People

Lab Members

Matt McCary (he/him), Principal Investigator

My research examines the fundamental drivers and constraints of soil biodiversity, specifically how diversity relates to food web dynamics, community and ecosystem responses to environmental disturbances, and the feedback loops between food webs and ecosystem functioning. There are three major questions I investigate: (1) What are the causes and consequences of plant invasions? (2) How do invasive species change soil biodiversity and associated ecosystem health? (3) How do fluctuating resources due to climate change affect the fundamental structure and functioning of ecosystems? To address these questions, I use an integrative approach that includes observational and experimental studies, ecological modeling, meta-analyses, and molecular techniques.

CV

Ph.D. Students

Modeline Celestin

My name is Modeline Celestin and my pronouns are she/her. I am from Belle Glade, Florida, where our acclaimed motto is “Her soil is her fortune.” It occupies the unceded homelands of the Mayami, Seminole, and Taíno nations. As a young child tethered to the land, I inherited the intrinsic values my parents harvested from their manual labor as migrant farmworkers.

I earned my B.A. in Sustainability Studies and minored in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida. During my time there, I worked extensively around the United States and South Africa in different capacities. My broad research interest focuses on exploring the varying dynamics of how anthropogenic activities influence biodiversity and ecosystem health.

My passion outside of research stems from amplifying the voices of historically underrepresented groups marginalized in the scientific community. My hobbies include window shopping, cooking food with friends, wine-tasting, watching anime, playing competitive tennis, collecting and trading Hoya plants, and spending quality time with my guinea pigs, Copper and Zinc.

Amoi Campbell

I am currently a doctoral student in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Program in the Department of BioSciences at Rice University. I received a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology from Howard University. During the first year of the pandemic I did a research fellowship at University of Pittsburgh. Much of the research I have done in the past has a few common threads: anthropogenic stress on plant-microbe-animal interactions, plant competition, and biological invasions.

Between my interest in plant ecology and love of learning soil methodologies, I found myself in the McCary Lab. I enjoy a mix of both lab and field work, as there is nothing like a gloved hand full of dirt. Growing up under the Florida sun, I spent a great deal of time outdoors. I suppose that became the foundation for who I am today. I am excited by urban ecology and environmental justice. I strive to be a part of a community of ecologists who holistically works to empower marginalized people and safeguard earth's natural systems. Outside of work I enjoy hiking, weekend afternoon naps, losing a day in the bookstore, hunting down vinyl records, and people watching.

Alex Jiménez-Martin

I earned a B.S in Biology at Industrial University of Santander in Colombia. For my undergraduate thesis I studied the phenology of Aiphanes graminifolia, an endangered, endemic palm species. I worked at the Botanical Garden in Santa Barbara, California where I sorted, and I took pictures of amazing arthropods. I am interested in plant phenology, mutualistic relationships, and how climate change impacts plants and arthropod communities.

I started the Rice's EEB Ph.D. program in the fall of 2023, and I am co-advised with Dr. Tom Miller.

Undergraduate researchers

Lily Burdett

Hi! My name is Lily Burdett (she/her/hers) and I am an undergraduate student at Rice University. I am currently pursuing my B.S. in Biosciences with a concentration in Cell Biology and Genetics, my B.A. in the Study of Women, Gender, and Sexuality, and minor in Sociology.

Within the McCary Lab, I enjoy a combination of both the lab environment and collaborative field research. I am interested in learning and furthering my research in cellular microbiology and exploring cancerous tissues with the goal of attending medical school and receiving my M.D., where I hope to continuously expand my knowledge and curiosity as a physician.

Outside of the lab I am passionate about volunteering at a local long-term memory care facility, advocating for prison transformative justice and mental health awareness, writing poetry, and practicing as a makeup artist.

Nicole Imming

I’m an undergraduate student at Rice University pursuing a B.S. in Astrophysics and a minor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. In the McCary lab, I’m working to understand how heirloom and commercial sorghum differ in their resistance to aphid herbivory with the goal of developing sustainable management practices; I enjoy identifying arthropods, collecting biomass data, and performing DNA extractions. I have previously done lab work involving the identification of fungal endophytes and the development of 3D scans of fish scales.

Lab Alumni

Jeremy Pustilnik, Summer 2023
Ling DeBellis, Senior Thesis, 2022-2023
Ashley Fitzpatrick, Undergrad researcher, 2022