Overview
Jonathan Rader
Overview
Jonathan Rader
“
It is the tension between creativity and skepticism... -Carl Sagan
”
Isotopic niche widths of Cinclodes ovenbirds. Figure from Rader et al. 2016.
My 1/20th scale model of the "Sue" specimen of Tyrannosaurus rex.
I am from the perpetually beautiful, occasionally desolate, and frequently harsh place called Wyoming. I spent much of my early life biking in the prairie, hiking in the mountains, and taking the natural world around me somewhat for granted. Somewhere around middle school, I discovered that dinosaurs were more interesting in real life than they were in picture books, and that steered me toward a career in science.
Sunset over the Snowy Range in southeastern Wyoming, as viewed from Laramie, WY.
Carl Sagan wrote that, "Finding out the way the world really works requires a mix of hunches, intuition, and brilliant creativity; it also requires skeptical scrutiny of every step." I like to think of myself as a creative person, and I endeavor to bring that creativity into my study of how animals have adapted to the challenges that their lives present to them. As for the second part of the quote, regarding skeptical scrutiny, I am still learning. I will use this website to document the process.
- Quotes from Carl Sagan, 1986. Skeptical Inquirer, Volume 10.3.
Research
Research
Research
A turkey vulture doing what they usually do... gliding lazily. This one happened to be in Chapel Hill, NC.
Morphological Evolution and
stable isotope ecology
Ecomorphology of Cinclodes ovenbirds
University of Wyoming
Laramie, WY
A somewhat damp looking Cinclodes nigrofumosus. This species lives exclusively in intertidal zones in Chile. Photo by Pablo Sabat.
For more details, click on the project that you'd like to know more about!
I am interested in the mechanics, physiology, and ecological consequences of animal movement, and in the interplay between ecology and animal performance. I enjoy projects that draw from multiple disciplines (morphology, biomechanics, stable isotope ecology, etc.), and feel strongly that such multifaceted datasets are powerful tools with which to approach these questions. I have a somewhat wandering focus, but my work has generally centered on form-function relationships and niche evolution in birds.
Most recently, I have been 3-D tracking free-flying turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) across an elevation gradient to investigate how the birds compensate for lower density air at high elevation, and how they respond to variable wind conditions. This work is still progressing, but the early cliff note seems to be that birds flying at high elevation maintain higher airspeeds than their low-elevation counterparts.
I have also studied morphological evolution in a lineage of South American birds called Cinclodes, and showed that despite being physiologically and ecologically diverse, the species of Cinclodes are morphologically quite similar to each other. I also used stable isotope analysis to investigate niche evolution in Cinclodes, and found the species that inhabit broader ranges also consumed more diverse resources. This result provides support for the Resource Breadth Hypothesis, and may be the first application of stable isotope analysis to address a macroecological question.
Education
Education
Education
2022
Ph.D.
Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
ADvisor: Tyson Hedrick
2014
Master of Science
Zoology and Physiology
University of Wyoming
Advisors: Carlos Martinez del Rio and Michael Dillon
2009
Bachelor of Science
Major: Natural Sciences and Mathematics
Minor: Geology
University of Wyoming
Undergraduate research ADVISOR: Brent Breithaupt
Publications
Publications
Publications
Published Articles
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. Morphological modularity and evolution of avian wing shape. In press. Nature Communications. 2023. Preprint: bioRxiv 2022.09.23.509279; https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.09.23.509279.
Rader, J. A., M. A. Pivovarnik*, M. E. Vantilburg*, and L. S. Whitehouse. PhyloMatcher: a tool for resolving conflicts in taxonomic nomenclature. Bioinformatics Advances. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1093/bioadv/vbad144
Rader, J. A. and D. R. Matute. Isotopic niches do not follow the expectations of niche conservatism in the bird genus Cinclodes. J. Evolutionary Biology. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1111/jeb.14197
Rader, J. A. and D. A. Cortés*. Digest: A new tool will illuminate patterns of morphological integration. Evolution. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1093/evolut/qpac062
McWhorter, T. J., J. A. Rader, J. E. Schondube, S. W. Nicholson, B. Pinshow, P. A. Fleming, Y. Gutiérrez-Guerrero and C. Martínez del Rio. Sucrose digestion capacity in birds shows convergent coevolution with nectar composition across continents. iScience. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2021.102717
Rader, J. A., T. L. Hedrick, Y. He and L. D. Waldrop. Functional morphology of gliding flight II. Morphology follows predictions of gliding performance. Integrative and Comparative Biology. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icaa126
Waldrop, L. D., Y. He, T. L. Hedrick and J. A. Rader. Functional morphology of gliding flight I. Modeling reveals distinct performance landscapes based on soaring strategies. Integrative and Comparative Biology. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icaa114
Waldrop, L. D. and J. A. Rader. Melding Modeling and Morphology: A call for collaboration to address difficult questions about the evolution of form and function. Integrative and Comparative Biology. 2020.
Rader, J. A., S. D. Newsome, P. Sabat, R.T. Chesser, M.E. Dillon and C. Martínez del Rio. Isotopic niches support Brown’s resource breadth hypothesis. J. Animal Ecology. 2017. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.12629
Newsome, S. D., P. Sabat, N. Wolf, J. A. Rader, and C. Martínez del Rio. Multi-tissue d2H analysis reveals altitudinal migration and tissue-specific discrimination patterns in Cinclodes. Ecosphere. 2015.
Rader, J. A., M. E. Dillon, R. T. Chesser, P. Sabat, and C. Martínez del Rio. Body size evolution in a continental adaptive radiation: South American ovenbirds of the genus Cinclodes. The Auk. 2015. https://doi.org/10.1642/AUK-14-49.1
Manuscripts in Progress
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. How Turkey vultures tune their airspeed to environmental and behavioral factors. Preprint: bioRxiv 2022.07.08.499337; https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.07.08.499337. In review at J. Experimental Biology.
Rader, J.A., A. Serrato-Capuchina, T. Anspach*, and D. R. Matute. The spread of Aedes albopictus in the islands of São Tomé and Príncipe. Preprint: bioRxiv 10.1101/2023.09.28.559833; https://biorxiv.org/cgi/content/short/2023.09.28.559833v1. In review at PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.
Rader, J. A., A. Ronn, E. Bradley, and T. L. Hedrick. Aerodynamic properties versus structural rigidity of bird wings, a tradeoff. J. Exp. Bio. In prep.
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. Turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) adjust flight speed to compensate for low density air. P. R. Soc. B. In prep.
Rader, J.A., P. Sabat, R. T. Chesser, S. D. Newsome and C. Martínez del Rio. Isotopic niches are not conservative. Evolutionary Ecology Research. In prep.
Published Abstracts
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. Aerodynamics predicts mechanical sensitivity and evolutionary rate in bird wings. SICB Annual Meeting 2022: Phoenix, AZ. Finalist for the Wainwright and Koehl Best Student Presentation Award.
Rader, J. A., L. D. Waldrop and T. L. Hedrick. Does load bearing constrain avian wing morphology? SICB Annual Meeting 2021: Remote Conference.
Rader, J. A., L. D. Waldrop and T. L. Hedrick. 2020. Modeling diversification and constraint in avian wing morphology. Part of symposium* “Melding Modeling and Morphology” at SICB Annual Meeting 2020: Austin, TX. * Organized Symposium
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. 2019. Aerodynamics, not load, predicts avian wing thickness. SICB Annual Meeting 2019: Tampa, FL.
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. 2018. 3D shape variation in bird wings: How useful are spread wing collections? SICB Annual Meeting 2018: San Francisco, CA.
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. 2017. Flight performance of vultures across an elevation gradient. SICB Annual Meeting 2017: New Orleans, LA.
Rader, J. A. and T. L. Hedrick. 2016. Behavioral compensation for decreased air density in turkey vultures. SICB Annual Meeting 2016: Portland, OR.
Rader, J. A., M.E. Dillon and C. Martínez del Rio. 2015. Isotopic niches are not conservative and confirm Brown's resource breadth hypothesis. SICB Annual Meeting 2015: Palm Beach, FL.
Rader, J. A., M. E. Dillon and C. Martínez del Rio. 2014. Delineating ecological niches and their evolution from stable isotopes and museum specimens. SICB Annual Meeting 2014: Austin, TX.
Rader, J. A., S. D. Newsome and C. Martínez del Rio. 2013. Phenotype-environment correlations in Cinclodes ovenbirds: Linking morphology to isotopic niche. SICB Annual Meeting 2013: San Francisco, CA.
Rader, J. A., S. D. Newsome and C. Martínez del Rio. 2012. Exploring phenotype-environment correlations in South American Cinclodes ovenbirds Part 1: Characterizing the isotopic niche. NAOC-V 2012: Vancouver, B.C.
Rader, J. A., S. D. Newsome and C. Martínez del Rio. 2012. Of Isotopes and Ovenbirds: Seeking phenotype-environment correlations in South American Cinclodes ovenbirds. SICB Annual Meeting 2012: Charleston, SC.
Rader, J. A. and B. Breithaupt. 2009. An evaluation of methods for estimating the body mass of large animals with reference to Apatosaurus excelsus. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology: Vol. 29, No. 3 suppl.
Rader, J. A. and B. Breithaupt. 2008. Mass Estimates for Apatosaurus excelsus: A comparison of modeling methods. Undergraduate Research Day 2008, University of Wyoming: Laramie, WY.
Other Interests
Other Interests
There's more to life...
Sculpting
A 1/20th scale model of the Jurassic age Ceratosaurus that I sculpted.
Painting
View of the Tetons across Jenny Lake. Oil on canvas.
The Datsun
...in all her glory.
In addition to my professional life, I have hobbies. Probably too many of them, if I'm honest. That said, my hobbies make me happy, so I'm not giving them up!
I enjoy a fair amount of time biking on the roads and trails of North Carolina, though I must confess... I miss the mountain bike trails in Wyoming! I especially love the challenge of a long, steep mountain road.
My trusty friend for many long, desolate miles of Wyoming road.
I mentioned earlier that I like to think of myself as being a creative person. I have been running a freelance sculpture business for a while. My goal is to use whatever scientific resources that I can find to reconstruct prehistoric animals with a reasonable amount of accuracy.
I also dabble in painting. I am an absolute rank-amateur, but what the hell, it's fun.
Finally, and when I'm not doing any of the above, you can probably find me turning a wrench on my old Datsun.