Anna Holmquist

Dr. Anna Holmquist is a postdoctoral researcher in the Center for Comparative Genomics (CCG) working on a multi-institutional project to generate a comprehensive DNA barcode reference library for all Californian insects by utilizing museum collections. Holmquist received her PhD from the University of California, Berkeley in May 2023. She is broadly interested in understanding the processes behind biodiversity formation and promoting resilience. Her dissertation research focused on the influence of geological and ecological processes in shaping spider diversity across elevational gradients on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. She is also interested in the processes of community assembly and how different drivers of assembly influence the way modern biotic communities respond to anthropogenic disturbance. She has studied arthropod communities affected by wildfire, deforestation, urbanization, and invasive species to better understand community response to anthropogenic disturbance.