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Rindy Anderson • andersonr@fau.edu

 

Rindy became interested in animal behavior during her undergraduate years at Arizona State University.  After 21 years in the desert she migrated to San Diego to complete a M.S. in marine science at the University of San Diego. Rindy worked for several years at the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute with Ann Bowles and Pamela Yochem studying conservation and bioacoustics. Her love of bird song and field ornithology came from working with Bill Searcy during her Ph.D. at the University of Miami.  Rindy has Bill to thank for her love of song sparrows and field work in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. Rindy then went to Duke for postdoctoral work in Steve Nowicki's lab.  Working with Steve and Susan Peters honed her skills in bioacoustic analysis, animal cognition testing, and Duke basketball fandom. Rindy has Steve to thank for getting lost in the Pymatuning Reservoir, and for the sculpture "Dolphins Under Glass" displayed in her lab.

 

PhD Students

 

Morgan Slevin​ • mslevin2018@fau.edu

Morgan Slevin is a PhD student that began his time at FAU in Fall 2018. Originally from Sarasota, FL, Morgan received his B.S. in Biology from Rhodes College, then his M.S. in Biology from Arkansas State University where he studied Prothonotary Warbler habitat selection, nest survival, and spatial variation in plumage coloration. His experience with songbird signaling systems led him to Dr. Anderson’s lab at Florida Atlantic University where he is studying the relationship between the avian gut microbiome, cognition, signaling, and animal health, both in the laboratory with Zebra Finches and the field with Northern Cardinals.

 

 

 

Heather Wolverton • hwolverton2013@my.fau.edu

Born and raised in South Florida, Heather has always had a strong passion for Florida Wildlife. She received a dual undergraduate degree in Biology and Honors English and was awarded the Senior of the Year award for her English thesis, which reflected the growing knowledge gap between science and the humanities. Heather has always had a passion for not only learning more about the wildlife around her, but passing on her knowledge to others in every way possible. Heather joined the Anderson lab after taking a behavioral ecology course. She is interested in how behavior evolves and changes in various organisms, and how a deeper understanding of animal behavior can be used to inspire new conservation efforts. Currently, Heather is working on studying song sequences in Bachman Sparrows.

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Hans Gonzembach​ • hgonzembach2020@fau.edu

Hans originally grew up in south Florida but completed his undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts, Boston. His undergraduate research was in Costa Rica, where he compared song degradation between different song types in a species of hummingbird called the Long-billed hermit. His experience with investigating cultural evolution in birds opened up an opportunity to join the Anderson lab at Florida Atlantic University, and return back home to a warmer climate. He is currently studying song transmission properties of different song types in the Bachman's sparrows.

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Lauren Dawson-Scully • ldawsonscull2021@fau.edu

Lauren graduated from the University of Florida with a B.S. in Biology, where she discovered her passion for avian biology. During her time as an undergraduate student, she had opportunities to work with the Florida Museum of Natural History and the Alachua Audubon Society, which further piqued her interest in studying birds. Additionally, Lauren conducted undergraduate research on the impact of urbanization on the community composition and conditions of birds in wetland ecosystems. Her passions led her to joining Dr. Anderson’s lab, where she is excited to further explore her research interests in avian behavior and conservation.​​​​​​​​

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Ray Pressman​ • rpressman2024@fau.edu (they/them)

Ray graduated from Arizona State University in 2021 with a B.S. in Conservation Biology & Ecology and a certificate in Biomimicry. During their undergraduate studies, Ray conducted research on House Finches to assess oxidative stress and exploratory behavior related to urbanization. Ray’s research interests focus on conservation and applied research, particularly avian behavior related to climate change and its influence on incubation and reproductive success. Ray is excited to be apart of The Anderson Lab, where their research will ultimately help avian conservation efforts in South Florida.

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Lab Associates

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Casey Klofstad

Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Miami

Casey's research addresses how society and biology influence human behavior, in particular voting decisions and civic engagement.

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​Max!

Max is an excellent field assistant. He also enjoys playing basketball, soccer, and flag football, and exploring nature.

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Fauci!

Fauci joined our family during the 2020 covid-19 pandemic and is the unofficial lab mascot. He also enjoys chasing lizards and frogs.

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Lab Alumni

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Billy Abbott 

 Billy completed his B.S. in Biology at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville where he conducted research focused on aquatic inverts, bats and birds. Since graduating he has worked as a field biologist, largely on conservation projects, including; post wildfire response of passerines in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and shorebird use of manmade wetland habitat in California’s Central Valley. Through these experiences Billy learned that effective conservation efforts are built from thorough biological understanding. Billy’s desire to gain a more comprehensive understanding of bird behavior and apply that knowledge to further conservation aims led him to the Anderson Lab. He completed a fantastic thesis in our Environmental Sciences Program in April 2023 and is now working for The Nature Conservancy in California. WE MISS BILLY!

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Charlie Daria​ 

Charlie is from California and received his bachelors from the University of San Diego. His undergraduate research was in the Australian rainforests, where he assessed the effectiveness of different land restoration strategies. After graduation, Charlie would continue research by studying parrot behavior in local populations living throughout San Diego. Charlie has a deep passion for both conservation and behavioral biology, where he sought the Anderson Lab in order to integrate the two disciplines. He completed his MS in Biology studying how urban noise affects cognitive performance and health in zebra finches. He is now a PhD student at Florida International University.

 

Joe Niederhauser • jniederhause2015@fau.edu

Originally from Michigan, Joe earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Joe did his Master’s degree at the University of Central Florida where he studied the effects of urbanization on parental care and nest survival in the Florida scrub-jay. Joe graduated from FAU with his PhD in 2019. He is now an Assistant Professor at West Virginia Wesleyan University.

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Sabah Ali

Due to his interests in how environmental, physiological, and social factors shape behavior, Sabah joined the Anderson lab in Fall 2015 to study these mechanisms using songbirds as a model organism. After receiving a Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship, Sabah led a research project looking at the aggressive functions of the communication system of male Bachman's Sparrows. This project was widely successful as it resulted in an Honors Thesis Distinction, first-author publication, and being named Undergraduate Researcher of the Year for Sabah. After receiving his Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and Behavior, Sabah stayed on in the Anderson Lab as a research assistant to help with an interdisciplinary collaborative project with the FAU Brain Institute looking at the differences in cognitive performances and its relationship to stress phenotypes in song sparrows and zebra finches. Sabah then became a post-baccalaureate research fellow at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience. Sabah is currently a medical school student training to become a physician.

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Paula Ziadi

Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Paula received her B.S. in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation from the University of Florida. At UF, Paula found her passion in animal behavior and cognition. In 2016 she joined the Anderson Lab, and ultimately completed a Master’s degree at FAU where she studied song complexity and aggressive signaling in Bachman’s sparrows.