For nearly two decades, our research has focused on understanding the origin and maintenance of biological diversity in the tropics, the cradle of our planet’s diversity. Our work explores how populations change to adapt to their physical and social environments, and how these changes, in turn, can result in reproductive barriers. To this end, my research group explores two major foci. First, we explore how changes in the ways animals communicate can lead to reproductive barriers between populations — the hallmark of biological species. For instance, we explore how changes in plumage color and song in birds, which are traits used in choosing and competing for mates, can result in premating reproductive barriers between populations. Second, we explore how populations change to more effectively exploit their biotic and abiotic environments, and how these changes can likewise lead to reproductive barriers and the maintenance of species boundaries. We explore, for example, how novel environments, including urbanization, drive changes for more efficient feeding and communication. For both foci, we take advantage of species with populations currently adapting to their environment and/or are on the verge of becoming new species. In these projects, we use an integrative approach to determine the molecular basis and genomic consequences of adaptive change by combining long-term field observations and experiments with cutting-edge approaches in genomics, proteomics, and developmental biology. Interests: Evolutionary Ecology; Behavioral Ecology; Evolutionary Genetics; Speciation; Conservation