Email: hclanier@alaska.edu  

Education

Ph.D. Candidate in Biological Sciences, University of Alaska Fairbanks (2004-present) 
B.S., in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas (2004)

mammalian phylogeography, diversification, and systematics; molecular and morphologic approaches to historical biogeography; understanding mechanisms that shape geographic variation in populations

The ice-free corridor between Russia and Alaska, known as Beringia, has facilitated transcontinental species exchange and provided a refugium for many species during the last ice age. It is therefore an important arena for testing theories regarding dispersal and survival of many species. Climate has shifted rapidly in this region, and recent global warming trends are predicted to be strongest in the Arctic. Small mammals, such as the collared pika (Ochotona collaris), provide important information on the long-term effects of climate change. Found only on the talus slopes of Alaska and northwest Canada, they are the northernmost of the two North American pika species. When their fossil record is contrasted with genetic data, a history of recent range contraction and subsequent rapid expansion is suggested. My research addresses questions relating to the evolutionary origin of collared pikas and the timing of their past population expansion. This has important implications for understanding the persistence of lineages in arctic and subarctic ecosystems. It will help determine the rate of faunal turnover in northern regions, and distinguish between chance events and recurrent evolutionary trends. As such, this project provides an important empirical context for understanding the long-term effects of climate change on the demographics of an iconic alpine mammal. 

Lanier, H.C., and L.E. Olson. (2009) Inferring divergence times within pikas (genus Ochotona) using mtDNA and relaxed molecular dating techniques.  Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 53: 1-12. (pdf)

Olson, L.E., Z. Rakotomalala, K.B.P. Hildebrandt, H.C. Lanier, C.J. Raxworthy, and S.M. Goodman.  (in press) Phylogeography of Microgale brevicaudata (Tenrecidae) and description of a new species from western Madagascar.  Journal of Mammalogy 90: 1095-1110.  (pdf)

Lanier, H.C. (book chapter in review) Ochotona collaris.  Lagomorphs of the World.  A.T. Smith, ed.

Research and Travel Grants
University of Alaska Office of the Provost, $16,230 (2009; Co-PI with LE Olson)
National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant, $9,314 (2008; Co-PI with LE Olson DEB-0808619)
University of Alaska Ted McHenry Biology Field Research Fund, $5,000 (2008)
Alaska EPSCoR Travel Grant, $1,500 (2008, 2008)
American Society of Mammalogists Grants-in-Aid of Research, $1,500 (2008)
American Society of Mammalogists Elmer C. Birney Honoraria, $1,500 (2008)
Alaska EPSCoR Dissertation Enhancement Grant, $9,000 (2007)
Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research, $720 (2006)
Alaska Quaternary Center Travel Grant, $800 (2006)
University of Alaska Graduate Student Travel Grant, $600 (2005)
University of Kansas Howieson Opportunity Fund, $300 (2003)
KU Natural History Museum and Biodiversity Research Center, Panorama Society Rudkin Award for Undergraduate Research, $5,000 (2002, 2003)
University of Kansas Undergraduate Research Award Biological Science, $291 (2003)

Awards, Fellowships, and Honors
Institute of Arctic Biology Summer Fellowship in Ecology and Wildlife Biology, $10,000 (2009)
Alaska Quaternary Center David and Rachel Hopkins Fellowship, $1,500 (2008) 
Alaska EPSCoR Graduate Fellowship, $22,000 (2005-2006)
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, Honorable Mention (2004)
University of Kansas Pauline Kimball Prize, $300 (2004)

Lanier, H.C., A.M. Gunderson, V. Fedorov, M. Weksler, and L.E. Olson. "Comparative phylogeography of alpine mammals in Eastern Beringia."  American Society of Mammalogists Annual Meeting, 2009, Fairbanks, Alaska.

Lanier, H.C., A.M. Gunderson, V. Fedorov, M. Weksler, and L.E. Olson.  "Historical demography, range shifts, and interglacial refugia: Comparative phylogeography of alpine mammals in Eastern Beringia." Evolution Conference, 2009, Moscow, Idaho.

Lanier, H.C., and L.E. Olson.  "Phylogeography and historical demography of North America's northernmost Ochotonid, the collared pika (Ochotona collaris)."  3rd World Lagomorph Conference, 2008, Morelia, Mexico.

Lanier, H.C., and L.E. Olson.  "Hard rocks and soft dates: Using molecular dating to evaluate the evolutionary history of pikas in North America."  American Association for the Advancement of Science, Arctic Division, Annual Meeting, 2008, Fairbanks, Alaska.

Lanier, H.C. “Whence and when? Testing divergence hypotheses within pikas (Genus Ochotona) using relaxed molecular clocks.” American Society of Mammalogists Annual Meeting, 2008, South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota.

Lanier, H.C., and L.E. Olson. "Living on the edge?  Climate change and the evolution of the collared pika."  The Wildlife Society, Alaskan Chapter, Annual Meeting, 2007, Juneau, Alaska.

Lanier, H.C., and L.E. Olson. “Pikas, peaks, and post-glacial colonization: Phylogeography of an alpine lagomorph, Ochotona collaris.” American Society of Mammalogists Annual Meeting, 2006, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts.

Lanier, H.C., and L.E. Olson. “Behavioral and morphological evolution in the genus Ochotona” Evo-WIBO: Evolutionary Biologists of the Pacific Northwest Conference, 2006, Port Townsend, Washington.  (poster presentation)

Lanier, H.C., and L.E. Olson. “Are North American pikas monophyletic?” American Society of Mammalogists Annual Meeting, 2005, Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri.

                        (all presentations oral unless otherwise indicated)

Awards and Honors
Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching Assistant (2008-2009)

Instructor Experience
Interim Instructor for Advanced Topics in Evolution (graduate level course), University of Alaska Fairbanks (2009)
Graduate Teaching Assistant for Mammalogy, University of Alaska Fairbanks (2004, 2006, 2008) 
Graduate Teaching Assistant for Vertebrate Paleontology, University of Alaska Fairbanks (2008)
Undergraduate Teaching Assistant for Evolution, University of Kansas (2004)  

                          Click here to view student evaluations from Mammalogy 2008

Guest Lectures
Guest lecture for Mammalogy: “Glires and Lagomorpha.” University of Alaska Fairbanks (2006, 2008) 
Guest lecture for Mammalogy: "Chiroptera."  University of Alaska Fairbanks (2008)
Guest lecture for Vertebrate Paleontology: “Rocks, Clocks, and the Radiation of the Eutheria.” University of Alaska Fairbanks (2008, 2009) 
Guest lecture on mammals and climate change for the Rural Alaskan Honors Institute-II, University of Alaska Fairbanks (2007) 

Animal Diversity Web Accounts (co-authored with undergraduate mammalogy students)
Dullen, K. and H. Lanier. 2009. "Peromyscus keeni" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. 
Leininger, C. and H. Lanier. 2009. "Ochotona collaris" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. 

American Society of Mammalogists Board of Directors (2009-2011)
IUCN/SSC Lagomorph Specialist Group (2009-2012)
Organizing Committee - 2009 American Society of Mammalogists Meeting Fairbanks, Alaska
Co-organizer of Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics Seminar Series (2008-2009)
President of the Biology and Wildlife Graduate Student Association (2006-2007)
American Society of Mammalogists Education and Graduate Students Committee (2008-present)
American Society of Mammalogists Resolutions Committee (2005-2006),
Organizer of Biology and Wildlife Graduate Student Seminar Series "Biobites" (2005)

Ad Hoc reviewer for  Evolution,  Journal of Biogeography, Journal of Mammalogy, and Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution