Meet the Team

  • Headshot of a smiling bald man with glasses, a beard, wearing a black textured jacket, against a plain light gray background.

    Diego Santiago-Alarcon

    PI

    I love reading, nature hiking, bird watching, thinking on new ways to connect ideas and questioning my own thinking. I am also passionate about teaching people how to think outside the box via inter- and trans-disciplinary knowledge.

  • Close-up of a man with dark hair, smiling, wearing a checkered shirt, against a neutral background.

    Héctor Mejía-Díaz

    Ph.D. Student co-advised with Prof. Salvador E. Venega-Andraca

    My research focuses on the application of quantum physics to understanding genomic mutations, and on developing quantum algorithms for analyzing genotype networks

    Google Scholar

  • A smiling man standing on sandy dunes with a lake, trees, and cloudy sky in the background.

    Harikrishnan Cherayi Padinjakkara - Hari

    PhD. Student

    I joined Dr. Santiago’s lab in the Fall of 2023, driven by my passion for birds. My broad interests lie in understanding how different land-use changes affect bird communities. I'm fascinated by how birds live and thrive in these changing habitats. For my Ph.D. at USF, I will investigate how urbanization impacts the ecology of bird communities. When I am not busy with research, you can find me birdwatching or cooking. I love exploring new places, trying local food, and learning about different cultures.

  • A man with a beard and mustache wearing a black knit beanie and a red shirt, standing outdoors in a foggy environment with trees in the background.

    Oscar D. Hernandes Córdoba

    Ph.D. Student - INECOL, A.C. - CONACYT Mexico

    My research investigates how environmental variables, especially landscape attributes, along with the ecological and evolutionary features of parasites and hosts, drive patterns in the distribution and diversity of avian malaria parasites.

    https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Oscar-Cordoba-5

  • A man kneeling on green grass holding a calf in front of a large cow, with another calf lying nearby. The scene is outdoors with trees, a wooden fence, and a barn in the background.

    Uriel M. Valdez Espinoza

    Ph.D. Studnt - Co-advised with Dr. Andres Lira Noriega at INECOL, A.C. - CONACYT Mexico

    Eco-epidemiology of ticks and tick-borne pathogens in cattle

  • A young woman with brown hair in loose waves, smiling, wearing a white dress and a blue graduation stole with gold trim and information "2024" on it, standing outdoors in front of a modern glass building on a sunny day with some clouds.

    Paulina Slick

    Ph.D. Student - Co-advised with Prof. George Philippidis

    My research will be centered on discovering specific adaptations to environmental stressors in microorganisms (i.e., algae and bacteria) through the use of genomic tools.

    LinkedIn

  • A man sitting in a camping chair by a mountain lake, surrounded by trees and snow-capped mountains during a bright, sunny day.

    Nathan Dowling

    M.Sc. Student - Co-advised with Prof. Lynn Martin

    My project will explore the identification and characterization of novel antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes in wild bird bacteria, assess the stability and persistence of free-floating AMR genes in various environmental conditions, and examine the frequency and impact of horizontal gene transfer (HGT) events between avian and human bacteria in real-world settings. By investigating diverse bird species, environmental factors, and interactions between wild birds and humans, the research aims to understand the environmental reservoirs and public health implications of AMR genes.

  • A young man with long dreadlocks standing outdoors on a hilltop, wearing a beige t-shirt, maroon pants, and brown shoes, with a scenic landscape of fields and trees in the background under a partly cloudy sky.

    Preston Brady

    M.Sc. Student - Co-advised with Dr. Yusan Yang

    My research is focused on the singing behavior of the male Northern Mockingbird as it relates to their nest defense behavior. 

    I am passionate about animal signaling, with a particular interest in communication both within and between species. My broader research goals center on understanding how signals function in male-to-female interactions, prey-to-predator dynamics, and the overlap between these two realms of communication.

FORMER LAB MEMBERS

2012. M.Sc. co-advisor (with Dr. H. Martin Schaefer) of Bruntje Lüdtke. University of Ulm, Germany. Project: Linking forest types, parasitism and health of Chaffinches (Fringilla coelebs) on the Schwäbische Alb

2013. M.Sc. co-advisor (with Dr. Sergio Ibáñez-Bernal) of Liliana Trujillo Pahua. INECOL, A.C. Project: diversity and prevalence of blood parasites in bats from the mountain cloud forest of Veracruz, Mexico

2013. B.Sc. summer research stay advisor of Yahir Jesús Burgos Solís, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán

2013. B.Sc. summer research stay advisor of Paulina Alejandra Pontifes Cortés Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

2015. M.Sc. co-advisor (with Dr. Fernando González García) of Carolina Hernández Lara. INECOL, A.C. Project: avian haemosporidian diversity in a perturbation gradient within a mountain cloud forest matrix

2016. Ph.D. dissertation co-advisor (with Dr. Sergio Ibáñez-Bernal) of Carlos Antonio Abella Medrano. INECOL, A.C. Project: spatio-temporal variation of the mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) assemblage and their interaciton with avian malaria within a mountain cloud forest matrix

2015-2017. Pos-doc advisor of Dr. Pilar Carbó Ramírez. INECOL, A.C. Project: fragmentation effects of the cloud mountain forest on avian haemosporidian assemblages

2019. M.Sc. co-advisor (with Dr. Nubia Matta) of Sandra Rocío Hernández Soto. INECOL, A.C. Project: Avian hematology and health in relation to avian haemosporidian infections

2019. M.Sc. advisor of Cristel Álvarez. INECOL, A.C. Project: Feeding behavior of urban parrots in the city of Xalapa, Mexico

2020. Ph.D. dissertation advisor of Carolina Hernández Lara. INECOL, A.C. Project: Avian haemosporidian taxonomy, sistematics and ecology in mountain cloud forests

2022. Ph.D. dissertation advisor of Paulina Álvarez Mendizábal. UNAM-FMVZ. Project: Avian haemosporidian metacommunity structure across environmental gradients

2022. B.Sc. Honor´s Thesis co-advisor (with Prof. Salvador E. Venegas-Andraca) of Miguel Ángel Ruiz Ortiz. UG-CIMAT. Project: Quantum walks over genotype networks: a quantum model for genetic evolution.

2022. B.Sc. Honor´s Thesis advisor of Andrea Rocha. USF-IB. Project: Bird species richness in the USF Forest Preserve and its relation to urban structures.

2022. B.Sc. Nathan Wolfe. Undergraduate research assistant. USF-IB. Project: avian diversity in the USF Forest Preserve.

2023. Ph.D. dissertation advisor of Karla M. Rodríguez Hernández. INECOL, A.C. Project: Avian haemosporidian assemblages and infection dynamics across different altitudinal levels

2023-2024. B.Sc. Briana Miele. Undergraduate research assistant. USF-IB. Project: Hematology of a global avian invasive species, the House Sparrow

2023-2024. B.Sc. Esel Ro. Undergraduate research assistant. USF-IB. Project: Hematology of a global avian invasive species, the House Sparrow.

2023-2024. B.Sc. Carolina Carrasco. Undergraduate research assistant. USF-IB. Project: Urban avian diversity in the Tampa region.

2024. B.Sc. David Navas. Undergraduate research assistant. USF-IB. Project: Urban avian diversity in the Tampa region

2024. Ph.D. dissertation co-advisor (with Dr. Sergio Ibáñez-Bernal) of Yeraldi Guadalupe Guillén Rodríguez. INECOL, A.C. Project: Avian haemospordian Diptera vectors and their blood feeding preferences in the cloud forest of Central Veracruz, Mexico.

2024. B.Sc. Jay Aguilera. Undergraduate research assistant. USF-IB. Project: Urban avian diversity in the Tampa region.

2025. M.Sc. Indira Goldman. USF-IB. Project: Hematology and Enemy Release in Global Populations of House Sparrows.

Collage of nature scenes including Mount Fuji, a turtle with red eyes, two birds, a microscopic view of cells, and two people camping outdoors.
Group of six people standing outdoors near trees, some wearing jackets, casual clothing, and sunglasses.
A bird trapped in a mesh wire cage with a band on its leg, lying on the ground.
A man wearing a yellow safety vest standing in a park with trees, taking notes while conducting a sound survey with a tripod-mounted wildlife recording device.
Two men in high-visibility vests standing outdoors on a dirt path, with a clipboard and microphone, smiling at the camera. One man wears a gray cap and has dark wavy hair, the other has short dark hair and sunglasses. The background includes green grass, bushes, and some electrical structures.

CURRENT COLLABORATORS