Alex S. Romer
Email: as.romer@ufl.edu
Position and Affiliation
Quantitative Ecologist, UF - Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center
Areas of Interest
The ecological mechanisms which underpin population dynamics, animal behavior, and community assembly are numerous and multifaceted. However, with the adoption of next-generation natural history techniques (remote sensing, high-performance computing, etc.), investigators are generating novel insights into the processes that generate complexity in natural systems. These increases in data fidelity and diversity facilitate improved predictive capacity and, consequently, improved outcomes in wildlife conservation. Motivated by this paradigm, I am broadly interested in the application of emerging technologies to biodiversity and wilderness conservation. More specifically, I am motivated by contributing to the conservation of reptiles and amphibians through informatic approaches and predictive modeling.
“One of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds.” - Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac
Education
M.S. Biology, Middle Tennessee State University, 2018.
B.S. Aquatics and Fisheries Science, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 2014.
Project Involvement
I provide analytical support for all ongoing research being undertaken by the CrocDocs, including invasive and threated reptiles. I have direct responsibility for analyses associated with SFWMD’s Python Elimination Program. This work seeks to improve python removal efficiency thereby facilitating the preservation of native wildlife.
Publications
Vargas-Gastélum, L.*, Romer, A.S.*, Alexander, N.R., Ghotbi, M., Moe, K.C., McPhail, K.L., Neuhaus, G.F., Shadmani, L., Spatafora, J., Stajich, J.E., Tabima, J.F, Walker, D.M. Herptile gut microbiomes: a natural system to study multi-kingdom interactions between filamentous fungi and bacteria. In press mSphere.
Romer, A.S., Grinath, J., Moe, K., Walker, D.M. Host microbiome responses to the Snake Fungal Disease pathogen (Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola) are driven by changes in microbial richness. Scientific Reports 12 (3078). 2/23/22.
Godwin, C., Walker, D., Romer, A., Grajal-Puche, A., Grisnik, M., Goessling, J.M., Perkin, J., Murray, C. Testing the Febrile Response of Snakes Inoculated with Ophidiomyces ophidiicola, The Causative Agent of Snake Fungal Disease. The Journal of Thermal Biology 100 (103065). 8/3/21.
Romer, A., West, J., Phipps, E., Moe, K., Walker, D. Common Watersnake (Nerodia sipedon) Shedding Behavior – Natural History Note. Tennessee Journal of Herpetology 4. 1/1/21.
Walker, D.M., Hill, A.J., Albecker, M.A., McCoy, M.W., Grisnik, M., Romer, A., Grajal-Puch, A., Camp, C. Kelehear, C., Wooten, J., Rheubert, J., Graham, S.P. Variation in the Slimy Salamander (Plethodon spp.) skin and gut microbial assemblages is explained by geographic distance and host affinity. Microbial Ecology 79 (4). 12/4/20.
