emily lessner

A number of animals alive today (e.g. birds, crocodiles, platypus) use sensory systems in their faces (e.g. ISOs, bill tip organs) to forage or hunt for food. I am interested in understanding the innervation, anatomy, and evolution of these systems in order to apply them to extinct animals that are part of the fossil record. I utilize dissection and 3D imaging (CT scans) to look inside the skulls of both extant and extinct animals. This research is important to reconstructing the behaviors and interactions of extinct animals. My other interests include endocranial evolution and the paleobiogeographic distribution of Late Triassic vertebrate fauna.