​Van Den Bussche Laboratory of
Conservation Genomics
Dr. Ronald A. Van Den Bussche,
Associate Vice President for Research &
Regents Professor of Integrative Biology
I am interested in understanding the partioning of genetic variation from the level of the individual to higher taxonomic levels. We currently are utilizing population genetic and genomics approaches to address such questions in several taxa that have conservation implications (see "Research").
Megan Judkins, Ph.D. Student
My dissertation involves taking a genomics approach to develop a suite of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms to better understand the partitioning of genetic variation of bald eagles. To learn more about the bald and golden eagle projects, see Current Research Projects on the Home Page. As progress is made on the bald eagle project I will be posting updates to my website at meganjudkins.wix.com/research. Additionally, if you are student interested in working in the Van Den Bussche laboratory and would like to talk with a current student, feel free to contact me at:
megan.trope@.okstate.edu
Denise Thompson, Ph.D. Student
My dissertation project will focus on a captive population of alligator snapping turtles at the Tishomingo National Fish Hatchery. This breeding program was developed for a head start program however, little is known about reproduction in this species. My MS thesis concerned maternal investment, nesting behavior, and nest predation. I will be following that up by using microsatellite analyses to determine a number of aspects regarding the biology of this species such as: testing for multiple paternity and evaluating if there is a genetic component to the large variance observed in reproductive success. If you are interested in working in the Van Den Bussche laboratory and would like to talk with a current student, feel free to contact me at:
