I work as a collection manager of the molecular and ARISE collections, a project in which Naturalis collaborates with the Westerdijk Institute and the universities of Amsterdam and Twente to develop an infrastructure that can identify and map all (multicellular) Dutch species. In this role, I manage DNA extracts, tissue samples, and ecological collections from the National Collection and the ARISE collection. In addition to this position, I also work as a PhD candidate at Utrecht University, focusing on my own research into bat evolution. I am particularly interested in the evolution of bat hind limbs.
Keywords
Palaeontology , Evolutionary Biology, Bats, Fossils, Mammals, CT-scanning, ARISE, Biodiversity, Collection
ResearchInterest
I hold a Bachelor's degree in Biology and a Master's degree in Evolutionary Biology from Leiden University. I completed a Minor in Biodiversity and Natural Environment in Leiden and a summer course in Physical Anthropology at the University of Amsterdam. As a member of the Bat Phenotypes and Evolution Network (BPEN), part of the Global Union of Bat Diversity Networks (GBatNet), I collaborate with researchers worldwide on describing bat phenotypes (both living and extinct).
The oldest fossil skeletons of bats come from the Green River Formation in Wyoming (USA) and are about 53 million years old. These fossil bats closely resemble the bats that are still flying around today. However, there are sometimes subtle differences that can provide information about the lives of these extinct bats and possibly bring us closer to discovering a potential ancestor.
