Study System
Although open to working with any taxonomic unit, the primary study system of the lab is the mallard complex that is comprised of six island and eight mainland taxa (Figure 1), which provide natural “replicates” for testing the roles and interactions of various evolutionary forces (i.e., selection, genetic drift, gene flow) in shaping genomes. Specifically, the mallard complex provides an empirical systems to study independent events of allopatry, sympatry, secondary contact, and hybrid speciation.
However, these days my team can't say duck without the domestic versions of the mallard that have become a focal point of our research! If you do not know this, but the wild mallard is the ancestor of most domestic ducks that we know (see Figure 2 below).