Shannon Bennett
Chief of Science and Hind Dean of Science & Research Collections, Patterson Scholar, Associate Curator of Microbiology

Dr. Bennett is the Chief of Science and Harry and Diana Hind Dean of Research and Collections. She was the Academy's first ever Associate Curator of Microbiology, helping broaden the Academy’s research scope to include a dedicated focus on viruses and bacteria. Her specialty lies in infectious diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans.

David Bettman
Curatorial Assistant, Entomology
Research Associate
Biodiversity Informatics, Ichthyology

I am a zoologist by training, but since 1990 I have been working full-time in biodiversity informatics – the application of information technologies to biodiversity science. Academy scientists generate enormous amounts of information as they collect, describe, document, and compare organisms. That information comes in a variety of forms, including text, photographs, DNA sequences, taxonomic names, classifications, distributions maps, and ultimately publications.

PimBongaerts
McCosker Chair of Aquatic Biology, Assistant Curator

I’m interested in the ecology and evolution of tropical reef-building corals, from close to the surface to well into the twilight zone. As a molecular ecologist, I combine genomics and field ecology to understand how corals diversify and adapt to different environmental conditions. Much of my research has focused on studying genetic patterns “across the reef slope” (over depth), piecing together the evolutionary processes that have led to those patterns, and inferring how those patterns impact the interconnectivity of shallow and deep reef habitats.

Anthropology Research Associate Dr. Todd Braje
Research Associate, Anthropology

Dr. Todd Braje is an anthropological archaeologist, associate professor, and Research Associate in Anthropology at the California Academy of Sciences. His research interests include the deep history of maritime migrations and adaptations, human-environmental ecodyamics, and historical ecological approaches to understanding hunter-gatherer-fishers.

Senior Collections Manager, Ichthyology
James Angus Chandler
Postdoctoral Fellow

Dr. Chandler is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Microbiology. His research focuses on the microbial communities that are associated with animals and in particular the bacteria and viruses of insects. Dr. Chandler obtained his B.S. in Genetics and Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and his Ph.D. in Evolution and Ecology from the University of California, Davis.

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Crystal Cortez, Geology Collections Manager
Collections Manager, Geology

Crystal is a Mexican-American vertebrate paleontologist with over 10 years of experience working with geological and paleontological collections. She holds degrees in Geology (BS) and Environmental Science (MSc). Her research interests include Cenozoic fossil shark assemblages and conservation paleobiology topics.

Darko D. Cotoras
Research Associate, Entomology
Island biogeography of spiders

My research interests are related with the study of the historical processes that create biodiversity, particularly in conditions of isolation. My main study group are spiders and other invertebrates present around the Pacific Ocean, with special attention to volcanic archipelagos and the Gondwanic landmasses. I combine field and museum work with phylogenetics, population genetics and genomics. Due to my research on understudied taxa and remote locations, I am also interested in biodiversity discovery: species inventories, species descriptions and natural history observations.

Seth Cotterell
Archives and Digital Collections Assistant Librarian

Seth earned a Master of Library and Information Science degree at San Jose State University and previously worked in Archives and Special Collections at University of California San Francisco.

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