Research Projects

Evolutionary-Ecology in Melanoplus sanguinipes/devastator grasshoppers.
I'm interested in the role of ecological and sexual selection in the divergence of these two incipient grasshopper species. Along with extensive genetic work characterizing the population structure of both species and the dynamics of the hybrid zone, I am conducting a series of experiments to determine the significance of mating cues and environmental variation in limiting gene flow between natural populations.

Comparative Phylogeography in montane arthropods.
Genetic variation within and between populations reflects historic environmental events, as well as demographic properties such as population size and dispersal ability. I'm studying several alpine insect species endemic to the California Sierra Nevada to 1) assess their conservation status, 2) understand how environmental history has influenced a diverse assemblage of species, and 3) to make predictions about the role of climate fluctuations on alpine insect diversity.
(Special thanks to my heroic hiking partner, Sean Rovito).

Conservation Genetics
I am involved in a number of collaborative projects that rely on patterns of genetic diversity to answer questions in ecology, conservation, and evolution. For example, I am currently studying the genetic diversity of endangered populations of Rana muscosa in Southern California to aid in management decisions about population relocations and reintroductions. Populations of this frog have been devastated by emergent disease and introduced trout.

Sean D. Schoville, Insect Biology, UC Berkeley, 137 Mulford Hall #3114, Berkeley, CA 94709-3114, Phone:510-642-9547, schovill@nature.berkeley.edu, Member of Evolab.