I am a broadly trained biologist who studies the biodiversity and evolution of reptiles. My academic history includes an undergraduate degree in geology, a dissertation in paleontology, and postdoctoral appointments in genomics and bioinformatics. My research answers pressing questions through multidisciplinary, empirical investigations such as fieldwork, genetics, and specimen-based research. I have active research projects that are solving problems in the Caribbean, China, the Middle East, and USA. 
 
Many reptiles (especially turtles) are experiencing a precipitous global decline, so my studies often have implications for conservation. I am primarily interested in how human activities impact our ability to reconstruct natural patterns of reptile diversity (through extinction), distribution (through extirpation and exotic introduction), and phylogenetic relationships (through genetic pollution). 
 
I also study the evolution of major turtle lineages by integrating paleontology with molecular systematics. I am developing anatomical and genetic data sets to illuminate the origin and evolution of marine turtles and terrestrial tortoises. By combining these data with biostratigraphic information, I am testing hypotheses about the parallel evolution of major ecological transitions and providing critical assessments of fossil-calibrated molecular clocks.