UM Fish and Wildlife Genomics Lab

Andrew Whiteley is a professor of fisheries and conservation genomics in the W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation at the University of Montana. He is interested in how evolutionary and ecological processes interact to influence population persistence. His research involves using genetic and genomic tools to address questions about fish ecology, genomics and conservation. He received a B.A. in biology from Northwestern University and completed his PhD in Fred Allendorf’s lab at the University of Montana in 2005 (co-advised by Paul Spruell). He has previously been a postdoctoral researcher in Louis Bernatchez’s lab at Université Laval in Quebec City (2005 to2006, 2009) and David Tallmon’s lab in Juneau, Alaska (2007 to 2008).  He was also an assistant professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst from 2009 to 2015. He returned to UM in 2016.

Phil grew up in rural Central New York and graduated from Stony Brook University with a Bachelor of Science in biology. He worked in and then transitioned away from the medical field after finding a deep interest in population genomics and conservation through postbaccalaureate classes at University of Montana. He earned an M.S. degree at University of Memphis in Tennessee where he studied black and brown bears from Southeast Alaska. Phil returned to University of Montana for his PhD in 2024. He is working on the conservation of the iconic Yellowstone cutthroat trout in the Yellowstone Ecosystem. Phil enjoys hiking and backpacking in his spare time.

Sam is a PhD candidate interested in applying and developing genomic tools to aid conservation of natural populations, with an emphasis on salmon and trout. He earned a BS in Conservation and Resource Studies with honors from UC Berkeley in 2021 and an MS in Fisheries from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 2023. During his time in Alaska, Sam worked to validate an emerging genetics-based method for estimating abundance in wild salmon populations. His current research aims to uncover genomic mechanisms underlying long-term genetic rescue, and he is particularly interested in integrating approaches from quantitative and population genetics to evaluate its efficacy. In his free time, Sam can often be found at the dog park, gym, or playing a friendly game of poker.

Anika grew up in the Northern Marianas Islands, where she developed an early interest in aquatic systems. During her undergraduate studies, she became interested in exploring how evolutionary concepts and genomics can be used to inform conservation management.  Her research focuses on Bull Trout and examines current patterns of population structure and migration across western Montana, the genomic mechanisms underlying migratory behavior, and the implications of facilitated translocation. She enjoys hiking, reading, and traveling in her free time.

Katelyn grew up moving around the country to states including Hawaii, Alaska and Michigan. She is most interested in population genetics and exploring how groups of individuals distributed across the landscape are connected to each other. Her current research focuses on this in western pearlshell mussels in Montana. She has a passion for education and sharing the outdoors with others, especially through trail running, hiking and backpacking.