The Penang Hill BioBlitz 2017 greatly benefitted from the participation of so many subject specialists whose fields ranged from microscopic fungi in the earth, to plant and animal species of the forest canopy. The Habitat Foundation provided research grants to support their participation
GRANT RECIPIENTS
Abdul Hafiz Abdul Majid
Prof. Dr. Abdul Hafiz Abdul Majid is an Urban and Molecular Entomologist based at the School of Biological Sciences (USM). His main research focuses on urban insect pest management and…
Anthony Ambrose
Dr Anthony Ambrose is a forest canopy biologist working with the Department of Integrative Biology at UC Berkeley, the Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability at the California Academy of…
Asyraf Mansor
Dr Asyraf Mansor is a senior lecturer at the School of Biological Sciences, USM. He obtained his PhD in Plant Ecology from the University of London. Currently, his two main…
Brian Fisher
Dr Brian Fisher is an expert on tropical ants. He is Curator of Entomology at the California Academy of Sciences and adjunct professor at UC Berkeley and San Francisco State…
Faradina Merican Mohd. Sidik Merican
Dr Faradina Merican Mohd. Sidik Merican is an algal taxonomist and ecologist. She is a senior lecturer at the School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) where her work…
Flavia Esteves
Dr. Flavia Esteves is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the California Academy of Sciences. She has a PhD in Entomology from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil for studied ants for…
Hasnuri Mat Hassan
Dr Hasnuri Mat Hassan is a senior lecturer at USM’s School of Biological Sciences. Her field of specialization is soil fertility focussing mainly on phosphorus status in soil or soil-like…
Jack Dumbacher
Dr Jack Dumbacher is Curator of Ornithology and Mammalogy at the California Academy of Sciences where he is responsible for the care of the department’s research collections, which include a…
James Bryson Voirin
Dr Bryson Voirin is a visiting researcher at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, a visiting scientist at the Smithsonian in Panama, and a wildlife neuroscientist at the…
Jennifer Sanger
Dr Jennifer Sanger is a passionate plant ecologist as well as science outreach coordinator. She has spent over seven years studying rainforests and the charismatic plant species within them. As…
Jennifer Sheridan
Jennifer Sheridan is Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at Yale-NUS College in Singapore. Dr Sheridan has a BS from the University of Chicago, and an MS at the University of…
Joe Russack
Joe Russack is a Computer Scientist working at the Center for Comparative Genomics at the California Academy of Sciences. He received his MS in Computer Engineering at the University of…
Katie Jewett
Katie Jewett is a science writer at the California Academy of Sciences. She has a BA in Human Biology from Stanford University with a focus on Marine Policy and Science…
Kevin McLean
Dr Kevin McLean is an ecologist studying wildlife in tropical forest canopies. He uses motion-sensitive cameras to study some of the lesser-known species living in the most biodiverse areas of…
Lauren Esposito
Dr Lauren Esposito is the Assistant Curator and Schlinger Chair of Arachnology at the California Academy of Sciences. She is also the co-founder/director of a science, education, and conservation non-profit…
Meet the scientists
The Penang Hill BioBlitz 2017 greatly benefitted from the participation of so many subject specialists whose fields ranged from microscopic fungi in the earth, to plant and animal species of…
Meg Lowman
Dr Margaret D. Lowman is Director of Global Initiatives and Lindsay Chair of Botany at the California Academy of Sciences. Prior to joining the Academy in 2014, Meg was Senior…
Michelle Trautwein
Dr Michelle Trautwein is the Assistant Curator of Entomology and Schlinger Chair of Diptera at the California Academy of Sciences where her work focuses on the evolution and diversification of…
Nadine Ruppert
Dr Nadine Ruppert is a senior lecturer in Zoology at the School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia. Her PhD research focussed on seed dispersal by small mammal communities and…
Nathalie Nagalingum
Dr Nathalie Nagalingum received her Doctoral degree from the University of Melbourne, Australia, and has worked at Duke University, Harvard University, the University of California Berkeley, and most recently at…
Nur Faeza Abdul Kassim
Dr Nur Faeza Abdul Kassim is a medical and molecular entomologist and a Senior Lecturer at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)’s School of Biological Sciences. She is also a Fellow at…
Nurul Ain Elias
Dr Nurul Ain Elias is a faculty member at the School of Biological Sciences, USM. She is an animal ecologist whose research focuses on reproductive ecology and resource partitioning among…
Phil Torres
Phil Torres is a freelance science communicator, biologist and wildlife photographer based in New York. He was the host of the television show TechKnow on Al Jazeera America for two…
Priscillia Miard
Priscillia Miard is a Postgraduate Student (PhD) from Universiti Sains Malaysia in Penang studying nocturnal mammal distribution, abundance and behaviour. She is also focusing on their habitat preferences and impact…
Rahmad Zakaria
Dr Rahmad Zakaria is a senior lecturer in Botany at the School of Biological Sciences, USM. He has a PhD in Plant Ecology from USM. His main research area is…
Rashidah Abdul Rahim
Dr Rashidah Abdul Rahim is an Associate Professor at the School of Biological Sciences, USM where she serves as the Manager of Biotechnology and Microbiology Programmes. She has been based…
Rosnida Tajuddin
Dr Rosnida Binti Tajuddin is based at the School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia. Her main research areas are the identification of macrofungi and mycorrhizal fungi, understanding ectomycorrhizal fungi…
Siti Azizah Mohd Nor
Prof Dr Siti Azizah Mohd Nor is a professor in population genetics at the School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia. Her area of interest is in molecular studies with…
Stephanie Loria
Stephanie Loria is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Arachnology at the California Academy of Sciences. She has a BS in Environmental Studies from Sewanee-The University of the South, and received her…
Steven Pearce
Steven Pearce is an award-winning photographer specialising in wilderness and adventure photography. He is the creative director for The Tree Projects.
Suhaila binti Abdul Hamid
Dr Suhaila binti Abdul Hamid is a senior lecturer at the School of Biological Sciences, USM. Her field of research is the biology, ecology and taxonomy of aquatic insects with…
Tim Kovar
Tim Kovar is a Master Tree Climbing Instructor with over 20 years of teaching experience. He founded Tree Climbing Planet in 2010 and since then has worked extensively with canopy…
Wendy Lloyd Baxter
Wendy Baxter is a canopy biologist and videographer based at the Integrative Biology Department of UC Berkeley. She has been studying the effects of climate change on coastal redwood and…
William Randy Miller
Dr William Randy Miller is the Director of Research at the Department of Biology and Chemistry at Baker University, Kansas. He is a pioneer in the field of tardigrade research…
The Penang Hill BioBlitz 2017