Life History, Ecology, and Conservation of VertebratesMy research broadly focuses on (1) understanding vertebrate life history and ecology and (2) using this information to guide conservation and management decisions on population, species, or community levels. I use ecological and natural history data to answer hypotheses related to thermal ecology, behavioral ecology, population status and connectivity, reintroduction ecology, and impacts of natural or anthropogenic stressors on reptile, amphibian, or avian populations. I focus on developing local research projects in Mississippi/Alabama as well as projects at Kaxil Kiuic, the Millsaps Biocultural Preserve in Yucatan, Mexico. To learn more about my current research or past research, go to my research page here. For research publications, go to my publications page here.
My teaching interests closely mirror my research interests, so that one complements the other. As a field biologist, I value experiential learning and believe it is essential to understand ecological concepts or organisms. When students use the five senses in the field, this solidifies the topics discussed in class. Such experiences could come through taking field trips, identifying specimens to hone diagnostic skills, class field projects, and learning field techniques. To learn more about the classes I teach, go to my teaching page here. If you have any questions or wish to collaborate on a project, please contact me at will.selman@millsaps.edu. 
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Recent NewsOctober 2019
Co-authored paper on environmental effects on body size and shape of Black-knobbed Sawbacks published in the journal Copeia. September 2019 -Two manuscripts accepted for publication in Chelonian Conservation and Biology special issue on Graptemys Ecology, Conservation, and Biology. August 2019 -Completed Mississippi Biodiversity field course with 12 Millsaps students. Pictures coming soon! -Co-authored manuscript on phenotypic plasticity in Black-knobbed Sawbacks accepted in the journal Copeia. July 2019 -Article on One Lake as One Sewage Lagoon published in Jackson Free Press. June 2019 -Awarded Louisiana State Wildlife Grant to study the status of Graptemys in the Pearl River of southeastern Louisiana in 2020-2021. Back to the river! -Two natural history notes and one geographic distribution note published in Herpetological Review. -Completed fieldwork in northeastern Mississippi on Green Salamanders and Graptemys of the upper Tombigbee River system with support of a grant from the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. May 2019 -Millsaps Graduation 2019... Excited for lab members Gracie Bellnap (with Honor's) and Richard Murray on their graduation. Also, Miranda Gaupp, a former herpetology student, also graduated and will be pursuing a Master's Degree at Georgia Southern and will study Flatwoods Salamanders. Herp on all! -Recipient of the 2018 Best Paper Young Scholar in Herpetology Award for an article in the journal Copeia entitled, “Spatial, seasonal, and sexual variation in the diet of Graptemys flavimaculata.” OLD NEWS |
