Meet the Team

  • Diego Santiago-Alarcon

    PI

  • 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

  • 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.

  • 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

  • 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

  • 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

  • Indira Goldman

    M.Sc. Student

    My research focuses on hematological responses and varying haemosporidian parasite pressures in native and non-native house sparrow populations within the framework of the Enemy Release Hypothesis (ERH). My master’s thesis encompasses my love for parasites and microscopy. When I am not in the lab, I enjoy concerts, shows, and travelling.

  • 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.

  • Jay Aguilera

    Undergraduate Research Assistant

    I am assisting on Hari's project surveying urbanization's effects on wild bird populations

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.

CURRENT COLLABORATORS