“Argue for your limitations and, sure enough, they're yours.”― Richard Bach
Lab Members
Associate Director (ECOS) | Professor of Quantitative Ecology | PI
Michael McCoy, PhD
Hometown: Hampton, VA
I develop and implement experimental and statistical approaches to link empirical data to ecological and evolutionary theory. I typically take a mechanistic approach to understand how individual traits (e.g. size, stage and phenotype) scale up to influence population and community level processes and spatial coupling across ecosystems. I have broad interests and my research is very question driven and integrative. As a result I have worked on wide variety of topics, organisms and in a wide array of ecological systems. In my spare time I enjoy running ultramarathons, hiking, camping, traveling, and spending time with my family.
PhD Candidate
Jessica Wimmer
Hometown: Sarasota, FL
Jessica graduated from the University of South Florida with concurrent BS degrees in Environmental Biology and Environmental Policy, along with a minor in Geographic Information Systems and Technology. She is interested in the ecology and evolution of non-indigenous species, with a focus on reptiles. While at FAU, she earned her master’s degree en route to her PhD. Her dissertation examines the eco-evolutionary challenges faced by introduced species, such as low genetic variation, competition with resident species, and novel predator interactions, and how these pressures drive local adaptation. In her free time, Jessica enjoys going to the beach, fishing, and spending time with her dogs, Skylee and Sugar.
PhD Student
Natalia Jaworski
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Natalia earned her BS in Biological Sciences from Illinois State University and her MS in Environmental Science from FAU HBOI, where she worked in the McCoy Quantitative Ecology Lab. After taking a gap year to work, she returned to pursue her PhD in Integrative Biology. Her dissertation focuses on understanding how nonlinear processes influence predator-prey interactions and shape overall food web dynamics, including their indirect effects on disease dynamics. In her free time, Natalia enjoys spending time with her puppy Dior, traveling with her partner, listening to music, and napping.
MS Student
Isabela Beneli Salinas Fernandes
Hometown: São Paulo, Brazil
Isabela attended Florida Atlantic University for her undergraduate career where she received her BS in Biology. She is continuing on at at FAU to pursue her MS degree where she is co-advised by Drs. Randy Brooks and Michael McCoy. Her research interests lie in understanding how climate variability and microplastic pollution is affecting marine ecosystems. In her spare time she enjoys training for bodybuilding competitions, traveling and trying new recipes.
