• My research lies at the intersection of ecology, evolution, and behaviour. I focus on two questions asking about the origins, evolution, and maintenance of biodiversity:
  (i) What are the characteristics of selection?
  (ii) Can we predict how organisms will adapt and evolve?
  ​
  A fundamental challenge addressed by biology is to explain why we have the biodiversity we observe today. In other words, what are the origins of biodiversity, how did it evolve, and importantly, how is it maintained? Selection and adaptation are two key processes that underlie biological diversity, and yet we often consider selection and adaptation from a static viewpoint – considering evolution at one point in time and space. While informative, this approach often cannot explain what we observe in nature. By considering evolution as a dynamic process that varies in space and time, we can deepen our understanding of selection and adaptation and the role they play in the origins and maintenance of biodiversity.​Humans are dramatically changing the world both directly (e.g. artificial selection or domestication) and indirectly (e.g. cascading effects from urbanization), altering the dynamics of natural selection. Organisms must rapidly adapt and evolve to these different selection pressures if they are to cope, persist, and survive. My research goal is to determine the importance and efficacy of this process of rapid adaptation to human made changes and use this information to reduce the unwanted consequences of human-caused selection changes, as well as to facilitate adaptive responses that could allow continued persistence of populations.

• My research program focuses on a variety of taxa including Darwin’s finches, Trinidadian guppies, and three-spine stickleback. I have also worked with anoles, parrotfish, and East African cichlids. In the future, I hope to develop a local system on black-capped chickadees.

Ph.D. in Biology; McGill University

BSc, First Class Honours; McGill University

Special Issues

Editors: Gotanda, K. M., Hendry, A. P., Svensson, E. I. (2017). Special Theme Issue: Human influences on evolution, and the ecological and societal consequences. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society – B 372(1712)

Peer Reviewed

27. Kamath, A., Herrmann, N. C., Gotanda, K. M., Shim, K., LaFond, J., Cottone, G., Falkner, H., Campbell, T. S., Stuart, Y. E. (2021) Character displacement in the midst of background evolution in island populations of Anolis lizards: a spatiotemporal perspective. Evolution 74(10): 2250-2264 doi: 10.1111/evo.14079

26. Gotanda, K. M. (2020) Human influences on antipredator behaviour in Darwin’s finches. Journal of Animal Ecology 89(2): 614-622 doi: 10.1111/1365-2656.13127

25. Carvajal-Endara, S., Hendry, A. P., Emery, N. C., Neu, C. P., Carmona, D., Gotanda, K. M., Davies, T. J., Chaves, J., Johnson, M. T. J. (2020) The ecology and evolution of seed predation by Darwin’s finches on Tribulus cistoides in the Galápagos Islands. Ecological Monographs 90(1): e01392 doi: 10.1002/ecm.1392

24. Montiglio, P. O.*, Gotanda, K. M.*, Kratochwil, C.F.*, Laskowski, K. L.*, Farine, D. R.* (2020) Hierarchically embedded interaction networks represent a missing link in the study of behavioral and community ecology. Behavioural Ecology 31(2): 279-286 doi: 10.1093/beheco/arz168

23. Gotanda, K. M., Pack, A., Leblond, C., Hendry, A. P. (2019) Do replicates of independent guppy lineages evolve similarly in a predator-free laboratory environment? Ecology and Evolution 9: 36-51 doi: 10.1002/ece3.4585

22. Knutie, S. A., Chaves, J. A., Gotanda, K. M. (2019) Human activity can influence the gut microbiota of Darwin’s finches in the Galapagos Islands. Molecular Ecology 28(9): 2441-2450 doi: 10.1111/mec.15088

21. Pringle. R. M., Kartzinel, T. R., Palmer, T. M., Thurman, T. J., Fox-Dobbs, K., Xu, C. C. Y., Hutchinson, M. C., Coverdale, T. C., Daskin, J. H., Evangelista, D. A., Gotanda, K. M., Man in ‘t Veld, N., Wegener, J. E., Kolbe, J. J., Schoener, T. W., Spiller, D. A., Losos, J. B., Barrett, R. D. H. (2019) Predator-induced collapse of niche structure and species coexistence. Nature 570: 58-74 doi: 10.1038/s41586-019-1264-6

20. Berger-Tal, O., Greggor, A. L., Macura, B., Adams, C., Blumenthal, A., Bouskila, A., Candolin, U., Doran, C., Gotanda, K. M., Price, C., Putman, B., Segoli, M., Snijders, L., Wong, B. B. M., Blumstein, D. T. (2019) Systematic reviews and maps as tools for applying behavioral ecology to management and policy. Behavioral Ecology 30(1): 1-8 doi: 10.1093/beheco/ary130

19. De León, L. F., Sharpe, D. M. T., Gotanda, K. M., Raeymaekers, J. A. M., Chaves J. A., Hendry, A. P., Podos, J. (2018) Urbanization erodes niche segregation in Darwin’s finches. Evolutionary Applications 12(7): 1329-1343 doi: 10.1111/eva.12721

18. Knutie, S. A.* and Gotanda, K. M.* (2018) A non-invasive method to collect fecal samples from wild birds for microbiome studies. Microbial Ecology 76(4): 851-855 doi: 10.1007/s00248-018-1182-4

17. Theodosopoulos, A. N. and Gotanda, K. M. (2018) Death of a Darwin’s Finch: a consequence of anthropogenic debris? The Wilson Journal of Ornithology 130(4): 1023-1028 doi: 10.1676/17-00050

16. Michel, A. J., Ward, L. M., Goffredi, S. K., Dawson, K., Baldassarre, D. T., Brenner, A., Gotanda, K. M., McCormack, J. E., Mullin, S., O’Neill, A., Tender, G., Uy, J. A. C., Yu, K., Orphan, V. J., Chaves, J. A. (2018) The gut of the finch: uniqueness of the gut microbiome of the Galápagos vampire finch. Microbiome 6(167): 1-14 doi: 10.1186/s40168-018-0555-8

15. De Lira, J. J. P. R., Peréz-Jvostov, F., Gotanda, K. M., Kou-Giesbrecht, S., Pease, S. K., Jackson, M., Jersch, S., Hendry, A. P. (2018) Testing for whole-organism trade-off between natural and sexual selection: are the male guppies preferred by females more likely to be consumed by predators? Evolutionary Ecology Research 19: 441-453

14. Siepielski, A. M., Morrissey, M. B., Buoro, M., Carlson, S. M., Caruso, C. M., Clegg, S. M., Coulson, T., DiBattista, J., Gotanda, K. M., Francis, C. D., Hereford, J., Kingsolver, J. G., Augustine, K. E., Kruuk, L. E. B., Martin, R. A., Sheldon, B. C., Sletvold, N., Svensson, E. I., Wade, M. J., MacColl, A. D. C. (2017). Precipitation drives global variation in natural selection. Science 355(6328): 959–962 doi: 10.1126/science.aag2773

13. Alberti, M., Correa, C. Marzluff, J. Hendry, A. P., Palkovacs, E. P., Gotanda, K. M., Hunt, V. Apgar, T. M., Zhou, Y. (2017). Global urban signatures of phenotypic change in animal and plant populations. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 114(34): 8951–8956 doi: 10.1073/pnas.1606034114

12. Hendry, A. P., Gotanda, K. M., Svensson, E. I. (2017). Human influences on evolution, and the ecological and societal consequences. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society – B 372(1712): 20160028 doi: 10.1098/rstb.2016.0028

11. Gotanda, K. M., Correa, C., Turcotte, M. M., Rolshausen, G., Hendry, A. P. (2015) Linking macro–trends and micro–rates: re–evaluating micro–evolutionary support for Cope’s Rule. Evolution 69(5): 1345–1354 doi: 10.1111/evo.12653

10. Gotanda, K. M., Sharpe, D. M. T., De León, L. F. (2015). Galapagos Mockingbird preys on an invasive mammal. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology 127(1): 138–141 doi: 10.1676/14–055.1

9.   Gotanda, K. M. and Hendry, A. P. (2014). Using adaptive traits to consider potential consequences of temporal variation in selection: male guppy colour through time and space. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 112(1): 108–122 doi: 10.1111/bij.12261

8.   Siepielski, A. M.*, Gotanda, K. M.*, Morrissey, M. B., Diamond, S. E., DiBattista, J. D., Carlson, S. M. (2013). The spatial patterns of directional phenotypic selection. Ecology Letters 16(11): 1382–1392 doi: 10.1111/ele.12174

7.   Gotanda, K. M., Delaire, L. C., Raeymaekers, J. A. M., Pérez–Jvostov, F., Dargent, F., Bentzen, P., Scott, M. E., Fussmann, G. F., Hendry, A. P. (2013). Adding parasites to the guppy–predation story: insights from field surveys. Oecologia 172(1): 155–166 doi: 10.1007/s00442–012–2485–7

6.   Gotanda, K. M., Reardon, E. E., Murphy, S. M. C., Chapman, L. J. (2012). Critical swim speed and fast–start response in an African Cichlid: convergent performance in divergent oxygen regimes. Canadian Journal of Zoology 90(5): 545–554 doi: 10.1139/z2012–019

5.   Haller, B. C., De León, L. F., Rolshausen, G., Gotanda, K. M., Hendry, A. P. (2012). Magic traits: distinguishing the important from the trivial. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 27(1): 5–6 doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2011.09.005

4.   Gotanda. K. M., Reardon, E. E., Chapman, L. J. (2011). Hypoxia and behaviour in a male African cichlid. Journal of Fish Biology 78(7): 2085–2092 doi: 10.1111/j.1095–8649.2011.02996.x

3.   Gotanda, K. M., Turgeon, K., Kramer, D. L. (2009). Body size and reserve protection affect flight initiation distance in parrotfishes. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 63(11):1563–1572 doi: 10.1007/s00265–009–0750–5

Responses to Comments

2.   Siepielski, A. M., Morrissey, M. B., Buoro, M., Carlson, S. M., Caruso, C. M., Clegg, S. M., Coulson, T., DiBattista, J., Gotanda, K. M., Francis, C. D., Hereford, J., Kingsolver, J. G., Augustine, K. E., Kruuk, L. E. B., Martin, R. A., Sheldon, B. C., Sletvold, N., Svensson, E. I., Wade, M. J., MacColl, A. D. C. (2018). Response to comment on “Precipitation drives global variation in natural selection”. Science 359(6374): eaan5760 doi: 0.1126/science.aan5760

1.   Berger-Tal, O., Greggor, A. L., Macura, B., Adams, C., Blumenthal, A., Bouskila, A., Candolin, U., Doran, C., Gotanda, K. M., Price, C., Putman, B., Segoli, M., Snijders, L., Wong, B. B. M., Blumstein, D. T. (2018) Systematic evidence synthesis as part of a larger process: a response to comments on Berger-Tal et al. Behavioral Ecology. 30(1): 14-15 doi: /10.1093/beheco/ary163