Lucy Tran

Lucy Tran
Ph.D. student

B.S., Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution with minor in Geography/Environmental Studies, University of California, Los Angeles (2007)

U-M affiliation(s)
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
College of Literature, Science, and the Arts

Contact information
University of Michigan
2085 Museums Building
1109 Geddes Avenue
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1079
Email: lucaptra@umich.edu

Field of study
Spatial patterns and processes of speciation

Research interests
My research uses geometric morphometric techniques (studying the variation and change in the size and shape of skulls) to assess how ecological factors drive speciation in African and Asian colobine monkeys. Divergence in ecological traits that mediate species' interactions with their environment in response to, for example, interspecific competition or ecological opportunity (e.g., traits that are functionally related to trophic use) can implicate natural selection in generating species richness. I am also interested in applying coalescent-based approaches to inferring the phylogeny of colobine monkeys and the phylogeographic history of one colobine group, the endangered douc langurs of Southeast Asia.

Advisors
L. Lacey Knowles

News
NSF honorable mentions
The National Science Foundation has granted honorary mention status to EEB graduate students John Marino, Leslie McGinnis and Lucy Tran as part of its 2009 Graduate Research Fellowship program. NSF confers honorable mention to meritorious applicants who do not receive fellowship awards. This is a significant academic achievement nationwide. For one year, they receive enhanced access to an open network of high-performance computers, data, tools, people, and high-end experimental facilities around the world to aid their development of novel scientific theories and knowledge. McGinnis is a fall 2009 incoming doctoral student.