Spring 2022: Division of Phylogenetics & Comparative Biology

Message from the DPCB Officers

Samantha Price, Chair, chair.dpcb@sicb.org; Ryan Felice, Secretary, secretary.dpcb@sicb.org; Leigha Lynch, Program Officer, dpo.dpcb@sicb.org; Emily Lessner, Student/Postdoctoral Affairs Committee Representative

Thanks to everyone who participated in the SICB 2022 meeting and in SICB+. The David and Marvalee Wake Award Film Festival and Best Student Presentation Competition was a huge success. Please join us in congratulating  Pedro Peres for best talk and joint winners Shebin Tharakan and Justin Thomas for best poster! Thank you to all participants for sharing their high-quality presentations and exciting research. We look forward to your ongoing contributions to the field of comparative biology.

As always, our Ask-An-Expert booth was a big hit. This year we covered topics ranging from phylogenetic comparative methods to 3D imaging. Thank you to all our amazing experts for sharing their knowledge. If you had a chance to stop by the booth and learn from your fellow DPCBers, we hope you’ll consider volunteering as an expert someday soon!

This year represents a big transition for DPCB. Previous divisional Chair Dave Blackburn and Secretary Haley O’Brien have passed the torch to our new Chair Samantha Price and Secretary Ryan Felice. We thank Dave and Haley for their tireless service to the Division over the last few years. We also wish to specifically thank Haley for her vision and leadership in establishing the Ask-An-Expert booth.

DPCB will be holding an election for Program Officer this year, as well as voting on a series of proposed amendments to our divisional bylaws (available on our divisional website). Please see below for information on the Program Officer candidates, and please vote!

Candidates for DPCB Program Officer

Leigha M. Lynch

Leigha Lynch
Leigha Lynch

Current Position: Assistant Professor, Department of Anatomy, Midwestern University, Glendale

Education: Ph.D., Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, 2018; M.S., East Tennessee State University, 2012; B.S., Bowling Green State University, 2009

Research Interests: In my research I use model taxa to investigate sources of morphological variation, including: 1) environmental selective pressures; 2) the interaction between environmental and genetic factors; and 3) the time scales across which morphological and genetic evolution can occur. To address these objectives, I rely on a combination of methods including 3D imaging, geometric morphometrics, NextGen sequencing of mitochondrial genomes, and phylogenetic comparative methods. My research focuses on quantifying skeletal variation within Carnivora, particularly among mustelids, as this clade includes an array of extant and extinct taxa that exhibit a wide variety of morphological and ecological diversity.

Statement of Goals: As DPCB’s current Program Officer, I have coordinated the David and Marvalee Wake Award session and the Wake Film Festival at the 2022 meeting. I have contributed to the division for many years, including as an expert for the Ask-an-Expert Booth and I representing the division at the Education Council meeting in 2019. Through these experiences I have come to recognize the diversity of research programs represented within DPCB and how this division contributes to the SICB as a whole. As the field of phylogenetics and comparative biology has expanded through the advent of new technology and methodologies, so has the research of its members. As Program Officer, one of my goals has been to better define the purpose of DPCB to the society through the organization of sessions that clearly illustrate the research conducted within our division. My second goal as Program Officer is to organize new symposia for the division, including a special session next year in honor of David Wake. My third goal as Program Officer is to give students this opportunity by thoroughly reviewing all submitted abstracts for the Wake Award sessions and to organize judges that can provide constructive comments and guidance for students that compete.

 

Molly C. Womack

Molly Womack
Molly Womack

Current Position: Assistant Professor, Utah State University

Education: Ph.D. (2016) Colorado State University; B.S. (2010) University of Florida

SICB Activities: I have been attending SICB since 2016 and have participated as a judge for the Wake Award (2020), served as a mentor for SICB’s Out to Lunch program, served as a mentor for the DEE “Beers and Brains” social, served as a panelist for “Job Hunting Tricks and Tips…”, and participated in the LGBTQ+ Outgroup.

Research Interests: Using field- and lab-work, our lab compares trait morphology and function among species to better understand how diversity develops, how diversity evolves, and why it matters. We have three main research themes in the lab right now: evolutionary development, adaptation and constraint, and sensory ecology. Phylogenetic comparative methods are a pillar to our lab’s research approach in all areas. You can learn more about these research areas and ongoing projects at https://www.womacklab.com/.

Statement of Goals: As a graduate student I attended a diversity of conferences big and small and often felt like my research was the “odd topic” of the group. DPCB has always felt like a comfortable and exciting place to share and discuss my favorite research topics and I want to continue and extend efforts to build community and celebrate early career researchers. I also think the Wake Award symposium is a particularly fun event (thanks, in large part, to the students!) and I’d like to keep working with DPCB members to build the Wake awards into a welcoming and celebratory event.

My goals are: 1) communicate and advertise DPCB research and opportunities (awards, events, etc.) to increase awareness and participation, 2) increase connection among student, postdoc, and faculty members of DPCB via structured but casual meet-and-greet events, 3) recruit a judging team that will provide productive feedback for all students that submit their work to the Wake Award and work with students to make the Wake award a fun event, 4) collaborate with and support existing SICB events and initiatives that provide mentorship and/or welcoming spaces (e.g. mentorship lunches, LGBT+ events, etc.) for DPCB members, and 5) organize a symposium that will highlight early career researchers and attract new DPCB members.