Assistant Professor - Biology [On Leave Fall 2020]

Office: Williams 184
Phone: 330-287-1929
Email: nbrandley@wooster.edu
Pronouns: He/Him/His

Degrees

• Ph.D., Duke University 2015
• B.S., University of Michigan 2008

Courses Taught

• BIOL 111 Foundations of Biology
• BIOL 399 Visual Ecology

Research Interests

My research falls within the intersection of ecology, physiology, and behavior. Broadly, I seek to understand how differences in vision drive the behavior and coloration of animals. To accomplish this, I investigate both 1) how different behavioral, ecological, and morphological factors cause variation in vision between animals and 2) what functional effect these differences have on the animal’s behavior and fitness. Much of my published work focuses on differences in color vision, especially in regards to private communication channels. More recently I have expanded into differences in visual acuity (i.e. spatial vision; informally the number of pixels in an animal’s visual scene). My lab uses a variety of terrestrial systems, including birds, insects, and spiders.