Advisor: Rodney Dyer, Ph.D., Center for Environmental Studies

The Darien highlands region is known for its high diversity and endemism.  Preliminary phylogeographic studies in the montane species Chlorospingus tacarcunae and Myadestes coloratus reveal modest genetic divergence among isolated populations in the Darien highland system. In my research I plan to combine morphometric and phylogenetic analysis to examine the phylogeographic history and population genetic structure in order to evaluate the influence of the landscape on the gene flow between populations that inhabit different mountain ranges in Darien. These analyses will provide a clearer understanding of the influence of the local landscape on the phylogeographic history of endemic montane birds and their current distribution in Panama.