Jules Wyman

Mentor: Rodolfo Dirzo (Biology)
21-22 Major Grant recipient.

Habitat modification and climate change are two of the most significant threats to global biodiversity today. In a rapidly changing world, understanding the combined effects of urbanization and climate change on native fauna is critical for effective biodiversity conservation. Reptiles’ relationships to urbanization remain understudied relative to other vertebrates’, and studies considering the combined effects of urbanization and climate change on lizards are essentially nonexistent. Jules Wyman’s project working under mentor, Rodolfo Dirzo, aims to investigate population trends of seven lizard species in Tucson, Arizona, analyze the links between habitat, weather, and climatic variables with lizard population dynamics, and model future climate scenarios to inform urban herpetological conservation policy. The results can contribute to sustainable coexistence between humans and native fauna.

See more photos from Jules's project on our Instagram!