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Curriculm Vitae
Last Updated: 16 September 2011
Laboratory Address: |
Lab Phone: |
337-482-6751 |
Email: |
brent.thoma@gmail.com |
|
Website: |
www.brentthoma.info |
PRIMARY RESEARCH INTERESTS:
Evolution, ecology, ontogeny, taxonomy and systematics of malacostracan crustaceans, with emphasis on Decapoda (crabs, shrimps, and lobsters).
Research Summary:
Peer-reviewed publications: 9 (plus 1 in press)
Competitive scholarships, grants or research awards: 7
Poster or oral presentations: 11
Classes taught: 5 courses, 7 invited-lectures
Field experience: 3 research cruises, 6 coastal expeditions in SE Gulf of Mexico and off Belize
Journals referred: 4
EDUCATION:
Ph.D. Environmental and Evolutionary Biology
In Progress, University of Louisiana-Lafayette
Advisor: Dr. Darryl L. Felder
M.S. Coastal Sciences
2006, The University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory
Advisor(s): Dr. Richard W. Heard, Dr. Jinx Campbell
B.A. Biology with Honors
2003, University of Missouri-Columbia
PEER REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS:
Thoma, B.P. and D.L. Felder. in press. Redescription of Hexapanopeus lobipes (A. Milne-Edwards, 1880), and its reassignment to Milnepanopeus n. gen. (Decapoda: Brachyura: Panopeidae). Journal of Crustacean Biology. --- PDF
Felder, D.L., and B.P. Thoma. 2010. Description of Etisus guinotae n. sp., and discussion of its recent discovery in the Gulf of Mexico (Brachyura, Decapoda, Xanthidae). In Castro, P., P.J.F. Davie, P.K.L. Ng, & B. Richer de Forges (eds.) Studies on Brachyura: a homage to Daniele Guinot. Crustacean Monographs 11: 117-138.
Thoma, B.P., C.D. Schubart, and D.L. Felder. 2009. Molecular phylogeny of the western Atlantic representatives of the genus Hexapanopeus (Decapoda: Brachyura: Panopeidae). In: Martin, J.W., K.A. Crandall, and D.L. Felder (eds.) Decapod Crustacean Phylogenetics. Crustacean Issues. Koenemann, S. (series ed.) Vol. 18. Boca Raton, London, New York: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. 551-565 pp. --- PDF
Thoma, B.P., R.W. Heard, and D.L. Felder. 2009. Redescription of Pinnixa arenicola Rathbun, 1922 (Decapoda: Brachyura: Pinnotheridae), with new observations on its range and hosts. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 122 (1): 72-80. --- PDF
Thoma, B.P. and R.W. Heard. 2009. A new species of the genus Gammarus (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Gammaridae) from the low salinity habitats in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Zootaxa. 2015: 42-54. --- PDF
Thoma, B.P. 2008. Notes on crabs of the families Goneplacidae and Dorippidae (Decapoda: Brachyura) from the Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement No. 73: 299-302. --- PDF
Heard, R. W., R. A. King, D. M. Knott, B. P. Thoma, and S. Thornton-DeVictor. 2007. A guide to the Thalassinidea (Crustacea: Malacostraca: Decapoda) of the South Atlantic Bight. NOAA Professional Papers Series NMFS 8: i-iii, 1-30. --- PDF
Thoma, B.P., R.W. Heard, and R. Vargas. 2005. A new species of Parapinnixa (Decapoda: Brachyura: Pinnotheridae) from Isla del Coco, Costa Rica. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 118 (3): 543-550. --- PDF
Foster, J.M., B.P. Thoma, and R.W. Heard. 2004. Range extensions and a review of the caprellid amphipods (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Caprellidae) from the shallow, coastal waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico (Suwannee River, Florida to Port Aransas, Texas) with an illustrated key to the species. Gulf and Caribbean Research 16: 161-175. --- PDF
Foster, J.M., B.P. Thoma, and R.W. Heard. 2004. Stomatopoda (Crustacea: Hoplocarida) from the shallow, inshore waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico (Apalachicola River, Florida to Port Aransas, Texas). Gulf and Caribbean Research 16: 49-58. --- PDF
POSTERS AND PRESENTATIONS:
Thoma. B.P. and D.L. Felder. 2011. Phyloecology and hypotheses on historical origins for American panopeid and pseudorhombilid crabs (Brachyura: Xanthoidea). The Crustacean Society Summer Meeting, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. June 6th-9th. Abstract, international. Oral presentation.
Thoma, B.P. and D.L. Felder. 2010. Molecular phylogeny of Xanthoidea sensu Ng et al. (2008), with emphasis on the Pseudorhombilidae. Seventh International Crustacean Congress, Qingdao, China. June 20th-25th. Abstract, international. Poster presentation.
Bracken, H.D., D.L. Felder, J.W. Martin, R. Robles, B.P. Thoma, A.W. Windsor, E. Palacios-Theil, J. Rasmussen, D. Kim, and K. Crandall. 2009. A tree of life phylogeny for the Decapoda. The Crustacean Society Summer Meeting, Tokyo, Japan. September 20th-24th. Abstract, international. Oral presentation.
Thoma, B.P. and D.L. Felder. 2009. Molecular phylogeny of Xanthoidea sensu Ng et al. (2008), with emphasis on the subfamilies of Xanthidae. The Crustacean Society Summer Meeting, Tokyo, Japan. September 20th-24th. Abstract, international. Poster presentation.
Lai, J.C.Y., B.P. Thoma, P.K.L. Ng, and D. L. Felder. 2008. Molecular phylogeny of the superfamily Eriphioidea (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura): is the Eriphioidea monophyletic? The Crustacean Society Summer Meeting, Galveston, Texas. June 9th-13th. Abstract, international. Oral presentation.
Thoma, B.P., C.D. Schubart, and D.L. Felder. 2008. Re-examination of Hexapanopeus, Acantholobulus, and related genera of the Panopeidae (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura) by morphological and molecular methods. The Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, Texas. January 2nd-6th. Abstract, international. Oral presentation.
Thoma, B.P. 2006. Pseudogenes as confounding factors in molecular phylogenetics. 7th Annual Graduate Student Symposium. University of Louisiana-Lafayette. October 11th-13th. Abstract, regional. Oral presentation.
Thoma, B.P. 2005. The Gammarus mucronatus (Gammaridae, Amphipoda) species complex in the northern Gulf of Mexico: ecophenotypic variants or distinct species? XII International Colloquium on Amphipoda, National University of Ireland, Cork, Ireland. July 24th-27th. Non-Abstract, international. Poster presentation.
Thoma, B.P. 2005. The Gammarus mucronatus (Gammaridae, Amphipoda) species complex in the northern Gulf of Mexico: ecophenotypic variants or distinct species? Sixth International Crustacean Congress, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland. July 17th-22nd. Abstract, international. Poster presentation.
Thoma, B.P. 2004. Taxonomy and Morphology of the Decapoda. Florida Association of Benthologists Fall Crustacea Workshop, Long Key, Florida. October 13th-15th. Non-Abstract, regional. Invited lecturer.
Foster, J.M. and B.P. Thoma. 2004. Preliminary investigations of the comparative occurrence of sponge dwelling amphipods in Tedania ignis (Porifera, Demospongiae, Tedaniidae) from a turtle grass bed and a red mangrove forest in the Florida Keys, USA. Annual Meeting of the Mississippi Academy of Sciences, Biloxi, Mississippi. February 19th-20th. Abstract, regional. Presenting author, poster presentation. Received Best Student Poster Award.
Thoma, B.P. and J.M. Foster. 2004. Comparative occurrence of sponge-dwelling amphipods in Tedania ignis (Demospongiae, Tedaniidae) from a turtle grass bed and a red mangrove forest in the Florida Keys, USA. Graduate Student Symposium co-hosted by The University of Southern Mississippi, University of South Alabama, and Louisiana State University, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi. January 30th-31st. Abstract, regional. Presenting author, oral presentation.
HONORS, AWARDS AND GRANTS:
2010 |
EDIT Support to Exchange of Researchers, “Old World, New World Xanthoidea: a synthesis”; European Distributed Institute of Taxonomy, Participant - Paul Clark (PI). |
2009 |
E.B. Stueben Student Support Fund; University of Louisiana-Lafayette. |
2006-Present |
Graduate Student Organization: Research Funds Grant; University of Louisiana-Lafayette. |
2006-2010 |
Board of Regents Doctoral Fellowship; Louisiana State Board of Regents Doctoral Support Fund, University of Louisiana-Lafayette. |
2004 |
Best Student Poster; Annual Meeting of the Mississippi Academy of Sciences. |
2003 |
Recognition for achievement with distinction in the classroom and on the Major Field Test in Biology; University of Missouri-Columbia, Division of Biological Sciences. |
2003 |
National Science Foundation: Research Experience for Undergraduates; The University of Southern Mississippi and Jackson State University, Research Experience in Coastal and Marine Science Program. |
2002-2003 |
Dean’s list; University of Missouri-Columbia. |
2002 |
Sharp Scholarship; The University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory. |
2001 |
Bearcat Grant; Northwest Missouri State University. |
2000-2001 |
Dean’s list; Northwest Missouri State University. |
2000-2001 |
Transfer Reagents Scholarship; Northwest Missouri State University. |
RESEARCH AND WORK EXPERIENCE:
2011, Graduate Research Assistant; NSF-funded RAPID project; Identification of macrocrustaceans; University of Lousiana-Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana.
2006-2010, Louisiana State Board of Regents Doctoral Fellow; Assembling the Tree of Life: Decapoda; Morphological and molecular analysis of the Cancroidea and Xanthoidea sensu lato; University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana.
2005-2006, Graduate Research Assistant; Compass Point Decapod Larvae Project; Identification of decapod larvae from plankton; The University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Invertebrate Zoology Section, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
2004-2005, Graduate Research Assistant; Gulf Coast Research Laboratory Museum; Maintenance of Museum collections and database; The University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory Museum, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
2004, Graduate Research Assistant; Sturgeon Feeding Grounds, Benthic Biodiversity Study; Identification of benthic invertebrate species; The University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Invertebrate Zoology Section, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
2002-2003, Student Laboratory Technician; Arthropod Ecology Lab; Identification of insects and arachnids from leaf litter samples; University of Missouri-Columbia, Department of Biology, Columbia, Missouri.
2000-2001, Student Technician; Northwest Missouri State University Museum; Maintenance of teaching collections for General Zoology, Ornithology, Mammalogy, and Herpetology; Northwest Missouri State University, Department of Biology, Maryville, Missouri.
FIELD EXPERIENCE:
2011, Research Scientist aboard the R/V Pelican, National Science Foundation RAPID Expedition to the Gulf of Mexico; utilized box dredge and epibenthic skimmer to explore deepwater hard banks to record macrocrustacean divsersity.
2010, Research Scientist aboard the R/V Pelican, National Science Foundation RAPID Expedition to the Gulf of Mexico; utilized box dredge and epibenthic skimmer to explore deepwater hard banks to record macrocrustacean divsersity.
2008, Research Scientist at Smithsonian’s Field Station on Carrie Bow Cay, Belize, Smithsonian Caribbean Coral Reef Ecosystems (CCRE) Program; shore collection of various benthic macrocrustaceans.
2004-2005, 2007-2008, 2010-2011, Volunteer for Bay Environmental Studies Team, 1 week each summer; collected benthic samples (snorkeling and SCUBA) from various habitats in St. Andrew Bay, Panama City and St. Joe Bay, Port St. Joe, Florida.
2005, Volunteer for Southeastern Regional Taxonomic Center aboard the R/V Nancy Foster; utilized otter trawl, box dredge, and ponar grab to collect benthic samples on hard-bottom habitats off Charleston, South Carolina.
2005, Volunteer for US Fish and Wildlife Service; collection of near shore benthic samples in suspected Gulf Sturgeon feeding grounds off Panama City, Florida.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE:
2011, Teaching Assistant: Cell and Molecular Ecology Laboratory; University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Department of Biology, Lafayette, Louisiana.
2011, Teaching Assistant: Scientific Illustration and Biological Macrophotography; The University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Department of Biology, Lafayette, Louisiana.
2010, Teaching Assistant: Survey of Invertebrate Animals; University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Department of Biology, Lafayette, Louisiana.
2010, Guest Lecturer: Survey of Marine Biology; University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Department of Biology, Lafayette, Louisiana.
2009, Guest Lecturer: Survey of Marine Biology; University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Department of Biology, Lafayette, Louisiana.
2005, Invited Lecture Series (5 Lectures): Special Problems in Taxonomic Database Development; The University of Southern Mississippi, Department of Coastal Sciences, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
2004, Teaching Assistant: Marine Invertebrate Zoology; Summer Field Program; The University of Southern Mississippi, Department of Coastal Sciences, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
2001, Instructor: General Zoology Laboratory; Northwest Missouri State University, Department of Biology, Maryville, Missouri.
2001, Teaching Assistant: General Zoology Laboratory; Northwest Missouri State University, Department of Biology, Maryville, Missouri.
VOLUNTEER AND SERVICE EXPERIENCE:
The Crabby Taxonomists; 2011; creation and maintenance of a website to educate and excite the general public about marine invertebrates, www.crabbytaxonomists.com.
All in the family: A family tree for crabs. 2010; a presentation to 10th grade biology classes at Lafayette High School, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Peeling away the mystery of DNA: A banana DNA extraction lab. 2009; a presentation to 10th grade biology classes at Lafayette High School, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Carcinology: What is it and who cares? 2009; a presentation to 10th grade biology classes at Lafayette High School, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Invertebrate Zoology: Why should we care about critters without backbones anyway? 2008; a presentation to 10th grade biology classes at Lafayette High School, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Extinction of the Jellybelliidae: A laboratory exercise demonstrating natural selection in a predator-prey model. 2008; a presentation to 10th grade biology classes at Lafayette High School, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Carcinology: What is it and who cares? 2007; a presentation to 10th grade biology classes at Lafayette High School, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Graduate Student Symposium Organizing Committee; 2007; Department of Environmental and Evolutionary Biology, University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Science Fair Judge; 2007; Louisiana Regional Science Fair; University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Wild Survival Tactics. 2005; a presentation to 4th graders about the various tactics animals use to avoid predation in the wild; Popp’s Ferry Elementary School, Biloxi, Mississippi.
Science Fair Judge; 2005; Ocean Springs Middle School, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
Taxonomic Expert for AMRAT (Alabama-Mississippi Rapid Assessment Team); 2004; Identified crustacean specimens that were collected; Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
Wild Survival Tactics. 2004; a presentation to 4th graders about the various tactics animals use to avoid predation in the wild; Popp’s Ferry Elementary School, Biloxi, Mississippi.
Department of Biology Student Liaison to the Dean; 2001; Faculty elected position, liaison between students and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Northwest Missouri State University, Department of Biology, Maryville, Missouri.
Freshman Peer Advisor; 2001; Faculty nominated position, assisted faculty with setup and instruction of freshman seminar course, liaison between students and faculty of the Department of Biology; Northwest Missouri State University, Department of Biology, Maryville, Missouri.
Herpetology Proctor for Junior Science Olympiad; 2001; Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, Missouri.