Joseph Bernardo

I am an Integrative Evolutionary Ecologist, meaning that my research addresses a range of fundamental questions in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from a multi-disciplinary, integrative perspective and using a diverse array of tools including field experiments, phylogenetically-rooted comparative statistical analyses, quantitative estimates of physiological performance, experimental analyses of reproductive behavior, and molecular genetics.

I often work at the nexus of typically disparate fields of study, for example combining genetic, phylogenetic, physiological and macroecological perspectives in a single analysis of distribution and dispersal (Bernardo et al. 2007). Because multiple causality is inherent in understanding ecological and evolutionary problems, my research emphasizes a strong inference approach that therefore relies on both large datasets and multivariate statistical models to evaluate competing hypotheses. Most of my active work involves vertebrates and insects and other major invertebrate groups.