Meet the Team

  • Cynthia F. Moss, Ph.D. Principal Investigator

    "My journey into sensory-guided behavior began with studies on diverse sensory systems in animals, from gustatory responses in blowflies to echolocation in bats. Today, my lab explores how sensory processing, memory, and navigation shape behavior, fueled by a collaborative team of curious researchers."

  • Susanne J. Sterbing, Ph.D. Assistant Research Professor

    "Echolocating bats masterfully navigate complex environments, from dodging obstacles to catching prey and landing in tight spaces. Their flight control relies on multisensory inputs—auditory, tactile, and proprioceptive—that guide adaptive motor behaviors. I study these sensory components to understand how bats achieve such remarkable agility and precision in flight."

  • Kirsten (Kisi) Bohn, Ph.D. Lecturer Assistant Research Professor

    "I'm fascinated by the evolution of vocal and social complexity. While human vocal abilities are unparalleled, studying their origins is challenging. By adding bats—with their rich vocal diversity and social behaviors—as a model alongside birds, we aim to uncover new insights into the evolution of complex vocalizations and social cooperation, including human speech."

Postdoctoral Fellows

  • Jennifer Lawlor, Ph.D.

    My work focuses on processing and extraction of relevant information of auditory scenes for goal-directed behavior. I use a combination of behavioral models (humans, bats, mice...) to study how state-dependent changes and context can influence perception first, leading to optimization of decision-making and ultimately output behavior.

  • Davi Drieskens, Ph.D.

    I'm passionate about studying the mechanisms of the brain and body during natural behavior. I'm interested in systems neuroscience, behavioral physiology, and neuroethology. Here in the Batlab, I'll study the midbrain neural mechanisms that transform visual and auditory sensory information into motor commands guiding natural behaviors.

  • Nikita Finger, Ph.D.

    I'm fascinated by how animals perceive their world through different senses. In the JHU Batlab, I study how bats gather environmental information and form spatial maps using various sensory modalities like echolocation and vision, making them an ideal model for multisensory integration. My work also examines how bats adjust their call parameters—intensity, frequency, and sonar beam—when navigating diverse environments and tasks, such as foraging

  • Grace Capshaw

    "I earned my PhD at the University of Maryland, College Park, where I studied bone conduction, vibration sensing, and the evolution of sound detection in tetrapods with Dr. Catherine Carr. Now, I’m working on projects that bridge the Moss lab and Dr. Amanda Lauer’s lab, exploring auditory specializations in bats, including resistance to noise and age-related hearing loss."

  • Aditya Krishna

    PhD Student

    I grew up in Kerala, India, and graduated with a BS-MS in Biology from the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Mohali. Before joining the lab, I worked with Dr. Holger Goerlitz at the Max Planck Institute of Ornithology, studying how echolocating bats navigate in groups. Now, I focus on hippocampal circuits involved in representing external objects. Outside the lab, I enjoy lifting weights and riding my motorcycle.

  • Michael Wilkinson

    PhD Student

    I’m fascinated by how animals adapt to dynamic and cluttered environments, particularly through active sensing strategies like echolocation. My journey began with a foundation in engineering, leading to a focus on the adaptive behaviors of big brown bats as they track moving targets in complex settings. By studying how bats adjust their sonar calls and head movements in response to clutter and oscillating targets, I aim to uncover the principles behind their expert navigation. Using tools like high-speed infrared tracking and control theory, my research bridges engineering and biology to model the intricate relationship between target motion and sonar modulation.

  • Keegan Eveland

    Graduate Student

    I'm driven by a fascination with how animals adapt to complex acoustic environments, especially bats, whose sensory abilities allow them to thrive where others struggle. My journey into behavioral biology began with studying how memory aids navigation in Egyptian fruit bats and how Brazilian free-tailed bats avoid collisions in crowded swarms. Now, I focus on uncovering the physiological and neural mechanisms that enable bats to maintain sensitive hearing amid constant sonar noise, using advanced techniques in auditory tracking, neural modulation, and physiological analysis.

  • Jared Magdiel Jaroszewski

    Graduate Student

    I'm from San Antonio, Texas, and completed my B.S. in Biology at St. Mary’s University. After a post-baccalaureate internship at Johns Hopkins studying spatial attention in bats, I joined the Batlab as a graduate student. My research focuses on how bats use sonar to navigate familiar environments, tracking their echolocation to study spatial attention and memory. As a Vivien Thomas Scholar, I’m also dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusivity in academia.

  • Leslie Bucio

    Honors

  • John Michael Cole

    Honors

  • Maxwell Rho

    Undergraduate

  • Rachel Timothy

    Undergraduate

  • Alexander Zambrano Tapia

    Description goes here

  • Yiwen (Eva) Liu

    Description goes here

  • Irene Park

    Description goes here

  • Wei Xian

    Lab Manager

  • Jake Sayles

    Research Specialist

Collaborators

  • Kishore Kuchibhotla

    Assistant Professor

    Johns Hopkins University


  • Timothy Horiuchi

    Computational Sensorimotor Systems Laboratory

    Silicon Neuroethology

  • P.S. Krishnaprasad

    Institute for Systems Research and Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

    University of Maryland

  • Rachel Page

    Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

    SMITHSONIAN BAT LAB

  • Shihab Shamma

    Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering


    The Institute for Systems Research
    Brain and Behavior Institute

  • Jonathan Simon

    Computational Sensorimotor Systems Laboratory

    The Simon Group

  • Nachum Ulanovsky

    Professor Department of Brain Sciences

    Weismann Institute of Science

  • Yossi Yovel

    Professor Sagol School of Neuroscience

    Tel Aviv University

Alumni and Past Members

Postdocs

  • Kate Allen, Postdoctoral Fellow.

  • Angeles (Angie) Salles, Postdoctoral Fellow. Google Scholar

  • Jinhong Luo, Postdoctoral Fellow. Google Scholar

  • Silvio Macias, Postdoctoral Fellow, Google Scholar

  • Benjamin Falk, Postdoctoral Fellow, Research | Google Scholar

  • Anand Krishnan, Postdoctoral Fellow
    Chen Chiu, Postdoctoral Fellow

  • Wu-JUNG Lee, Postdoctoral Fellow

  • Gordon Gifford, Postdoctoral Fellow

  • Nachum Ulanovsky, Postdoctoral Fellow,

    Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science

  • Marianne Jensen

  • Elena Grassi

  • Janette Boughman, Department of Zoology, Michigan State University

  • Willard Wilson, NIH Scientific Review Officer

  • Mark Zagaeski

  • Dimitri Skandalis, Postdoctoral Fellow

Graduate Students

  • Brittney Boublil (Ph.D., 2021)

  • Iven Yu (Ph.D., 2021)
    Te Jones (Ph.D., 2020)

  • Michaela Warnecke, (Ph.D., 2018), Research | Google Scholar

  • Ninad Kothari (Ph.D., 2017)

  • Bea Mao (Ph.D., 2017)

  • Ben Falk (Ph.D., 2015)

  • Mohit Chadha (Ph.D., 2013)

  • Genevieve Spanjer Wright (Ph.D., 2012)

  • Chen Chiu (Ph.D., 2008)

  • Murat Aytekin (Ph.D., 2007)

  • Kaushik Ghose (Ph.D., 2006)

  • Kisi Bohn (Ph.D., 2005)

  • Shiva Sinha (Ph.D., 2004)

  • Doreen Valentine (Ph.D., 1995)

  • Itiel Dror (Ph.D., 1994), University College London

  • Lakshmi Krishnan

  • Harry Erwin

  • Clarice Diebold (Ph.D., 2024)

Research Assistants

  • Jen Cossentino

  • Sarah Dallas DeFord

  • Janna Barcelo

  • Amaya Perez

  • Rose Young

  • Amy Kryjak

  • Kari Bohn

  • Aaron Schurger

  • Hannah Gilkenson

Undergraduate Students

  • Myles Gosha, REU student

  • Laura Panlilio, REU student

  • Emely Loscalzo

  • Shirley Marino Lee

  • York Wang

  • Isabella Diaz

  • Luzhou Zhang

  • Samer Aslan

  • Scott Livingston, Undergraduate REU Student

  • Grant Shewmaker

  • Grace Lee

  • Dan Ju

  • Leslie Bucio

  • Ruya Ozveren

  • Sadie Friesen

  • James Pruitt, REU student

  • Jenny Lau, REU student

  • Jaden Jones, REU student

  • Keegan E Eveland, REU student

  • Ruya Ozveren

  • Mariana Meade

  • Deshaun Mosley

  • Michael Ojo

  • Pranav Reddy

  • Kaylee Fu

  • Natasha Hughes

  • Chris Farid

  • Lillian Lowenthal

  • Marcus Milani

  • Kayla Burch-Strong

  • Paige Upright

  • Jessica Montoya

  • Monica Daubon

  • Janothan Lee

  • Chris Seo

  • Jenny Finder

  • Manjit Sahota

  • Sejal Mistry

  • Helen Xin

  • Tameeka Williams

  • Efrat Benn

  • Maryellen Morris

  • Rocco Lannucci

  • Christine Uy

  • Colin Gounden

  • Julia Booms

  • Maureen Loman

  • Nate Destler

  • Salam Beah

  • Kevin Isgrig

  • Emily Ludwig

  • Tanvi Thakkar

  • Delphia Vara

  • Olivia Cox

  • Lindsay Gil

  • Sreya Sinha

  • Kelsey Block

  • Jean Hogan

  • Laura Freyman

  • Raymond Yu

  • Dominic Luciano

  • KiVette Blacknall

  • Amanda Hare

  • Sarah McCormick

  • Ryan Behles

  • Esteban Carrizosa

  • Alison Krupin

  • Natalia Medeiros

  • Alycia Skarzinski

  • Nina Yanagisawa

  • Lena Bless