Pathogens
Alan M. Richmond Lecturer in Biology Curator of Curator of Amphibians and Reptiles , NaturalHistory Collections	Phylogeography of New England amphibians and reptiles
Margaret (Peg) Riley Professor of Biology	Microbial molecular evolution and ecology
Charles Ross Associate Professor of Evolutionary Biology, Hampshire College	Ecological and evolutionary genetics of hybrid zones and speciation
Allison H. Roy Research Assistant Professor of Environmental Conservation	Freshwater ecology, fish and macroinvertebrates, urban ecology, conservation
Laela Sayigh Visiting Assistant Professor of Animal Behavior, Hampshire College	Social behavior and communication of cetaceans (whales and dolphins)
Tristram Seidler Extension Assistant Professor, Biology	Plant ecology, plant diversity, invasive plants, climate change
David A. Sela Assistant Professor, Food Science	Host-microbe coevolution, microbial genomics & ecology, host dietary influences on microbiota form and function
Lynnette Sievert Professor of Anthropology	Evolution of menopause
Paul R Sievert Research Associate Professor of Environmental Conservation	Conservation biology, physiological ecology and biostatistics
L. David Smith Professor of Biological Sciences, Smith College Director of the Environmental Science and Policy Program	Ecology and evolution of marine predator-prey interactions
Kristina Stinson Assistant Professor, Environmental Conservation	Plant Ecology, Invasive Plants, Biological Responses to Global Change
John Stoffolano Professor, Stockbridge School of Agriculture	Behavior and physiology of flies especially of the adult crop organ and the mechanisms regulating filling and depletion
Chris Sutherland Assistant Professor, Environmental Conservation	Population, spatial, statistical and applied ecology
Alexander Suvorov Assistant Professor, Environmental Health Sciences	Effects on behavior by environmental xenobiotics with endocrine disruptive properties
Ethan J. Temeles Professor of Biology, Amherst College	Foraging behavior; Territoriality; Intra- and Interspecific competition; Resource partitioning; Mutualism; Coevolution; Sexual dimorphisms and polymorphisms
Brian R. Umberger Associate Professor of Kinesiology	Biomechanics and energetics of hominin locomotion
Elsbeth Walker Constantine J. Gilgut Professor of Plant Biology, Biology Department	Molecular genetic approaches to studying mechanisms of metal ion homeostasis in plants
Paige S. Warren Associate Professor of Environmental Conservation	Urban ecology, human-environment interactions, animal behavior
R. Thomas Zoeller Professor, Department of Biology	Environmental endocrine disrupters

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Organismic & Evolutionary Biology Graduate Program

Faculty

Animal Behavior

Ecology

Evolutionary Biology

Organismal Biology