Research Interests

 My research interests lie in the realm of vertebrate evolutionary biology, particularly the evolution, systematics, and historical biogeography of birds and mammals. I have had a life-long interest in two taxonomic groups: rodents of the superfamily Geomyoidea (includes pocket gophers, kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice, pocket mice and spiny pocket mice) and birds of the family Accipitridae (includes hawks, eagles, and kites).  Working with both undergraduate and graduate students, I have centered our geomyoid research on understanding the genetics of populations, discerning ancestor-descendant relationships among populations and species, the ecological interactions of sympatric species, reconstructing the historical biogeography of taxa, and investigations of "contact zones" and hybridization. Our interest in accipitrid birds has focused mainly on the natural history, plumage, and ecology of hawks, especially the Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii).  Activities of my research program involve a combination of fieldwork, lab work, and computer analyses.  Although my research has involved fieldwork in Europe and throughout North and Central America,  I prefer to focus on the native organisms in the American Southwest; these are the animals and their habitats that first captured my interest as a kid hiking the hills with my two brothers and growing up at the base of Mt. Diablo (northern California).                  

Presently, my research focuses on the phylogeography of kangaroo mice, genus Microdipodops.  Kangaroo mice are beautiful, sand-obligate rodents that are restricted in distribution to the Great Basin Desert of North America.  Kangaroo mice are considered as uncommon members of the nocturnal, seed-eating, desert rodent community that is most frequently dominated by kangaroo rats (genus Dipodomys).   My students and I began this project on the molecular genetics of kangaroo mice in the fall of 1999.  Over the years, we have established a molecular genetics lab in the Moore Laboratory of Zoology that is fully capable of extracting DNA and analyzing DNA sequence data for modern studies of molecular systematics and phylogeography.  There are three main goals associated with our field and laboratory analyses:  1) perform a thorough phylogeographic analysis of each of the two currently recognized species of Microdipodops using two mitochondrial genes (16S and cytochrome b);  2) perform a population genetic analysis for the genus to understand the possible roles of gene flow, rapid range expansion, isolation, and genetic drift in the evolutionary history of the group; and, 3) evaluate the genetic interactions and systematic status of kangaroo mice at "contact zones" (places where genetically differentiated geographic units meet).  Hopefully, results of our studies on kangaroo mice will provide critical information for conservation and management decisions and will serve also as a model for other sand-obligate organisms of the Great Basin. 

If my research focus is of interest to you, I encourage you to read some of my publications.  Students who have potential interest in research of this nature should contact me directly regarding possible research opportunities.  Students who have worked with me in the past few years include Emily Reddington, Candice Wong Torres, and Nate Upham (all past recipients of the annual Kurata Student Award in the Department of Biology).  

Dr. John C. Hafner

Director and Curator of Birds and Mammals

Professor of Biology 

Ph.D. 1981 University of California, Berkeley