Museum Personnel
The Vertebrate Museum at Southeastern Louisiana University is a working scientific
museum which relies on grant funding to maintain its collection. Thanks to these funds
we have been able to hire and maintain personnel in order to advance our collection
in both size and scope. We recently added a Outreach and Education Director – Dr.
Liz Marchio – to broaden our reach. Currently, we have the following personnel working
at the Museum:
Curator
Dr. Kyle Piller
Curator of Vertebrates, Edward G. Schlieder Foundation Professor of Environmental
Studies and Sustainability, and Graduate Coordinator
Phone:+1 (985) 549-2191 | Fax: +1 (985) 549-3851 | Email:[email protected] | Dr. Piller’s website
Research Interests: Systematics | Evolution | Ecology | Conservation Genetics | eDNA
Museum Manager and Database Specialist
Ms. Danielle Wasserman
Phone:+1 (985) 549-2901 | Email: [email protected] | Danielle’s Web Page
COLLECTION MANAGERS
Brittany Maldonado
Collection Manager – Herpetology
Email: [email protected]
Thomas Dodson
Collection Manager – Ichthyology
Email: [email protected]
RESEARCH ASSOCIATES
Brian Crother
Edward G. Schlieder Foundation Professor, Assistant Dean
Email:[email protected] | Dr. Crother’s Google Scholar Page
Research Interests: Evolution from a phylogenetic perspective | Historical Biogeography | Historical
Ecology | Patterns of Gene Evolution | Patterns of Species Evolution | Methodology
and Philosophy of Phylogenetic Analysis
Clifford Fontenot, Jr.
Instructor of Biological Sciences
Email:[email protected] | Dr. Fontenot’s recent publications
Research Interests: Behavior, conservation, and evolutionary ecology of amphibians and reptiles | Long-term
(2003-present) wetlands snake assemblage study in the Lake Pontchartrain Basin | Evolution
of vision in snakes
Christopher Beachy
Professor of Biological Sciences, Department Head
Email:[email protected] | Dr. Beachy’s website
Research Interests: Life history biology | Amphibian metamorphosis
Chris Murray
Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences
Email:[email protected] | Dr. Murray’s Website
Research Interests: Comparative Morphology | Physiological Ecology | Population Ecology | Endocrinology
| Sex Determination | Stress Physiology | Reproductive Ecology | Biogeography | Evolutionary
Ontology and Philosophy
Teague O’Mara
Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences
Email: [email protected] |Dr. O’Mara’s Wesbite
Research Interests: Social Behavior of Vertebrates | Animal Movement | Natural History | Migration | Immunological Variability
Honorary Personnel
In Memory of Dr. David Sever
Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences; Notable Community Member and Mentor to
Southeastern Biologists
