Education
Ph.D. 2006. Columbia University, New York City
Advanced Certificate of Public Policy. 2005. Columbia University, New York City
M. Phil. 2005. Columbia University, New York City
M.A. 2003. Columbia University, New York City
B.Sc. 2000. University of California, Los Angeles

Research Goals or Interests
I am currently working on a broad-scale look at the population genetics of nearshore organisms along the Pacific coast of Oregon and California for the PISCO project. Until now, genetic studies of the marine environment have tended to focus on single species, often using single molecular markers to estimate gene flow among populations. In contrast, I am sampling dozens of species from a wide range of ecological niches and phylogenetic groups with the goal of uncovering patterns that link specific ecological traits to patterns of gene flow. Because sampling multiple molecular loci from different parts of the genome provides increased resolution and a diversity polymorphism levels, I plan to use several gene regions to describe the genetic connectivity of coastal populations. This project will substantially increase our understanding of many of the coast’s most common organisms and, perhaps more importantly, provide a link between ecology and genetics that has been missing.

More broadly, I am interested in the interplay between geography and genetics in marine systems. I work primarily on intertidal animals, using molecular techniques to uncover biogeographic patterns at a variety of hierarchical levels. In particular, I seek to understand population genetics and speciation processes in a wide variety of taxa as they are influenced both by geography and by organismal characteristics. A sound systematic context is the foundation for all such efforts, and as such, molecular systematics is integral to this work.

Selected Publications

Kelly, R. P., I. N. Sarkar, D. J. Eernisse, and R. DeSalle. 2007. DNA barcoding using chitons (genus Mopalia) Molecular Ecology Notes  7:177–183 [PDF]

Kelly, R. P. and D. J. Eernise 2008.  Reconstructing a radiation: the chiton genus Mopalia in the north Pacific. Invertebrate Systematics,  22:17–28 [PDF]

Kelly, R. P. and D. J. Eernise 2007.  Southern Hospitality:  A latitudinal gradient in gene flow in the marine environment.  Evolution 61(3):700-707 [PDF]

Kelly, RP., and S.R. Palumbi. 2008. General-use polymerase chain reaction primers for amplification and direct sequencing of enolase,a single-copy nuclear gene, from different animal phyla. Molecular Ecology Resources, in press.

Kelly, R.P., T.A. Oliver, A. Sivasundar, and S.R. Palumbi. SAShA:?A Method for Detecting Population Genetic Structure in Diverse, High Gene-Flow Species. (Submitted).

Kelly, R.P., and S.R. Palumbi. Ecological Genetics of the Eastern Pacific Rocky Intertidal Community. (Submitted).

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