Lab Members

Amanda Subalusky
Lab PI and Assistant Prof.

Chris Dutton
Postdoctoral Researcher

Joshua Benjamin
PhD Student

Joshua is a PhD student at University of Florida pursuing Zoology. He holds a MSc degree in Limnology and Wetland Management from BOKU University and IHE-Delft and a BSc degree in Environmental Science from Karatina University, Kenya. His current research work focuses on assessing how Anthropogenic Activities and Land Use Change Influence Aquatic Biodiversity and Trace Element Distribution in the Mara River Basin.

Research Interests: Macroinvertebrate taxonomy and ecology, fish ecology, community ecology, trace element pollution, and aquatic food web ecology

Sarah Johnson
PhD Student

Sarah a Zoology Ph.D. student at the University of Florida interested in understanding the effects that mammals have on community dynamics and ecosystem functions. Specifically, her aim is to study the impact of mammal carcass decomposition in terrestrial environments. She received her Bachelor's in Zoology from Michigan State University and subsequently worked for four years as a research technician at Kellogg Biological Station in numerous plant ecology labs.

Research Interests: Community and ecosystem ecology, mammology

Nikki Yetke
MS Student

Nikki is pursuing her Master’s degree in Zoology at the University of Florida studying the ecological role of American alligator burrows in seasonal wetlands in the southeastern U.S. She is interested in how alligators and other vertebrates use and move between these burrows and the habitat that is created through alligator engineering in and around the burrows. Nikki received her Bachelor’s degree in Conservation Biology and Ecology from Boston University and has since spent the majority of her time working as a field technician for wildlife and herpetology labs.

Research Interests: Predator ecology, wildlife conservation, and ecosystem engineering by vertebrates

Nicole Lynn-Bell
Affiliated Postdoctoral Researcher

Nicole is a C-CoMP postdoctoral fellow at the University of Florida interested in microbial function in various aquatic systems. She received her Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of Georgia where she studied endosymbiont diversity and function. Nicole plans to further her career in academia focusing on microbial and viral influences on important ecological interactions.