The Lab Team
Nate Upham, Principal Investigator, Assistant Professor in the School of Life Sciences.
CV | ASU profile | Google Scholar | Twitter | Github
Data products: ASM Mammal Diversity Database | VertLife mammal phylogeny
Potential students: If you're interested in joining the lab, please read this page.
Damien Rivera, PhD student in Evolutionary Biology program (started 2025, previously MS student in Biology since 2023).
Research interests: Evolutionary ecology, Genomics. Projects: Distribution of small mammals in the Madrean sky islands; Gene flow among montane populations of Peromyscus boylii.
Awards: ASM Grant-in-Aid of Research (2024, 2025)
Julia Nitschmann, PhD student in Evolutionary Biology program (started 2025; previously teaching at Odessa College, MS from Tarleton State Univ).
Research interests: Population genetics, pocket gopher biology.
Projects: Gene flow among montane populations of Megascapheus bottae in the Madrean sky islands.
Gilma De Leon, MS student in Biology MS program (started 2023).
ASU profile | Twitter | DEI program research profile | Blog post from the DEI Biocollections Scholars 2022 program
Research interests: Animal behavior; vertebrate ecology; mammalogy and ichthyology
Projects: Gut microbiome and diet of Neotoma mexicana and Neotoma albigula in Arizona
Luisa Zamora Chavez, MS student in Biology program (started 2023).
ASU profile | Twitter | LinkedIn
Research interests: Mammalogy; herpetology; human-wildlife interactions; biogeography; phylogenetics. Projects: Fungal symbionts in rodent lungs, comparing community dynamics across elevation in the Santa Catalina Mountains, AZ.
Awards: NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Award (2023-2025)
Morgan Pierce, MS student in Biology program (started 2023, co-advised with Dr. Sharon Hall).
Research interests: Conservation Science, Urban Ecology, Population Genetics. Projects: Rodent gene flow across urban desert remnants in the metro Phoenix area.
Awards: ASM Grant-in-Aid of Research (2024); CAP LTER Graduate Student Summer Fellowship (2024)
Ryan Nguyen, MS student in Biology program (started 2025, previously as an undergraduate researcher since 2023).
Research interests: Rodent phylogenetics, bioinformatics, biogeography, viruses.
Jessica (Jess) Neumeier, Research Technician (started 2024; split with Noah Snyder-Mackler's lab).
Research interests: Mammal microbiomes; ecology and evolution.
Alexander Fenlon, undergraduate researcher (also with Dakota Rowsey, Science Museum of Minnesota).
Research interests: Molecular genetics, evolution. Projects: Species delimitation in the high elevation Peromyscus of SE Arizona.
Lab Alumni
Dr. Ángel Luis Robles Fernández, former PhD student in Evolutionary Biology program (Fall 2021–Summer 2025; now a Postdoctoral Researcher in Daniel Reumann's lab, University of Kansas).
ASU profile | Google Scholar | Github | Recent papers: Wildlife susceptibility to infectious diseases | Dengue virus in mammals
Awards: GBIF Young Researcher Award | GBIF Ebbe Nielsen Award, 2nd place
Alexandra (Ali) Dubé, former Research Aide (2024; now a Researcher at the Field Museum of Natural History, Mammals Division).
Research interests: Biochemistry, isotopes, rodent viruses, graphic design, drawing.
Justin Baez, former Research Technician (2022-2024; now PhD student in UChicago's Committee on Evolutionary Biology).
ASU profile | Twitter | LinkedIn
Research interests: Macroevolution from the context of fossil biomechanics and evolutionary rates. Projects: Fossil bat evolutionary rates; fossil bat species description; Abert's Squirrel dried tissue genomics.
Norma Alicia Hernández Hernández, former Visiting Research Scholar (2023-2024).
Research interests: Environmental niche modeling. Projects: Niche modeling in Abert's squirrels; range map updates for global mammals.
Savage Hess, former Graduate Student Assistant (2022-2023; Biology MS student in Varsani Lab).
ASU profile | DEI program research profile | Blog post from the DEI Biocollections Scholars 2021 program
Research interests: Molecular Ecology. Projects: Coyote virus review & discovery (MS thesis); and Revising eponymous common names in North American sciurids.
- Nicole Veeder, former Undergraduate Researcher at ASU (2021-2022)
- J.D. Hannon, former Undergraduate Researcher at Western Connecticut State University (2020-2022)
External Collaborators in ASU's Biodiversity Knowledge Integration Center
- Matt Jones, Assistant Professor in the School of Life Sciences
- Beckett Sterner, Associate Professor and BioKIC Co-Director
- Krystal Tsosie, Assistant Professor and BioKIC Co-Director
- Laura Steger, NEON Biorepository Environmental and Zoological Collections Manager
- Caleb Powell, PhD student in SOLS
- Prashant Gupta, Postdoctoral Researcher (now at Amazon)
- Atriya Sen, Postdoctoral Researcher (now Asst Prof at University of New Orleans)
Other ASU Collaborators
- Arvind Varsani, Professor in the Biodesign Center for Fundamental & Applied Microbiomics
- Simona Kraberger, Assistant Research Scientist in the Varsani Lab
- Sharon Hall, President's Professor in the School of Life Sciences and Associate Dean in the College of Global Futures
- Petar Jevtic, Associate Professor in the School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences
- Noah Snyder-Mackler, Associate Professor in the School of Life Sciences, Center for Evolution and Medicine
- Melissa Wilson, Professor in the in the School of Life Sciences, Biodesign Center for Mechanisms of Evolution
- Taichi Suzuki, Assistant Professor in the College of Health Solutions, Health Through Microbiomes
- Harris Lewin, Research Professor in the Global Futures Laboratory, Earth Biogenome Project
- Michael Lynch, Professor and Center Director, Biodesign Center for Mechanisms of Evolution
- Emilia Martins, Professor, School of Life Sciences
Outside Collaborators (abbreviated list)
- Dakota Rowsey, Biology Collections Manager at the Science Museum of Minnesota
- Nico Franz, Professor and Director of the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute
- DeeAnn Reeder, Professor of Biology at Bucknell University
- Patrick Ruch, Leader of the Text Mining Group, Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics
- Bruce Patterson, Curator Emeritus of Mammals, Field Museum of Natural History
- Jessica Light, Professor and Curator of Mammals, Texas A&M University
- Jorrit Poelen, independent software/data engineer, Global Biotic Interactions (GloBI)
- Donat Agosti, President of Plazi literature extraction services
- Cullen Geiselman, President of BatBase bat eco-interactions database
- Nancy Simmons, Curator of Mammals at the American Museum of Natural History
- Michael Landis, Assistant Professor at Washington University in St. Louis
- Tom Stewart, Assistant Professor at Penn State University
- Connor Burgin, Graduate Student at the University of New Mexico, Student Curator of the ASM Mammal Diversity Database