Recent members of the MEEP Lab
Research staff
- Amy Tims (2025), postdoctoral research associate
- Yasmin Asar (2024–2025), postdoctoral research associate
- Leo Featherstone (2024), research assistant
- Braxton Jones (2024), research assistant
- Kyle Ewart (2023–2024), postdoctoral research associate
- Karen López (2023–2024), postdoctoral research associate
- Fred Jaya (2020–2022), research assistant
- Xin Xu (2019–2020), Hunan Normal University, visiting researcher
- Tim Lee (2019–2020), postdoctoral research associate
- Katie Robinson (2019–2020), postdoctoral research associate
- Mark de Bruyn (2017–2022), senior lecturer
- Toshihisa Yashiro (2017–2019), Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Postdoctoral Fellow
- Niklas Mather (2017–2018), research assistant
- Fangluan Gao (2017–2018), Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, visiting researcher
- Arong Luo (2017–2018), Chinese Academy of Sciences, visiting researcher
- David Duchêne (2016–2018), postdoctoral research associate
- Thomas Bourguignon (2015–2017), University of Sydney Postdoctoral Fellow
- Yanli (Shirley) Che (2015–2016), Southwest University, visiting researcher
- Sarah Vargas (2015), Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, postdoctoral fellow
- Heng (Grace) Wei (2013–2014), postdoctoral researcher
- Yoshinobu Hayashi (2012–2014), Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Postdoctoral Fellow
- Vicky McCarl (2012–2013), postdoctoral researcher
Postgraduate research students
- Braxton Jones (2025) supervised by Nathan Lo & Simon Ho
PhD thesis: - Yasmin Asar (2024), supervised by Simon Ho & Hervé Sauquet (Botanic Gardens of Sydney)
PhD thesis: Exploring evolutionary rates and patterns of diversification across the Tree of Life - Yi-Kai Tea (2022), supervised by Simon Ho, Nathan Lo, Anthony Gill, & Joey DiBattista (Australian Museum)
PhD thesis: Evolution on coral reefs, with systematic treatments of the pencil and fairy wrasses (Teleostei: Labridae: Pseudojuloides et Cirrhilabrus) - Beth Flaxman (2021), supervised by Simon Ho, Mark de Bruyn, Laetitia Gunton (Australian Museum), & Elena Kupriyanova (Australian Museum)
MSc thesis: Opening a can of worms: Investigating the depth range of a deep-sea polychaete species complex - Daej Arab (2021), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, & Thomas Bourguignon (Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology)
PhD thesis: Insects and their endosymbionts: Phylogenetics and evolutionary rates - Perry Beasley-Hall (2020), supervised by Nathan Lo & Simon Ho
PhD thesis: Digging deeper: phylogenetics and parallel evolution of Australian native cockroaches, their allies, and endosymbionts - Kyle Ewart (2020), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, Rebecca Johnson (Australian Museum), & Rob Ogden (University of Edinburgh)
PhD thesis: Phylogeography and population genetics of Australian threatened and invasive birds - Cara Van Der Wal (2020), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, & Shane Ahyong (Australian Museum)
PhD thesis: Total-evidence analyses of crustacean evolution - Zoe Patterson Ross (2019), supervised by Edward Holmes & Simon Ho
PhD thesis: Inferring viral evolutionary history and dynamics using time-structured molecular sequence data - Jun Tong (2018), supervised by Nathan Lo & Simon Ho
PhD thesis: Investigating evolutionary history using phylogenomics - Charles Foster (2018), supervised by Simon Ho & Murray Henwood
PhD thesis: Using phylogenomic data to untangle the patterns and timescale of flowering plant evolution - Andrew Ritchie (2018), supervised by Simon Ho & Nathan Lo
PhD thesis: Evaluating the performance of diversification models for reconstructing evolutionary history - Thilanka Galappaththi (2017), supervised by Nathan Lo
MSc thesis: A timeframe for the evolution of ticks based on molecular clock analysis of mitochondrial genomes - David Duchêne (Australian National University, 2017), supervised by Marcel Cardillo, Lindell Bromham, & Simon Ho
PhD thesis: The importance of phylogenetic model assessment for macroevolutionary inference - Timothy Lee (2016), supervised by Nathan Lo & Simon Ho
PhD thesis: Molecular phylogenetic, ecological, and evolutionary studies of Australian rhinotermitid termites - Daej Arab (2015), supervised by Nathan Lo
MSc thesis: Australian Nasutitermitinae: Phylogenetics, evolution, and biodiversity - Sebastián Duchêne (2015), supervised by Simon Ho & Edward Holmes
PhD thesis: Understanding evolutionary rate variation in viruses - Luana Lins (2015), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, & Buz Wilson
PhD thesis: Molecular phylogenetics, evolution and systematics of Isopoda - Martyna Molak (2014), supervised by Simon Ho
PhD thesis: Evolutionary analysis of ancient DNA sequences - Fangzhi (Frank) Jia (discontinued in 2014), supervised by Simon Ho & Nathan Lo
Discontinued – transferred to medicine (University of Sydney) - Katie Robinson (2013), supervised by Nathan Lo & Steve Simpson
PhD thesis: DNA methylation and phenotypic plasticity in the migratory locust - Julien Soubrier (University of Adelaide; 2012), supervised by Alan Cooper, Wolfgang Haak, Michael Lee, & Simon Ho
PhD thesis: What (molecular) time is it? Using ancient DNA to accurately date evolutionary events
Honours students
- Sharaf Fozdar (2023), supervised by Simon Ho & Vanessa Hayes
Thesis: Refining the root region of the human mitochondrial tree - Susannah Coady (2023), supervised by Nathan Lo & Ros Gloag
Thesis: Evolutionary ecology and conservation of Panesthia lata, the Lord Howe Island Wood-Roach - Danny Burton (2023), supervised by Dieter Hochuli & Nathan Lo
Thesis: The effect of habitat traits on the presence and activity of arboreally nesting Nasutitermes sp. termites in urban bushland greenspaces - Dineth Pathirana (2023), supervised by Camilla Whittington, Mitchell Hodgson, & Nathan Lo
Thesis: Biology of egg-laying and live-birth in the lizard Saiphos equalis - Maxim Adams (2023), supervised by Nathan Lo & Simon Ho
Thesis: Biogeography, systematics and conservation genetics of the Australian Panesthia cockroaches - Genevieve Law (2022), supervised by Ros Gloag & Nathan Lo
Thesis: Examination of the trajectory of speciation in the Australian stingless bee Tetragonula hockingsi (Apidae: Meliponini) - Younis Menkara (2022), supervised by Simon Ho, Nathan Lo, & Anthony Gill
Thesis: Wirrah did you go: A taxonomic evaluation of Acanthistius ocellatus, the Eastern Wirrah, and Acanthistius paxtoni, the Orangelined Wirrah - Alice Dolin (2022), supervised by Simon Ho & Mark Post
Thesis: Borrowed traits and dubious dates: A Bayesian phylogenetic analysis of the Tani subbranch of the Trans-Himalayan family - Jack Savage (2022), supervised by Mark de Bruyn & Greta Frankham (Australian Museum)
Thesis: The murky turtle pool: A first population genetic analysis of the invasive red-eared slider turtle (Trachemys scripta elegans) within Australia - Al-Aabid Chowdhury (2022), supervised by Simon Ho & David Duchêne (University of Copenhagen)
Thesis: Genomic perspectives of avian evolution - Amy Locke (2021), supervised by Alyson Ashe & Nathan Lo
Thesis: Ecology and diversity of Caenorhabditis elegans and other nematodes in Sydney and surrounds - Matthew Booth (2021), supervised by Mark de Bruyn, Nathan Lo, & Greta Frankham (Australian Museum)
Thesis: Genetic assessment of the Broad Headed Snake (Hoplocephalus bungaroides) for conservation management and wildlife forensic purposes - Michelle Chua (2021), supervised by Mark de Bruyn, Simon Ho, & Clive McMahon (University of Tasmania)
Thesis: Dispersal in southern elephant seals from Davis Base, Antarctica: Combining population genetics and tracking data - Toby Kovacs (2021), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, & James Walker (Australian Government Department of Agriculture Water & Environment)
Thesis: Molecular phylogenetics, evolution, and taxonomy of the enigmatic cockroach family Nocticolidae - Mezzalina Vankan (2021), supervised by Simon Ho & David Duchêne (University of Copenhagen)
Thesis: Accounting for conflicting signals of evolutionary history in the phylogenomics era - Yasmin Asar (2020), supervised by Simon Ho & Hervé Sauquet (Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney)
Thesis: Testing the link between rates of morphological and molecular evolution in flowering plants - Holly Nelson (2019), supervised by Mark de Bruyn, Mark Eldridge (Australian Museum), & Viyanna Leo (Australian Wildlife Conservancy)
Thesis: Long-nosed bandicoot (Perameles nasuta) population at North Head, Sydney, Australia - Andrew Berg (2019), supervised by Mark de Bruyn, Simon Ho, & Patrick Faulkner (Archaeology)
Thesis: Holocene population dynamics of the Australasian southern elephant seal - Yi-Kai Tea (2018), supervised by Simon Ho, Nathan Lo, & Anthony Gill
Thesis: From a land down under: Historical biogeography and systematics of the anti-equatorial fish Microcanthus strigatus (Teleostei: Microcanthidae) - Aaron Parker (2018), supervised by Nathan Lo, & Rebecca Johnson & Matthew Lott (Australian Museum)
Thesis: Metabarcoding of invertebrates from Darwin International Airport - Cara Van Der Wal (2015), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, & Shane Ahyong (Australian Museum)
Thesis: Phylogeny and evolution of the Stomatopoda (Crustacea: Malacostraca) inferred using molecular data - Evelyn Todd (2015), supervised by Simon Ho & Natasha Hamilton (Veterinary Science)
Thesis: Inbreeding and its effects on Thoroughbred racing performance - Monica Fahey (2015), supervised by Simon Ho & Maurizio Rossetto (Royal Botanic Garden)
Thesis: Local persistence of regional connectivity: Contrasting gene flow barriers in Tristaniopsis (Myrtaceae) - Julia Dowe (2015), supervised by Madeleine Beekman & Nathan Lo
Thesis: Weird things mitochondria do: The slime mould’s tale - Ashley Montagu (2013), supervised by Nathan Lo & Ben Oldroyd
Thesis: Testing for conflicts in reproduction and genetic polyethism in the polygynous termite Nasutitermes exitiosus - Jun Tong (2013), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, & Dieter Hochuli
Thesis: The evolution of Australian burrowing cockroaches - Charles Foster (2013), supervised by Simon Ho, Murray Henwood, & Barry Conn (Royal Botanic Garden)
Thesis: Gone with the wind? A systematic revision and biogeographic treatment of Logania R.Br. (Loganiaceae) - Timothy Lee (2011), supervised by Nathan Lo, Simon Ho, & Buz Wilson (Australian Museum)
Thesis: Systematics and biogeography in the genus Spherillo, with a focus on Spherillo grossus - Lauren van der Kraan (2011), supervised by Kathy Belov (Vet), Nathan Lo, & Beata Ujvari (Veterinary Science)
Thesis: Characterisation of natural killer cell receptor genes in the Tasmanian devil genome - Shannan Langford Salisbury (2011), supervised by Jaime Gongora (Veterinary Science) & Simon Ho
Thesis: Genetic study of chickens from Norfolk Island
Interns and volunteers
- Jil Helbling (2024), volunteer
- Oscar Lo Lu (2024), volunteer
- Aidan Lowe (2024), volunteer
- Juno Bennett (2023), volunteer
- Jack Marsden (2021-2022), Denison Research Scholar
- Toby Kovacs (2019–2020), Denison Research Scholar
- Samuel Traves (2018–2019), intern
- Blake Johnson (2018–2019), Denison Research Scholar
- Matteo Barbato (2018), intern
- Eugene Kwok (2018), Denison Research Scholar
- Courtney Wood (2017), Denison Research Scholar
- Toby Kovacs (2017, 2019), Talented Student Program intern
- Gabriela Arratia (2016–2017), volunteer
- Elise Winch (2016–2017), volunteer
- Katalina Bobowik (2016), intern
- Amanda Chen (2015), Talented Student Program intern
- Juanita Chui (2015), Talented Student Program intern
- Tayler Wishart (2014), Talented Student Program intern
- Felipe Cini (2014), intern
- Lindsay Kemp (2013), volunteer
- Shuravi Paul (2012–2013), volunteer
- Craig Coorey (2012), volunteer
- Katy Schlotfeldt (2012), volunteer
Academic visitors
- Jorge Gutiérrez-Rodríguez (2023–2024), Spanish National Research Council
- Molly Hunter (2022), University of Arizona
- David Duchêne (2020–2023), University of Copenhagen
- Sally Potter (2018–2022), Australian National University
- Giulio Facchini (2019), University of Roehampton (London, United Kingdom)
- Zongqing (Wayne) Wang (2015), Southwest University (Chongqing, China)
- Gerry Cassis (2014), University of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia)
- Anna Namyatova (2013–2016), University of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia)
- Xiaofeng (Hans) Liu (2013–2014), Capital Normal University (Beijing, China)
- Ainsley Seago (2012), CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences (Canberra, Australia)
- Kiyoto Maekawa (2012), University of Toyama (Japan)
- Christian Bruhn (2011), University of Copenhagen (Denmark)