The Gunderson Lab - Tulane

Assistant Professor, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

agunderson@tulane.edu

I am interested in examining how species can adapt to climate change. Using thermal and physiological data, I plan to create mechanistic models to more accurately predict areas of suitable habitat in the future. Lizards are my primary target group, and previously, I examined their fossil record for my Master’s. Eventually, I want to use the information on modern adaptation in response to climate change to inform how lizards might have evolved in the past.

jrej@tulane.edu

I have a broad interest in herpetology combined with molecular evolution and ecology. My research here will focus on several interrelated lines, center on the thermal trait evolution on Anolis. I’m originally from Taiwan, graduated with my Bachelors in life sciences and worked as a research assistant before I came to Tulane. My previous research experiences were related to aquatic ecology and Drosophila genetics.

wwang16@tulane.edu

I graduated with my Masters in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Tulane and am now working with Dr. Gunderson as a research assistant and lab technician. I am interested in animal behavior, physiology, and plasticity in response to climate change.

agopal1@tulane.edu

I am a Masters student working on thermal preference, temperature-influenced activity levels, and plasticity in A. carolinensis and A. sagrei. I am interested in how A. sagrei are so effectively out-competing A. caroinensis, and how species are dealing with the rapidly changing climate.

lryan2@tulane.edu

As a Masters student, my work in the Gunderson lab focuses on phenotypic plasticity as it relates to thermal tolerance. I am comparing the heat hardening capacity of the native Anolis carolinensis to that of the invasive Anolis sagrei.

sdeery@tulane.edu

A junior at Tulane, I am an Economics major on a premed path. I love to read, watch movies and travel. For me, what we do in the lab is fun and it is a great learning opportunity for me, and this year I would like to collaborate on more projects.

I am a sophomore majoring in cell and molecular biology and I am interested in the function of heat shock proteins in Anolis and how they allow Anolis to adapt to higher temperatures.

I am a freshman majoring in environmental biology, and I’m interested in color and color change in anoles as a physiological response to environmental stressors, particularly those exacerbated by anthropogenic sources.