My research focuses on the capacity of benthic marine organisms to cope with changing environmental conditions. Specifically, I have devoted the last ten years to understanding how coral reef organisms are impacted by changing seawater chemistry (ocean acidification), alone and in combination with warming.
Search for Academy curators, collections managers, and research staff working to answer some of the world's most pressing scientific questions.
Curatorial Assistant, Geology
I joined the Academy in 2018 as a part-time Curatorial Assistant in Geology. From 2019-2022, I worked on a NSF OCE grant: The Holocene and Anthropocene as windows into the future of marine systems. As part of this, I assisted in the digitization and management of a crowd-sourced Zooniverse project which digitally transcribed over 5,000 records from our microfossil collection. My other duties include collections care of our fossil and mineral collections, volunteer supervision, specimen digitization, and data cleaning. I graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a M.A.
Molecular Laboratory and Tissue Collection Technician
Gabriela is the lab technician for the Ichthyology department, where she assists researchers to get molecular data. In addition, she helps to catalog, organize and maintain the Ichthyology tissue collection. Her research interest is in the phylogeny of the genus Chromis, a large group with over 106 described species. As a PhD student in the Integrative Biology Department at UCB, she studies the diving physiology and genetics of sea turtles.
Assistant Curator of Herpetology
Evolution, Ecology, and Conservation of Amphibians and Reptiles
I am an organismal evolutionary biologist who integrates genomic techniques with field biology to study diversification in amphibians and reptiles. Prior to joining the Academy’s Herpetology Department, I completed a PhD in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University, a Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at UC Berkeley, and I served as Curator of Amphibians and Reptiles at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.
Chief of Science and Hind Dean of Science & Research Collections, Patterson Scholar, Associate Curator of Microbiology
Dr. Bennett is the Chief of Science and Harry and Diana Hind Dean of Research and Collections. She was the Academy's first ever Associate Curator of Microbiology, helping broaden the Academy’s research scope to include a dedicated focus on viruses and bacteria. Her specialty lies in infectious diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans.
McCosker Chair of Aquatic Biology, Assistant Curator
I’m interested in the ecology and evolution of tropical reef-building corals, from close to the surface to well into the twilight zone. As a molecular ecologist, I combine genomics and field ecology to understand how corals diversify and adapt to different environmental conditions. Much of my research has focused on studying genetic patterns “across the reef slope” (over depth), piecing together the evolutionary processes that have led to those patterns, and inferring how those patterns impact the interconnectivity of shallow and deep reef habitats.
Collections Manager, Geology
Crystal is a Mexican-American vertebrate paleontologist with over 10 years of experience working with geological and paleontological collections. She holds degrees in Geology (BS) and Environmental Science (MSc). Her research interests include Cenozoic fossil shark assemblages and conservation paleobiology topics.
Archives and Digital Collections Assistant Librarian
Seth earned a Master of Library and Information Science degree at San Jose State University and previously worked in Archives and Special Collections at University of California San Francisco.