Members of Our Research Group

Message to Prospective Students & Post-docs

The focus of our research is biological diversity, ranging from the ecological and evolutionary processes that generate and maintain a wide variety of phenotypes and life-history strategies to the mechanisms that create and maintain temporal and spatial patterns of organismal distribution, relative abundance, and species richness. Members of our research group strive for mechanistic understanding of organismal traits and species interactions, per se, and to provide explanations for the structure and dynamics of populations and communities, primarily within tropical and sub-tropical latitudes.

Students and post-docs interested in joining our research group may contact Kyle (or other current members of our group) for more information via e-mail. Although our principal subjects of investigation are tropical and sub-tropical plants – often including their interactions with other organisms – Kyle encourages students and post-docs to develop projects that are tailored to and motivated by their own taxonomic and geographic interests.

 


Current Ph.D. Students

Ezekiel MartinEzekiel Martin
emar162@lsu.edu

Maggie VincentMaggie C. Vincent
mvinc33@lsu.edu

 

 


Former Graduate Students & Post-Docs

BravoCarrie A. Barker
Ph.D. 2022, LSU
Dissertation: Understanding community assembly processes of foundation species within hyper-diverse ecosystems
Current position: Botanical Team Manager, USGS, Reno, NV

Adriana BravoAdriana Bravo
Ph.D. 2009, LSU
Dissertation: Collpas as activity hotspots for frugivorous bats in the Peruvian Amazon
Current position: Assistant Professor - Teaching Stream, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

Jane Carlson working in the fieldJane E. Carlson
Ph.D. 2007, LSU
Dissertation: Natural & sexual selection in the hummingbird-pollinated herb, Chrysothemis friedrichsthaliana
Current position: National Park Service Ecologist, Lafayette, LA

Paul Gagnon working in the fieldPaul R. Gagnon
Post-doc 2007-2008, LSU
Current position: Ecologist & Social Scientist, Institute for Water Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Alexandria, VA

Sandra Galeano working in the fieldSandra P. Galeano
Ph.D. 2016, LSU
Dissertation: Ecological assembly of leaf-litter anuran communities across a Neotropical land-bridge archipelago
Current position: Líder Colecciones Anfibios y Reptiles, Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, Colombia

Katherine Hovanes working in the fieldKatherine A. Hovanes
Ph.D. 2019, LSU
Dissertation: Spatial patterns of dominant bunchgrass species in pine savanna groundcover plant communities
Current position: Visiting Assistant Professor of Biology, Washington College, Chestertown, MD

Robert John Chandran working in the fieldRobert John Chandran
Post-doc 2004-2006 with Dr. Jim Dalling, U. Illinois (Kyle was a co-advisor)
Current position: Associate Professor, Indian Institute of Science Education & Research, Kolkata, India

Metha Klock working in the fieldMetha M. Klock
Ph.D. 2015, LSU
Dissertation: The role of rhizobial mutualisms in the establishment and colonization of exotic Acacia species in novel ranges
Current position: Director of Stewardship, Marin Agricultural Land Trust, Point Reyes Station, CA

Scott Kosiba working in the fieldScott L. Kosiba
Ph.D. 2019, LSU (Kyle was a co-advisor with principal advisor Dr. Bruce Williamson)
Dissertation: Dynamics of resprouting and forest regeneration following anthropogenic land use in the central Amazon Basin
Current position: Executive Director, Friends of the Bridger-Teton, Jackson Hole, WY

Jonathan Myers working in the fieldJonathan A. Myers
Ph.D. 2010, LSU
Dissertation: Ecological assembly of high-diversity pine savannas
Current position: Associate Professor, Washington University, St. Louis, MO

Tim Paine working in the fieldC. E. Timothy Paine
Ph.D. 2007, LSU
Dissertation: Ecological factors affecting the diversity of tropical tree seedlings in the western Amazon
Current positions: Ecology Team Manager, Succession Ecology, Adelaide, Australia;
Adjunct Senior Lecturer, University of New England, Armidale, Australia

Heather Passmore working in the fieldHeather A. Passmore
Post-doc 2005-2008, LSU
Current position: Senior Data Scientist, GreatSchools, Oakland, CA

Jamie Phelps working in the fieldJamie Phelps
Graduate student who began her degree program in our LSU research group in 2019,
then transferred to Dr. Morgan Kelly's LSU research group in 2022

Ellen Reid working in the field

Ellen M. Reid
M.S. 2010, LSU
Thesis: Patterns and mechanisms of the exploitation of mutualisms
Current position: Assistant Dean for Global Education, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MA

Maria Sanchez de StapfMaría N. Sánchez de Stapf
Maestría 2001, Universidad Santa María la Antigua, Republic of Panama
(Kyle was a co-advisor with principal advisor Dr. Cecilia Guerra)

Thesis: Ecology and functional morphology of a litter-trapping tree, Capparis antonensis (Capparaceae)
Current position: Professor & Herbarium Director, Universidad de Panamá, Republic of Panama

Luis with butterfliesLuis Y. Santiago-Rosario
Ph.D. 2022, LSU
Dissertation: Sodium mediates developmental plasticity in plants and herbivores
Current position: National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Ecology, Evolution & Behavior,
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN

Erica Tsai working in the fieldYi-Hs Tsai
NSF Bioinformatics Post-doc 2010-2012 with Dr. Bryan Carstens, LSU (Kyle was a co-advisor)
Current position: Data Scientist, Boulder, CO

Charles Zartman working in the fieldCharles E. Zartman
Post-doc 2004-2005, Center for Tropical Forest Science (CTFS) & Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP)
Current position: Research Curator of Cryptogams, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Manaus, Brazil

 

 


Current & Former LSU Undergraduates

"LSU" in gold font
Mohamed Algamal
Pupal color polymorphism in Chlosyne lacinia (assistant to Jamie Phelps)
2022

Natalia Aristizabal at LSU graduationNatalia Aristizábal
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity, 2007-2009 &
Ronald E. McNair Research Scholar: Avian morphological variation along the principal Amazonian productivity gradient, 2009-2010

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Jordan Bantuelle
Improving local energy-use efficiency
2009

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Claire Brescher
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity (assistant to Carrie Barker)
2021

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Andrew Browning
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity
2006

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Sarah Colosimo
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity
2007

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Melissa Day
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity
2005-2006

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Felicia Emery
Seed dispersal in a Louisiana pine savanna
2004-2005

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Michelle Flores-Acosta
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity (assistant to Carrie Barker)
2021

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Mia Foster
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity (assistant to Carrie Barker)
2021

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Zachary Goodnow
Chancellor's Future Leader in Research Scholar
2012-2014

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Brooke Hopkins
Geographic distributions of Neotropical trees
2002-2003

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Morgan Kerns

Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity (assistant to Jonathan Myers)
& biology of invasive acacias in California (assistant to Metha Klock)
2009-2011

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Ally Lazar
Phytochemical landscape of sodium (assistant to Luis Santiago-Rosario)
2018-2019

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John-Michael May
Regeneration of longleaf pine & savanna biodiversity
2004-2005

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Stephanie Norman
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity
2005-2006

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Ikenna Onyenekwu
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity
2007

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Kahle Perret
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity (assistant to Carrie Barker)
2021

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Getorian Reed
Gender-biased nectar production (assistant to Jane Carlson)
2006

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Christian Savoie
Factors affecting regeneration of longleaf pine
2004

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Phuong Truong
Louisiana pine savanna biodiversity
2005-2006

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Abigail Vinson
President's Future Leader in Research Scholar: Ecology of Louisiana pine savannas
2016-2017

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Colleen Wallace
Seed dispersal in a Louisiana pine savanna
2004-2006

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Pamela Weisenhorn
Dispersal- and establishment-limitation of rainforest trees in Peru (assistant to Tim Paine)
2004 

Elizabeth Weltman - LSU graduation

Elizabeth Weltman
Chancellor's Future Leader in Research Scholar: Ecology of Louisiana pine savannas
2012-2014

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Rachanda Wilson
Seed dispersal in a Louisiana pine savanna
2004

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Sara Zare
Pupal color polymorphism in Chlosyne lacinia (assistant to Jamie Phelps)
2022

 

 


Our Research Group

Harms Lab 2020

Luis, Kyle, Maggie, Carrie, Jamie
(clockwise from upper left)
Zoom lab meeting 
Fall 2020

 

 

 

 

 

Harms Lab Group - 2 Oct. 2019Carrie, Jamie, Luis
Camp Whispering Pines, LA
Fall 2019

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harms research group at Eglin A.F.B.Luis, Carrie, Katherine
Eglin Air Force Base, FL
Spring 2019

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our research group at Abita Springs, LACarrie, Kyle, Katherine, Luis
Abita Springs Nature Conservancy Preserve, LA
Spring 2018

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sandra, Zach, Metha, Kyle, Katherine, Elizabeth at LSUSandra, Zach, Metha, Kyle, Katherine
(back row)
Elizabeth
(front row)
LSU
Fall 2013

 

 

 

 

 


Amanda & Christina at Eglin A.F.B.Amanda, Christina
(Eglin field team)

Eglin Air Force Base, FL
Winter 2013

 

 

 

 

 

 

 




 

Harms research group; Blackwater, FLKatherine, Paul, Kyle, Susan
Blackwater River State Forest, FL
Spring 2012

Photo © J. A. Myers 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harms research group in Baton Rouge, LANatalia, Jonathan, Metha, Kyle, Sandra
(back row)
Adriana
(front row)
Baton Rouge, LA
Winter 2009

 

 

 

 

 

Harms research group in Baton RougeAdriana, Ellen, Kyle, Heather, Paul, Jonathan
Baton Rouge, LA
Summer 2008

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adriana and Jonathan at Camp Whispering Pines

Adriana, Jonathan
Camp Whispering Pines, LA
Spring 2007

Photo © J. A. Myers

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heather & Jonathan at Camp Whispering PinesHeather, Jonathan 
Camp Whispering Pines, LA
Summer 2006

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harms Research Group at annual crawfish boil, LSUKyle, Adriana, Tim, Jane, Jonathan
Annual LSU Department of Biological Sciences Crawfish Boil
Spring 2006

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tim Paine and Jane Carlson, Panama, 2003Tim, Jane 
Panama
2003