Lackey Lab

About 

In the Lackey Lab, we study questions at the intersections of evolution, ecology and behavior. We test how populations respond to rapid environmental change and measure the consequences for adaptation, divergence, and species interactions. Our research integrates multiple approaches: field collections of wild populations, lab and field experiments, and genomics. We use two study systems — flies (Rhagoletis) and salamanders (Ambystoma) — to both determine what we can generalize across insects and amphibians and test questions uniquely suited to each system. 

Key Research Areas

• Rapid adaptation
• Response to climate change
• Speciation
• Life history evolution
• Sexual selection
• Reproductive isolation 

Recent Publications

• ACR Lackey, ESC Scordato, J Keagy, RM Tinghitella, RJP Heathcote. 2024. The role of mate competition in speciation and divergence: a systematic review. Journal of Evolutionary Biology. doi.org/10.1093/jeb/voae111
• ACR Lackey, PM Deneen, GJ Ragland, JL Feder, DA Hahn, THQ Powell. 2023. Simulated climate warming causes asymmetric responses in insect life-history timing potentially disrupting a class ecological speciation system. Ecology Letters. doi.org/10.1111/ele.14268
• ACR Lackey, AC Murray, NA Mirza, THQ Powell. 2023. The role of sexual isolation during rapid ecological divergence: evidence for a new dimension of isolation in Rhagoletis pomonella. Journal of Evolutionary Biology. doi.org/10.1111/jeb.14179
• ACR Lackey, HH Whiteman. 2022. Experimental warming reduces body mass but not reproductive investment. Ecology. doi.org/10.1002/ecy.3791 

Team 

Alycia Lackey, Assistant Professor

alycia.lackey@louisville.edu
View Research Profile
 

• Sophia Anner, Ph.D. candidate
  • sophia.anner@louisville.edu
• Shayna Rosenbloom Earl, Ph.D. candidate
  • shayna.rosenbloom@louisville.edu
• Olivia Weaver, Ph.D. student
  • olivia.weaver@louisville.edu
• Jenna Burns, technician
  • jenna.burns.1@louisville.edu