Our Team (in alphabetical order)
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Arianna Kuhn (She/Hers), Post-doc: Conservation genomics and evolutionary ecology
I joined the lab in Spring 2021 after completing my PhD at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, and I study the evolutionary and ecological processes that generate spatial patterns of biodiversity. In the long term, my work aims to improve biodiversity prediction and conservation by integrating spatial, ecological, morphological and genomic data. As a postdoctoral scholar, I will be using genomics to inform long-toed salamander reintroductions and investigate how spatial and historical factors impact gene flow and genetic differentiation among populations. When I’m not in the lab, you can find me outdoors riding my bike and looking for snakes. Visit my website for more information on my research/photos from the field! |
Brianna Constable (She/They), BSc student: Phenotypic variation in salamanders
I joined the lab in Spring 2022 as part of the Research Internship Concentration. I am quantifying morphological variation across the range of the long-toed salamander. I am very passionate about conservation biology, and about the conservation of amphibians and reptiles in particular. Outside of school, you can find me outside looking for aquatic and semi-aquatic invertebrates, plants, or fungi. |
Daemon Wisniewski (He/Him), BSc Student: Research Assistant
I am a first-year undergraduate student. I joined the lab in Fall 2021 to learn more about research and evolutionary ecology. I am interested in speciation and interactions between populations. I will be assisting with genomic data collection in late spring and summer. I am part of the Research Internship Concentration program at the University of Lethbridge. When not on campus, you can find me cuddling my dog or relaxing near water! |
Danial Hunter (He/Him), MSc Student: Wildfire effects on amphibian populations
I joined the lab as an MSc student after finishing my BScH at the University of Victoria in May 2020. I am interested in a wide range of topics including population genetics and evolutionary ecology. I am currently focused on how disturbance events affect amphibian populations. For my MSc thesis, I am looking at how the 2017 Kenow wildfire in Waterton Lakes National Park has impacted amphibian pond occupancy and genetic diversity in the long-toed salamander. Outside of my research, I enjoy spending as much time as possible outdoors camping/hiking/biking. |
Dylan Brassard (He/Him), MSc student: Impacts of wildfire and recreation on bears in protected areas
I first joined Lee-Yaw lab as an undergraduate student in January 2020, and became a MSc student in September 2020. My research interests include wildlife management, wildfire ecology and population biology. My current research explores the effects of the Kenow Wildfire on bears in Waterton Lakes National Park and the impacts of hiking on bears throughout protected areas in southwestern Alberta. Outside of school I spend my time hunting, fly-fishing, and hiking around southern Alberta. |
Jayna Bergman (She/Her), BSc Honour's student: Habitat suitability models for amphibians in southwestern Alberta
I joined the lab in January 2021 as an independent study student and I am currently a summer research assistant. I am generating and testing species distribution models for long-toed salamanders and helping to survey for new localities in southwestern Alberta. I am interested in how GIS can aid in biological research. In September 2021, I will be starting an Honour’s Thesis in the lab during which I will be evaluating the suitability of proposed reintroduction sites for long-toed salamanders. Outside of school, I enjoy being outdoors walking and hiking. |
Julie Lee-Yaw (She/Her), PI
I joined the Biological Sciences Department at U of L in July 2019. My academic path includes post-doc work on plant population genomics at the Université de Neuchâtel and at UBC. I completed my BSc at Queen's University, my MSc on wood frog phylogeography at McGill University, and my PhD on salamander range limits at UBC. I enjoy thinking broadly across different disciplines in organismal biology, and finding ways to integrate new ideas and approaches into my work. You can find me taking photos of wildflowers and peering into ponds when I'm not in my office. |
Kaegan Finn (He/Him), MSc student: Amphibian reintroduction ecology
I joined the Lee-Yaw lab in Fall 2021 after finishing my BSc at the University of Alberta. My research interests in applied conservation biology and wildlife management. I am currently developing niche models to inform amphibian reintroductions in southwestern Alberta. When I'm not in a pond or stream for work, I'm often in the same places fly-fishing, hiking, or looking for a neat bird or plant. Connect with me on Twitter to chat salamanders, ecology, wildfire, and other fun things! |
Past Members of the Lab
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Tristan Skretting (BSc Honour's): Amphibian breeding pond microhabitat
Tristan joined the lab as an undergraduate research assistant in the summer of 2020 and completed her Honour's Thesis in spring 2021. Tristan's project focused on characterizing vegetation and different microhabitat features around salamander breeding ponds in Waterton Lakes National Park and changes to microhabitats following the Kenow wildfire. |
Elijus Slamas (BSc student): Head shape variation in relation to range position in the long-toed salamander
Elijus joined the lab in January 2020 as a 2nd year Research Internship Concentration student. His independent study project examined whether the Kenow wildfire resulted in a change in the proportion of sites occupied by long-toed salamanders in Waterton Lakes National Park. Elijus held a Chinook Summer Research Award for summer 2020 and initiated a project using geometric morphometrics to examine differences in head shape within and among long-toed salamander populations. |
Jenna Wright (BSc student): Stripe pattern variation in the long-toed salamander species complex
Jenna completed an Independent Study in Summer 2020 analyzing stripe pattern variation within and among populations of the long-toed salamander. Stay tuned for her results in a future publication! Jenna is now conducting research as a co-op student. |