our team
eva k fischer
principal investigator
efischer@illinois.edu
she/her
Eva is a brain, behavior, and baked good enthusiast. The science questions that keep Eva up at night these days are how best to understand behavior across levels of biological organization and whether cell types are really a thing. Following in the footsteps of her PhD advisor, Eva’s mentoring strategy includes increasing lab morale and productivity through intermittent food reward.
favorite lab item? the amazing people in my lab (aka the LABradors)
number of plants in your house? 35
what bird are you? crow
NOTE: “what bird are you?” brought to you by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Bird Quiz
holiday maag
lab manager, aka fairy frog mother
hmaag2@illinois.edu
she/her
Holiday is curious about how organisms evolve weird new behaviors. Like how coqui sometimes eat their eggs or how her dog likes to sleep on her back with her little legs sticking straight up in the air. In her free time she knits, reads, and snuggles her dog and rabbit.
favorite lab item? the teeniest beakers
number of plants in your house? a lot
what bird are you? raven
sarah e westrick
NSF postdoctoral fellow
westse@illinois.edu
she/her
The lab's resident mammalogist, Sarah Westrick, completed her PhD studying maternal effects in everyone's favorite squirrel, the North American red squirrel, before jumping into herpetology for her postdoc fellowship with Eva. Across all study systems, Sarah's interested in what drives individuality in animals and how parental care experiences shape their behavior and physiology. Sarah spends her spare time teaching foster kittens how to watch squirrels, managing anxiety with arts and crafts, and practicing pie protocols, uh, recipes. Learn more at sewestrick.strikingly.com.
favorite lab item? paper tape (is sarah’s home kitchen labeled with paper tape? maybe.)
number of plants in your house? 56
what bird are you? red-tailed hawk
lisa surber-cunningham
graduate student
lsurber2@illinois.edu
she/her
Lisa is a PhD student in the Fischer lab. She studies phenotypic plasticity in poison frog tadpoles. When she is not in the lab (or in the middle of a pandemic) she likes to do judo, play soccer, and annoy her dog with the ukulele. Learn more at lisalsurber.mystrikingly.com.
favorite lab item? automatic pipettes
number of plants in your house? 4
what bird are you? american kestrel
emily terrill
graduate student
ett2@illinois.edu
she/her
Emily is a PhD student in the lab who is broadly interested in the genetic and physiological mechanisms underlying behavior. When she's not in the lab, Emily can be found exploring new places, eating good food, and/or watching anything Marvel, while wrangling her two spirited, red-headed toddlers.
favorite lab item? glass frogs, laminator
number of plants in your house? 12
what bird are you? great blue heron
lucas jimenez
undergraduate student
lucassj2@illinois.edu
he/him
Lucas is a sophomore majoring in Integrative Biology with an honors concentration and with Chemistry as a second major while minoring in Psychology. He is very curious and loves to ask questions portraying to anything that crosses his mind. He loves to weight lift and play with his two doggies, Max and Coco. For a fun-fact, he has built his own PC.
favorite lab item? the tadpoles and the frogs
number of plants in your house? 1 fake plant
what bird are you? crow
katharine klugman
undergraduate student
klugman3@illinois.edu
she/her
Katharine is a junior majoring in integrative biology and minoring in conservation biology/technology entrepreneurship. Katharine likes working with animals and biotechnology! One of her favorite experiences was skydiving in Santa Barbara.
favorite lab item? tiny beakers, they’re adorable
number of plants in your house? 0 (that’s embarrassing, I know)
what bird are you? goldfinch
olivia marsden
undergraduate student
ogm3@illinois.edu
she/her
Olivia is currently finishing her degree in Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences with a concentration in Ecosystem Stewardship and Environmenal Restoration (which is the longest name ever). Olivia is interested in amphibian conservation, animal behaivor, and observing the intricacies of the natural world. When not in class or the lab, Olivia likes to cook, crochet, paint, and play bass and sing in her band, Romantica.
favorite lab item? the motivational frog poster in lab that is drawn on a paper towel
number of plants in your house? not enough
what bird are you? northern mockingbird
isabella strohmeier
undergraduate student
istroh2@illinois.edu
she/her
Isabella is a junior majoring in Integrative biology and minoring in Latino studies. She is interested in animal behavior and is currently researching maternal aggression with the dendrodates tinctorious. in her free time she loves to cook, journal, and hang out with friends.
favorite lab item? power pipette
number of plants in your house? 40
what bird are you? red-tailed hawk
lab alumni
(gone, but not forgotten)
harmen alleyne - undergraduate 2020 - 2023, now deciding what’s next
faith hardin - graduate student 2021 - 2023, now Wetland Project Manager at the O’Connor Center for the Rock Mountain West (housed at the University of Montana)
katie julkowski - lab manager 2020 - 2023, now Project Manger at BEAT Cancer Initiative in Champaign-Urbana, IL
jen moss - postdoc 2021 - 2023, now Assistant Professor at Virginia Tech
samta oza - undergraduate researcher, summer 2021, now at UC Davis
thomas parrish - undergraduate 2023 - 2023, soon to be in med school
molly podraza - undergraduate/graduate 2021 - 2023, now an intern at the brookfield zoo in Chicago, IL
halle santiago - undergraduate 2021 - 2023, now finishing BA
kat soto - master’s student 2021 - 2023, currently planning her next bold move
abby stevenson - undergraduate 2021 - 2023, now finishing BA