Undergraduate & Graduate Research
Undergraduate Student Research
*Denotes an alumnus of the Bonnan Lab
^Denotes a current or former member of the FMEA working group
HONORS STUDENTS AND PROJECTS
Mary Nikky Sylvester^ – Geometric morphometric analysis of Colubroid snake head morphology: implications for phylogeny and ecology (co-advisor: Dr. Jessica White, Sociology / Anthropology)
Nikky is currently working on research exploring the morphology of Colubroid snake heads to see if she can determine if their are strong phylogenetic and/or ecological signals in her data. Colubroids are the most common extant snakes and include a variety of clades including the venemous vipers and elapids (which include cobras), as well as the large colubrid group which includes rat snakes and other non-venemous species. This summer she completed her data collection at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, Illinois.
Kelly McMinn^ – Geometric morphometric analysis of otter teeth (co-advisor: Dr. Jessica White, Sociology / Anthropology)
Kelly is currently working on her honors thesis research exploring the effect of diet and phylogeny on otter teeth. She is examining tooth morphology in both river otters (Lutra canadensis) and sea otters (Enhydra lutris) and has collected data this summer at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, Illinois.
Megan Diedrick^ – Diversity of tooth shape in mustelids (co-advisor: Dr. Jessica White, Sociology / Anthropology)
Megan is currently working on her honors thesis research exploring the effect of diet and phlogeny on the morphology of teeth from the weasel-like carnivores, the mustelids. In particular, she is focusing on Mephitis mephitis (skunk), Meles meles (badger), and Gulo gulo (wolverine) species. She has collected data this summer at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, Illinois.
Hillary Parks^ – Anatomy of the first cervical vertebra and implications for the evolution of bipedalism (co-advisor: Dr. Jessica White, Sociology / Anthropology)
Hillary is currently working with Dr. White and I on an honors research project to study the morphological link between bipedalism and the shape of the first cervical vertebra (the atlas) in humans and other primates. Because the atlas holds up and orients the head, the shape of this vertebra should have morphological signals that show us how a primate's skull was oriented in relation to its body.
Katie Reiss^* – Allometric growth of the caudal fin in Squalus acanthias (co-advisor: Dr. Tim Spier)
Katie finished her research on shape changes in the caudal fin of the spiny dogfish shark, Squalus acanthias. Katie measured and digitized over 100 caudal fins of these sharks to see if there were significant shape changes in their tails as they matured. Katie’s research has the potential to shed light on locomotor differences in juvenile and adult members of S. acanthias. She is pictured at right measuring a small S. acanthias at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. She and Dr. Bonnan are currently preparing a manuscript for Copeia.
Jennifer DeLuka* – Investigation of uncinate process diversity and distribution in avian species: implications for uncinate process evolution. (2005)
Jennifer completed an honor’s project with me where she examined the morphological variation of uncinate processes (specialized rib projections) in birds to better define their functional morphology. Her research has implications for respiration and forelimb mobility in fossil archosaurs. Jennifer is currently pursuing a career as a medical doctor.
Karla Cortez* – Joint morphology in turtles: implications for reconstructing joints in fossil sauropsids (2004)
Karla completed her honor’s project with me comparing the joint morphology of Trachemys scripta elegans turtles pre- and post-skeleontized. She found some statistically significant differences between the skeletonized and non-skeletonized limbs of T. s. elegans. She recently graduated with a degree in physical therapy and is now a licensed physical therapist.
Melissa Kuberski* – Investigation of variability in living reptile sacra: implications for functional morphology (2003)
Melissa completed research under my direction on an honor’s thesis where she examined and measured lizard sacra and pelves to see if there were significant correlations between sacral and pelvic shape and hindlimb/tail functional morphology in living reptiles. Melissa found statistically significant results in sacral shape between agamid lizards vs. iguanids and varanids that seem to correlate with tail use and how habitually the lizards assumed bipedal postures. Results of this study will be applied to understanding locomotion in fossil archosaurs such as dinosaurs. Melissa is currently a graduate student at WIU.
INDEPENDENT STUDY
Aubrey Hoskins*^ – Clearing and staining small vertebrates and vertebrate embryos (2006-2007)
Aubrey worked in my lab clearing and staining small vertebrates and vertebrate embryos for research and teaching purposes. Her specimens as well as those Emily and Giuseppe (below) will eventually be developed into an educational display.
Emily Neeley* & Giuseppe Muzzupappa* – Clearing and staining small vertebrates and vertebrate embryos (2006)
Emily and Giuseppe worked with me in the Spring of 2006 to clear and stain embryo and small vertebrate specimens for research and teaching purposes. We plan to develop an educational display of their specimens.
Daren Lefever* – Vertebrate skeletal reconstruction (2005)
Daren reconstructed an opossum skeleton (Didelphys americanus) for display and educational purposes in the Spring of 2005.
Lyndon Coghill* – Morphometric variation in boiid and python skulls (2004)
Lyndon worked with me as an independent student investigator. His research involved the morphometric analysis of boid and python snake skulls in an attempt to sort out fine-scale morphological differences in these two snake clades. The implications of Lyndon’s research are potentially far-reaching and may include differences in feeding behavior and jaw functional morphology. Lyndon is currently a Ph.D. student at another university.
Erin Loeding* – Metamorphosis in axolotl salamanders (2002)
Erin completed an independent undergraduate project under my supervision in the Fall of 2002, assessing the effects of the thyroid hormone thyroxine (T4) on Mexican axolotl salamanders (Ambystoma mexicanum). Her study on these neotenic salamanders can be viewed by clicking here. Erin is currently a graduate student working under Dr. Thomas.
*Denotes an alumnus of the Bonnan Lab
^Denotes current or former member of the FMEA working group
Jennifer Sandrik^ –
The effect of epiphyseal cartilage loss in the appendicular skeleton of Alligator mississippiensisJennifer has been working on understanding the effect of
epiphyseal cartilage loss in the appendicular skeleton of American alligators on their long bone dimensions. Understanding dinosaur locomotion is very difficult, and requires knowledge of the cartilage at either end of the limb to properly understand how the limbs move, but this is missing in fossils. It is unknown if the absence of the cartilage significantly affects the dimensions of the underlying calcified cartilage/bone, and consequently it not known if the motion of the limb can be reliably measured in the absence of cartilage in fossil archosaurs. Dinosaurs are archosaurs, with their living relatives being birds and crocodilians. Therefore, comparing what happens to the dimensions and shape of the limb in crocodilians and birds when the cartilage is removed might offer a general idea on how much cartilage was lost in dinosaur fossils. Her study tests the hypothesis that a significant difference in Alligator mississippiensis limb joint dimensions occurs when the epiphyseal (joint) cartilage is removed.
Victoria Livingston^ –
Forelimb versus hindlimb differentiation in Alligator mississippiensis
Vickie has been working on understanding how the proportions of American alligator embryos change with increasing size. Archosauria is a collective term for the evolutionary clade consisting of crocodilians, dinosaurs, and birds with crocodilians being the most basal group. Several fossil members of the clade, such as dinosaurs, became bipedal, changing the function of their forelimb entirely and placing a complete locomotor emphasis on their hind limbs. But how was a bipedal stance initially achieved in dinosaurs, and was it influenced by pre-existing anatomical specializations and/or changes during growth? To test whether there is something about archosaur anatomy that pre-adapts them for bipedalism, Vickie is charting changes in the limb proportions during growth of a living archosaur (Alligator mississippiensis) that retains the most primitive (and therefore originally inherited) features of dinosaurs.
Theresa Larson^ –
Comparison of cognitive ability of primates to solve puzzle feeders (co-advisor: Dr. Jessica White, Sociology / Anthropology)
Do “cognitive tests” truly provide a measure of cognitive ability and “intelligence,” or are different factors involved that should be appreciated in any interpretation of data? Theresa's project will explore these questions by introducing seven species of primates, Brown-Headed Spider Monkey (Ateles fusciceps robustus), Black Tufted-Ear Marmoset (Callithrix kuhlii), Black Lemur (Eulemur macaco macaco), Lar Gibbon (Hylobates lar), Ring-Tailed Lemur (Lemur catta), Dusky Leaf Monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus), and Red Ruffed Lemurs (Varecia variegata rubra) to three different cognitive devices.
Takahiko Nishiwaki^ –
The effect of epiphyseal cartilage loss in the appendicular skeleton of galliform and ratite birds
Taka has been working in my lab originally as an undergraduate independent study project, and has elaborated that project into his current Masters Thesis. Modern birds are descendants of dinosaurs called saurischian dinosaurs. Saurischian dinosaurs include two major lineages with bipedal members: the predatory theropods and the herbivorous sauropodomorphs. Taka will examine the limbs of modern birds to infer how the loss epiphyseal cartilage may effect our interpretation of saurischian dinosaur locomotion. For this project, Taka will examine epiphyseal cartilage loss in the long bones of domestic chickens (Gallus domesticus), ostrich chicks (Struthio camelus), and wild turkey chicks (Meleagris gallopavo).
Ashley Morhardt^ – Functional implications of the texture and morphology of the premaxilla, maxilla, and dentary bones in archosaurs
Ashley has begun her Masters work with me exploring what the texture and morphology of the anterior jaw bones in archosaurs tell us (if anything) about the overlying soft tissues. She hopes to expand her research to implications involving dinosaurs.
Kristy Tuttle ^ – Geometric morphometric analysis of long bone allometry in Euarchontoglire mammals and its relationship to arboreality
Kristy has begun her Masters work with me exploring the allometric changes in long bones of the Euarchontoglire mammals (rodents, rabbits, primates, tree shrews, dermopterans) and their potential relationship to body mass and arboreal habits.
Simon Masters* – Allometric growth of the humerus in Allosaurus: functional morphology or phylogeny? (2007)
Simon completed a Master’s Thesis under my direction, studying humerus scaling in a very common Late Jurassic theropod (predatory) dinosaur called Allosaurus. Predatory dinosaur forelimbs were fairly small for their body size and we don’t know precisely what they were doing with them. Simon's research shed some light on changes in forelimb use as Allosaurus grew from a small juvenile to an adult nearly 30 feet long. Above, Simon is measuring one of many Allosaurus humeri for his thesis project.
Simon is currently employed as the Crew Supervisor for Intermountain Paleo-Consulting in Vernal, Utah.
Jamie Junkerman* – Anatomical study of archosaurian tibia, fibula, and mesotarsal joints: evolutionary implications for locomotion (2004)
Jamie completed a master’s thesis under my direction studying crus shape and evolution in archosaurs, and its implications for inferring foot movements in fossil archosaurs such as dinosaurs. She is currently attending chiropractic school.