CURRENT RESEARCH
My current work in the Cohen Lab involves the invasive bryozoan Watersipora subtorquata. This species is unusual among invasives because it has colonized not only the highly-invaded San Francisco Bay, but also the coastal rocky intertidal outside of the bay. Watersipora's presence in these two distinct habitats may be due to its ability to thrive in a wide range of environments, but it may also suggest local adaptation or the presence of several genetically distinct populations.
The progression of marine invasions can be difficult to track, but understanding the genetic structure of Watersipora may give us some insights into how it spreads, and how and why it is spreading beyond the bay.
​
I will be using genetic analysis to compare Watersipora in the bay and Watersipora from the coastal rocky intertidal, and to assess genetic variation within invasion sites. I will use the Cytochrome c oxidase subunit I locus to establish clade identity within the Watersipora species complex, and then characterize small-scale genetic variation with microsatellites.