Megan Vahsen
Dr. Megan Vahsen (she/her) opened her lab in the Odum School of Ecology in January 2025. She is an evolutionary ecologist who is broadly interested in how organisms respond to climate change and the consequences those responses have on population, community, and ecosystem dynamics. She uses experiments coupled with statistical and numerical modeling to address both basic and applied questions in ecology. Before UGA, Megan was a postdoctoral fellow at Utah State University. She received her PhD in Biology at the University of Notre Dame, MS in Ecology at Colorado State University, and BS in Biology at the College of William and Mary.
Sam Day Briggs
Dr. Sam Day Briggs (she/her) is a postdoc in the Vahsen Lab investigating how integrating evolution and plasticity of Schoenoplectus americanus traits in ecological models can improve predictions of eco-evolutionary responses to environmental change. Sam is interested in how global change influences community dynamics, how multiple interacting agents influence plant–mutualist relationships, and how these interactions shift across environmental gradients. She uses a variety of experimental and computational techniques to explore these research questions.
Abby Pearse
Abby Pearse (she/her) is a first year PhD student in the Vahsen lab. Broadly, she is interested in assessing how local adaptation and genetic variation of Schoenoplectus americanus vary across spatiotemporal gradients. Additionally, she is looking to implement resurrection ecology techniques to examine how phenological traits may change over time in response to changing environmental conditions. Outside of the lab, you can find her on a hike, doing arts and crafts, or singing at her local karaoke spot!
Zak Bartholomew
Zak Bartholomew (he/him) is a PhD student in the Vahsen Lab. He is broadly interested in the resilience of coastal plant communities and their ability to resist and recover from climate change-related impacts. Zak received his MS in Biological Sciences from Marshall University, where he investigated salt marsh decline in coastal South Carolina through a combination of remote sensing and fieldwork. Before his MS, Zak worked in the environmental restoration field around Seattle, WA. He received a BS in Anthropology and a BA in Archaeology from the College of Charleston, SC.
Riley Forrestall
Riley Forrestall (he/him) is the lab manager for the Vahsen Lab. He has interests in how eco-evolutionary dynamics shape biodiversity and how some organisms’ unorthodox reproductive and dispersal mechanisms lead to interesting population structures and conservation strategies. You can usually find him on hikes with his dog, spending time outdoors fishing or birding, or on the way to the nearest coffee shop. He completed his Bachelor of Science degrees in Plant Biology and Ecology here at the University of Georgia and is particularly excited about creating community and getting his hands dirty in the marsh!
Victoria Cone
Victoria Cone (she/her) is an undergraduate in the Vahsen Lab majoring in Ecology with a minor in Wildlife and Fisheries. She is interested in semi-aquatic and aquatic ecosystems and the continued and arising environmental stressors (natural and anthropogenic) and the subsequent changes in these ecosystems. She has a specific interest in how man-made contaminants and pollutants affect flora and fauna, and is currently working on an independent research project quantifying the morphological changes in S. americanus stem tissue as a response to increased nitrogen levels in a greenhouse setting.
Erin Brown
Erin Brown (she/her) is an undergraduate working in the Vahsen Lab, majoring in Ocean Science with a minor in Spanish. She is interested in the impact of climate change and anthropogenic stressors on coastal and marine ecosystems, and the predicted and recorded responses in areas of high stress. This ranges from the impact of increased sand temperatures on sea turtle nesting to the impact of increased carbon absorption by the ocean on calcifying organisms. She is currently working on an independent research project that aims to better define methodology for breaking the dormancy and increasing germination success of S. americanus seeds sourced from mid-marsh seed banks on the Georgia coast.
Sophie Smith
Sophie Smith (she/her) is an undergraduate majoring in Wildlife Sciences with a minor in Ecology! Outside of the lab, she enjoys volunteering with the Guide Dog Foundation, and practicing her wildlife photography. She is interested in working with endangered animal species, and is looking forward to learning more about the effects of climate change on various habitats.
Tessa Cote
Tessa Cote (she/her) is an undergraduate on the pre-med track, majoring in biology with a minor in Spanish. She is particularly interested in examining the effects between different plant species adapting to climate change and what about their genetics allows for these differences. Outside the lab she loves to play the piano and run with her friends around Athens. She is looking forward to learning more about GA ecosystems specifically and can’t wait to take on this experience with the Vahsen Lab team.
Melissa Garcia
Melissa Garcia (she/her) is an undergraduate majoring in Wildlife Sciences with a minor in Biology. She is interested in conservation ecology and the impact climate change has over ecosystems, more specifically the role genetics play at the individual level when facing a high stress environment. She is looking forward to learning new things and applying it to reptile genetic research once she graduates.
Lab alumni
Ben Frick (he/him), Master’s student, successfully defended his Master’s thesis on the effects of climate change on the southern purple pitcher plant in 2026.
Dr. Becca Nelson (she/her), postdoctoral researcher, worked on the BromeCast project in 2025 and is now an EEB presidential postdoctoral fellow at Michigan State University.