Lab members

Join us!

Interested in undergraduate or graduate (MS) research?

Email Dr. Ryan: wryan@towson.edu

Will Ryan, PhD

wryan@towson.edu

Assistant Professor

Will is interested in the interaction of abiotic, ecological, and genetic forces that drive life cycle evolution, particularly in clonal marine organisms.

Josh Bliss

Jbliss1@students.towson.edu

Master's Student (2023 - current)

Thesis project: Seasonal patterns of asexual and sexual reproduction in Aiptasiogeton eruptaurantia (red spot anemone), a species that uses pedal laceration

Jami Citko

-

Undergraduate Researcher (BS Dec 2024)

Project: Measuring the geographic scale at which inbreeding and outbreeding depression influence mating success in the hermit-crab-encrusting hydrozoan Hydractinia symbiolongicarpus

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Abi Millholland

-

Undergraduate Researcher (BS Dec. 2024)

Lab Technician (Spring 2025)

Project: Developing microsatellite genetic markers and measuring population genetic structure of Hydractinia symbiolongicarpus across the Mid-Atlantic range

Brandon Lewis

-

Undergraduate Researcher (BS expected 2025)

Projects:

Comparing the growth rate and reproductive output of three co-occuring anemone species
Immortal Kombat: Measuring the effect of intra- and inter-specific competition on growth rate and reproduction among four co-occuring anemones that differ in reproductive mode
Influence of salinity on growth and reproduction of co-occuring anemones species

Sydney Bayne

-

Undergraduate Researcher

Projects:

Immortal Kombat: Measuring the effect of intra- and inter-specific competition on growth rate and reproduction among four co-occuring anemones that differ in reproductive mode
Influence of conspecific proximity on movement rates in two species of sea anemone with differing tolerance of conspecifics

Grace Curran

-

Undergraduate Researcher

Projects:

Immortal Kombat: Measuring the effect of intra- and inter-specific competition on growth rate and reproduction among four co-occuring anemones that differ in reproductive mode
Animal care

Luca Caccamese

-

Undergraduate Researcher (2022 - 2024)

Non-thesis master's student

Projects:

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in
Diadumene lineata
Animal care

Jayden Steward

-

Undergraduate Researcher (BS 2024)

Projects:

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in
Diadumene lineata
The relationship between hermit crab shell characteristics and Hydractiniid hydroid colonization patterns in the Mid-Atlantic

Yuridia Gonsalez

-

Undergraduate Researcher (BS 2024)

Projects:

Variation in hydroid colony morphology by population origin, shell type, and local population density in Hydractinia symbiolongicarpus

Troy Stern

-

Undergraduate Researcher (BS 2024)

Projects:

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in
Diadumene lineata
Animal care

Additional lab members

Chloe Trinh

Fall 2023

Developing a histology protocol for investigating the role of apoptosis in anemone fission

Ben Lazoff

Fall 2024 - Spring 2025

Identifying spawning conditions for podocoryna in the lab

Adriana Garcia Galaviz

Spring 2023

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in Diadumene lineata

Trinity Mays

Fall 2022 - Spring 2024

Animal care
Developing culturing protocols for an anemone-associated protozoan
Developing a histology protocol for investigating the role of apoptosis in anemone fission

Kristine Shell

Spring 2023 - Fall 2023

Collecting and preserving hydroid tissue samples for future genetic analyses

Towson University

Lab members

wryan@towson.edu

Will is interested in the interaction of abiotic, ecological, and genetic forces that drive life cycle evolution, particularly in clonal marine organisms.

Jbliss1@students.towson.edu

Thesis project: Seasonal patterns of asexual and sexual reproduction in Aiptasiogeton eruptaurantia (red spot anemone), a species that uses pedal laceration

-

Project: Measuring the geographic scale at which inbreeding and outbreeding depression influence mating success in the hermit-crab-encrusting hydrozoan Hydractinia symbiolongicarpus

-

Project: Developing microsatellite genetic markers and measuring population genetic structure of Hydractinia symbiolongicarpus across the Mid-Atlantic range

-

Projects:

Comparing the growth rate and reproductive output of three co-occuring anemone species

Immortal Kombat: Measuring the effect of intra- and inter-specific competition on growth rate and reproduction among four co-occuring anemones that differ in reproductive mode

Influence of salinity on growth and reproduction of co-occuring anemones species

-

Projects:

Immortal Kombat: Measuring the effect of intra- and inter-specific competition on growth rate and reproduction among four co-occuring anemones that differ in reproductive mode

Influence of conspecific proximity on movement rates in two species of sea anemone with differing tolerance of conspecifics

-

Projects:

Immortal Kombat: Measuring the effect of intra- and inter-specific competition on growth rate and reproduction among four co-occuring anemones that differ in reproductive mode

Animal care

-

Projects:

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in Diadumene lineata

Animal care

-

Projects:

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in Diadumene lineata

The relationship between hermit crab shell characteristics and Hydractiniid hydroid colonization patterns in the Mid-Atlantic

-

Projects:

Variation in hydroid colony morphology by population origin, shell type, and local population density in Hydractinia symbiolongicarpus

-

Projects:

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in Diadumene lineata

Animal care

Additional lab members

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in
Diadumene lineata

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in
Diadumene lineata

Fat n' happy: the influence of food quality, light, and temperature on body size and gametogenesis in
Diadumene lineata