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Dr. Jessica Gillung
Principal Investigator, Director Lyman Entomological Museum I am an evolutionary biologist who integrates molecular, morphological, behavioural, and ecological data into a comparative phylogenetic framework to understand the insect Tree of Life. I aim to address key questions in the evolution of insect diversity: (1) What are the relationships within the insect Tree of Life? (2) Why are some lineages more diverse than others? (3) How have host-parasitoid and plant-insect interactions influenced trait and lineage diversification? By using phylogenomics to establish evolutionary hypotheses, my integrative approach seeks to understand how biotic and abiotic factors have shaped and influenced patterns of biodiversity. |
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Dr. Stéphanie Boucher
Curator of Entomology, Lyman Entomological Museum Stéphanie's research focuses on the biodiversity, taxonomy and systematics of small phytophagous flies of the family Agromyzidae. These flies are commonly known as leaf-miner flies, as most species with known biology feed in between the epidermis of leaves in the larval stage, forming a feeding channel. She has spent many years studying the Nearctic fauna of Agromyzidae, and more recently the poorly known Neotropical fauna, which resulted in various taxonomic revisions, description of new species and new host plant records for the family. |
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Dr. Morgan Jackson
Postdoctoral Researcher (Dr. Buddle Lab) Morgan's research, both as a graduate student at the University of Guelph and now as a postdoctoral researcher at McGill University, has focused on Diptera systematics and natural history, and the intersections of biodiversity science with social media and digital technologies. He is continually exploring the unknowns of Canadian biodiversity, and helping to enable others to do so for themselves through advocacy, education, and outreach. |
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Dr. Catherine Scott
Postdoctoral Researcher (Dr. Buddle Lab) Catherine is a behavioural ecologist, arachnologist, and natural historian whose MSc and PhD research focused on the communication and chemical ecology of black widow spiders. As an NSERC postdoc she will focus on the foraging ecology of the candy-striped spider—an introduced predator that hunts primarily on flowering plants—and its impact on pollinator abundance and behaviour in Canada. A former arachnophobe, she is passionate about shifting perceptions of spiders and other arachnids through science communication, education, and outreach activities. |
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Alice Assmar
PhD student Alice works on the evolution, diversification, and biogeography of freshwater insects. For her PhD project, she is focusing on the macroevolution of spongillaflies (Neuroptera: Sisyridae), which are parasites of freshwater sponges as larvae. As many specialized freshwater feeders are being replaced by generalist species due to pollution and habitat fragmentation, understanding spongillafly evolution and distribution may help us understand how to protect freshwater biodiversity. |
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Heloisa Flores
PhD student – University of Sao Paulo, co-supervised with Dr. Dalton Amorim Heloisa is interested in investigating the evolution of kleptoparasite-host interactions in animals integrating phylogenomics, morphology, biogeography and ecology. She is currently exploring the origin and diversification of kleptoparasitism in jackal flies (Milichiidae), an interesting model for understanding the correlation between specialized life histories and associated phenotypic adaptations across time and space. |
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Linley Sherin
MSc student – co-supervised with Dr. Buddle Linley's work describes macroevolutionary patterns within the flies (order Diptera), with a focus on parasitoid lineages within the suborder Brachycera. For her thesis, she is investigating the origin and diversification of these flies using phylogenetic comparative methods. More broadly, she is interested in the key adaptations that lead to major evolutionary transitions, and which allow some species to dominate where others struggle. This is why she loves studying flies, as they are one of the most successful lineages on the planet! |
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Antony Zerafa
MSc student – co-supervised by Dr. Buddle and Dr. Larsson Anthony is jointly affiliated with the Redpath Museum and Lyman Entomological Museum at McGill University. He studies the terrestrial arthropod communities of a remote island in High Arctic Canada, particularly looking at environmental factors that affect terrestrial arthropod diversity and abundance during the short summer season. He is a passionate birdwatcher and ethically conscious nature photographer, and loves museum work, science communication, and fieldwork. |
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Dimitrios Markou
BSc student – Honours Project Jimmy's project will estimate and compare the PD of restored sites which were previously dominated by invasive plant species and disturbed sites to evaluate possible relationships between PD, seed set, and the subsequent output of ecosystem services. To do so, we hypothesize that land restoration contributes to increased pollinator PD within plant-pollinator networks and that the increase in PD, in turn, results in increased ecosystem services via seed production of the plants involved in the mutualistic interaction. To explore these hypotheses, we will use a published dataset of 64 plant-pollinator communities on the Island of Mahé of the Seychelles and publicly available DNA sequence data from GenBank. We will then estimate phylogenies using Bayesian Inference models, and PD using mean pairwise distance (MPD), and mean nearest taxon distance (MNTD). |
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Gloria Van
BSc student – Honours Project Gloria is a fourth-year undergraduate student in Life Sciences. She was introduced to the Lyman Lab through the Phylogeny and Biogeography class taught by Dr. Jessica Gillung. Gloria has always been interested in understanding the relationships between organisms and how they impact the ecosystem. Her Honours project focuses on investigating the evolution, diversification, and host associations of bee flies. |
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Grace McDougall-Vick
BSc student – Independent research project Grace is interested in soil fauna and microorganisms, especially in their capacity to mitigate climate change. Her project will evaluate ant colonies' effect on carbon dynamics providing critical insight into the global carbon cycle and better estimates of soil carbon sequestration. She is passionate about creating a safe and inclusive space in academia and making it accessible to all. When she isn’t thinking about ecology, Grace enjoys hiking, camping, and spending time outdoors with friends! |
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Katie Mallet
BSc student – Independent research project Katie is interested in phylogenomics, macroevolution and understanding what drives changes leading to diversification. She is also intrigued by collections-based research. Currently, Katie is working on a project investigating the evolution of kleptoparasitism across Diptera using phylogenetic analyses. She have just finished her Bachelors in Life Science at McGill and hopes to use both morphological and molecular data to continue exploring the origins of more adaptations in the future. |
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Megan Raposo
BSc student – Honours Project Megan is currently an undergraduate student doing her Honours Thesis on the evolution of mimicry in katydids. She is interested in the evolution of adaptive traits, biodiversity, and besides katydids, also loves bees, ants, and birds. |
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Sarah Blincoe
BSc student – Independent project |
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Stéphanie Gagnon
BSc student – Honours Project Stéphanie Gagnon is completing her Bachelors degree at McGill University. She will graduate in Agriculture and Environmental Biology, with a Specialization in Applied Ecology, a Minor in Social Environment, and Honours in Entomology. For her Honours project, Stéphanie is investigating the evolution of insect-plant interactions in flies. |
