Assistant Curator, Amphibians and Reptiles
Biography
Jennifer Sheridan is the Assistant Curator for the Section of Amphibians and Reptiles at Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
Jennifer is a tropical conservation ecologist. Her research interests are ecological responses to changes in both climate and habitat & land use. She utilizes frogs as study organisms but with an eye for how they fit into the ecosystem as a whole.
The main goals of her research are to understand and quantify threats to biodiversity in order to better focus conservation efforts and mitigate change. To those ends, Jennifer currently examines 1) the effects of habitat alteration on amphibian communities, 2) the effect of climate change on organism size, and 3) anthropogenic impacts on organisms in urban areas. Understanding how species are separated in ecological space and how species are affected by changes in their environment allow for better predictions of biodiversity losses, and potential mitigation techniques.
The majority of her research has been in Southeast Asia, (mainly Sabah, Malaysian Borneo), but Jennifer also examines impacts of climate change and land use change on amphibians in Pennsylvania utilizing CMNH collections along with field work at Powdermill Research Station.
Nerding Out Over Masting, or Why Unusual Plant Reproduction Excites Animal Ecologists
As for many people, every pandemic month that passes marks another month since I’ve been able to travel. I realized recently that …
Is this what they call overkill? Toxin and venom in the herp world
I recently participated in a Zoom event for Museum members focused on toxins and venom in the natural world. Mason Heberling, Assistant …
Overwintering for Amphibians and Reptiles
With Autumn upon us, temperatures are dropping, and it is getting colder out. Especially in the northern regions, amphibians and reptiles need …
What Makes Reptiles So Unique?
What makes reptiles so unique? Curator of Amphibians and Reptiles, Jennifer Sheridan, shares some of her favorite facts about the unique adaptations …
The Enduring Appeal of Snakes
As a herpetologist, I’m often asked whether I see a lot of snakes. To be clear, seeing snakes is always an exciting …
Field Time in Borneo
By Jennifer Sheridan As some of you know, my main field research takes place in Malaysian Borneo, in the state of Sabah. …
Publications
Yeo, Z.Y., and J.A. Sheridan. in review. Effects of traffic noise on vocalizations of Kurixalus appendiculatus. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology.
Sheridan, J.A., and B.L. Stuart. 2018. Hidden species diversity in Sylvirana nigrovittata (Amphibia: Ranidae) highlights the importance of taxonomic revisions in biodiversity conservation. PLoS ONE 13(3): e0192766.
Karraker, N., S. Fischer, A. Awophol, J.A. Sheridan, and S. Poo. 2018. Signals of forest degradation in the demography of common Asian amphibians. PeerJ. 6:e4220.
Sheridan, J.A., N. Caruso, J.J. Apodaca, and L. Rissler. 2018. Changes in body size and breeding date of wood frogs linked to climate change. Ecology and Evolution. 8:1316–1327.
Sheridan, J.A., N. Rakotopare, and R. Mebberson. 2017. Preliminary estimation of home range size for Meristogenys orphnocnemis, a common Bornean ranid, using radiotelemetry. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. 65: 539-544.
Karraker, N.E., D. Bickford, S. Fischer, A. Devan-Song, A. Tan, J.A. Sheridan, P. Yambun, and M. Lakim. 2017. Activity patterns and habitat use of Ansonia hanitschi on Gunung Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. Herpetological Conservation & Biology. 12:233-240.
Stuart, B. L., S. Phimmachak, S. Seateun, and J. A. Sheridan. 2013. A new Philautus (Anura: Rhacophoridae) from northern Laos allied to P. abditus (Inger, Orlov & Darevsky, 1999). Zootaxa 3745: 73-83.
Sheridan, J.A., S.D. Howard, P. Yambun, J.L. Rice, R. Cadwallader-Staub, A. Karolus, and D. Bickford. 2012. Novel behaviors of Southeast Asian rhacophorid frogs (Anura, Rhacophoridae) with an updated anuran species list for Danum Valley, Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. Tropical Natural History. 12 (1) 1-8.
Sheridan, J.A. and D. Bickford. 2011. Shrinking body size as an ecological response to climate change. Nature Climate Change. 1 (8) 401-406.
Bickford, D., J.A. Sheridan, and S. Howard. 2011. Climate change responses: Forgetting frogs, ferns, and flies? Trends in Ecology and Evolution. 26 (11) 553-554.
Sheridan, J.A., D. Bickford, K.F.Y. Su, and R. Meier. 2010. An examination of call and genetic variation in three wide-ranging Southeast Asian anuran species. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. 58 (2) 197-207.
Bickford, D., S.D. Howard, D.J.J.Ng, and J.A. Sheridan. 2010. Impacts of climate change on the amphibians and reptiles of Southeast Asia. Biodiversity and Conservation. 19 (4) 1043-1062.
Sheridan, J.A. 2009. Reproductive variation corresponding to breeding season length in three tropical frogs. Journal of Tropical Ecology. 25 583-592.
Sheridan, J.A. and J.F. Ocock. 2008. Parental care in Chiromantis hansenae (Anura, Rhacophoridae). Copeia. 2008 (4) 733-736.
Sheridan, J.A. 2008. Ecology and behavior of Polypedates lecuomystax (Anura: Rhacophoridae) in northeast Thailand. Herpetological Review. 39 (2) 165-169.
McLeod, D.S., J.A. Sheridan, W. Jiraungkoorskul, and W. Khonsue. 2008. Survey for chytrid fungus in Thai amphibians. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. 56 (1) 191-196.
Sheridan, J.A., S.R. Beissinger, and C.R. Hughes. 2004. Weak association between measures of health and reproductive success in green-rumped parrotlets (Forpus passerinus) in Venezuela. The Auk. 121 (3) 717-725.
