The University of Texas at El Paso
Department of Biological Sciences 500 W University El Paso, Texas 79902 ojohnson AT utep.edu henicorhina AT gmail.com |
I am a postdoctoral fellow in the Harvey Lab at the University of Texas at El Paso, where my research seeks to understand the processes that govern speciation of birds in species-rich tropical environments. I use macroevolutionary and comparative phylogenetic methods to bridge the gap between fine- and broad-scale biogeographic patterns among species. I am also interested in applying phylogenetic and morphological data to poorly-known species complexes to study biogeography and inform systematics and taxonomy.
My research combines natural history, museum specimens, community science databases, and molecular data to address these questions. I am actively involved in field work, both in the desert Southwest and (pre-covid) in the western Amazon Basin, focused on obtaining and preserving specimens for museum collections, obtaining natural history data — especially sound recordings and photos — and field inventories, and contributing these data to community science databases like eBird and the Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds. Previously, I worked in the Brumfield lab at the Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science. In January 2024, I will be starting a position as Assistant Professor of Ornithology at Florida Gulf Coast University. |
Diverse perspectives and lived experiences are critical for the advancement of science and the health of academia. However, this diversity has been systematically suppressed by fundamental inequities in the opportunities available to people of underprivileged backgrounds, gender identities or sexual orientations, languages, religions, or economic groups. To help address these shortcomings, which are still present in the museum community that I am a part of, I endeavor to foster an inclusive and diverse community in the places in which I work, through the mentorship of students in the United States, support of researchers from the countries in which I conduct research, and public outreach directed at underrepresented groups, all directed at achieving a more equitable museum community.
© 2022 Oscar Johnson
