Caitlin M. Baker
Postdoctoral fellow
Email: cmbaker6 at wisc dot edu
Personal website: caitlinmbaker.weebly.com

Curriculum vitae (updated Nov 2020)

I am exploring the development of sexually dimorphic structures in the harvestman Phalangium opilio. Males of this species grow "horns" on their chelicerae -- large cuticular outgrowths that they use as weapons in intrasexual contests -- that come in a dramatic range of sizes. But why do some males grow larger weapons than others? I aim to quantify the extent to which genetic and environmental factors determine adult male horn size and determine the developmental genetic underpinnings of cheliceral horn growth. I’m also researching the developmental genetic basis of eye loss in different groups of Israeli cave arachnids in (spiders, whip spiders, harvestmen) and exploring population genomic patterns of surface- and cave-dwelling sister species, trying to understand when and why certain lineages migrated into cave habitats.​

Research snapshots:

Collecting in Fiordland, New Zealand with colleagues from Macalester College in January 2019.

Two P. opilio males in the midst of battle! They use their cheliceral horns to push each other while simultaneously trying to twist their opponent's palps with their own.