Current Lab Personnel
Tanner Bahm: Tanner is a graduate of Southeastern Louisiana University. She is currently a first year graduate student in the Piller lab. She is exploring thesis ideas, but is currently using eDNA to address invasive carp in Louisiana. She formerly worked her familiy’s donut shop, but has yet to provide us with a sampling of any of these donuts.
Email: tanner.bahm@southeastern.edu
Madie Denman is from Ohio, but did her undergraduate degree at Transylvania University in Lexington, KY, where she played college lacrosse. Within ichthyological circles, Transylvania University is the former (and current) institution for Constantine Rafinesque, famous naturalist, who was a former faculty member there and is currently buried there! For her thesis project, Madie will be investigating the impacts that reservoirs/dams on gene flow of the Gulf Darter and Longear Sunfish in the Pearl River.
Email: madeline.denman@southeastern.edu
Ben Schuster is a native of Michigander, obtaining his BS in Wildlife and Fisheries from Michigan State University. He is a big Detroit sports fan, and dislikes the Wolverines (I agree). He thinks that he will be a ringer on our departmental intramural softball team. Little does he know that we already have some veteran all-star beer league softball players that will dominate. Also, I am a far better bowler than Ben, but he won’t acknowledge it. For his thesis project, he is examining swimbladder evolution in Percina (Percidae) through the use of Micro-CT scanning and phylogenetic comparative methods..
Email: benjamin.schuster@southeastern.edu
Calvin Whitney is a second year graduate student in the lab. He completed his BS in Biology at Ball State University in 2024. For his thesis project, he will be gathering ddRAd data to conduct a phylogeographic study of the Flathead Catfish (Pylodictus olivaris), a wide-spread, recreationally important species. He is always looking for more tissue samples from across the range, so if you catch a Flathead, take a tissue and contact Calvin! He is also a professional/semi-professional musician and can play an abundance of instruments Maybe we can get the band back together and if we do we totally need more cowbell!
Email: calvin.whitney@southeastern.edu
Abigail (Grayce) Cunningham: Grayce is a first year student in the lab. She hails from western Tennessee and attended the University of Tennessee, Martin and received her BS degree in May 2024. Grayce has a ton of experience sampling fishes in rivers and streams, but her thesis project will focus on using both eDNA and traditional sampling techniques, as well as active and passive eDNA approaches to quantify the inshore fish assemblages of Lake Maurepas. She has quickly learned that eDNA work isn’t as easy as it seems!
Email:abigail.cunningham@southeastern.edu
Tilly Newell: Tilly just finished her first semester in the Piller lab. She is from New Jersey, but graduated from the University of Tampa with a BS degree in Marine Biology/Marine Science in the spring of 2023. She is venturing into the world of freshwater/estuarine research and her thesis research will examine the relationship between eDNA read number and anchovy (Anchoa spp.) abundance and biomass in Lake Maurepas from trawl samples. Both active and passive eDNA sampling approaches will be employed. Tilly is one of the tallest members of the lab, but somehow still walked into the deepest part of the channel in the Tangipahoa River and topped her waders!
Email: matilda.newell@southeastern.edu
Former Graduate Students and Postdocs
Camryn Bigelow, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2025 (Environmental Educator, Washega 4H Center, GA)
Gretchen Hilt, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2025 (PhD student, University of Alabama)
Emily Vanaselja, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2025 (On the job market)
Camden Oathout, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2024 (Research Tech, Southeastern LA University)
Allison Deloache, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2024 (PhD Student, Oklahoma State University)
Gaelyn Gros, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2024 (U. S. EPA, Pensacola, FL)
Chi Jing Leow, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2023 (PhD student, Michigan State University)
Thomas Dodson, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2023 (PhD student, Texas AM University)
Soren Johnson, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2022 (PhD student, Univ. Missouri, St. Louis)
Andrew Sherman, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2022 (Lab tech, Univ. of Washington)
Kearstin Findley, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2020 (PhD student, Univ. Arkansas)
Liam Ward, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2020 (U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Laurel Nave-Powers, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2020 (PhD student, Univ. Washington)
Megan Ryba, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2020 (Field Technician, Miss Dept Conservation)
Aaron Krolow, MS, Southeastern Louisiana University, 2019 (Assistant Professor, SE Oklahoma State Univ.)
Jerry Kattawar III, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2019 (Medical Field)
Anna Gruszkiewicz, MS, Southeastern Louisiana University, 2018 (on the job/PhD program market)
Dave Cooper Campbell, MS, Southeastern Louisiana University, 2017 (Assistant Teaching Professor, USM)
Chantal Elyse Parker, MS, Southeastern Louisiana University, 2017 (Postdoc, Univ. Chicago)
Courtney Weyand, MS, Southeastern Louisiana University, 2017 (Postdoc, Auburn Univ)
Diego Elias, MS, Southeastern Louisiana University, 2016 (PhD, LSU, now Postdoc Field Museum)
Kimberly Foster, MS, Southeastern Louisiana University, 2016 (Eurofin Genomics)
Savannah Michaelsen Lewis, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2015 (NOAA Pacific Islands Regional Office)
Luke Bower, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2013 (Assistant Professor/Co-op Fishes Unit, Clemson Univ)
Marisa Stachowski, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2013 (Postdoc, Northwestern University)
Elizabeth Marchio, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2012 (Researcher, COSI Columbus)
David Camak, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2012 (Postdoc, Southeastern LA Univ)
Malorie Hayes, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2013 (Instructor, Southern Union Community College)
Carys Kenway Lynch, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2011 (Assistant Director, Quality Assurance, Tulane)
Aaron Geheber, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2011 (Associate Prof, Univ. Central Missouri)
Caleb McMahan, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2011 (Collection Manager Field Museum)
Lisa Cordes Landry, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2011 (Biological Equipment Sales)
Devin Bloom, MS Southeastern Louisiana University, 2007 (Associate Professor, Western Michigan Univ)
Postdoctoral Researchers
Dr. Tyler Coleman (https://www.southeastern.edu/department-of-biological-sciences/programs/lakemaurepas/team/)
Dr Alex Mott (https://www.southeastern.edu/department-of-biological-sciences/programs/lakemaurepas/team/_
Dr. David Camak (https://www.southeastern.edu/department-of-biological-sciences/programs/lakemaurepas/team/)
Dr. Mollie Cashner, Associate Professor, Austin Peay State University
Dr. Brian Bourke, Research Associate, Walter Reed Biosystematics Unit (WRBU)