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Emily K. Longman, Ph.D.

Research

I am an evolutionary ecologists who seeks to advance our understanding of the mechanisms and consequences of adaptive variation in natural ecosystems. Most of my research has focused on coastal marine systems and has combined field and laboratory experiments, genomics, and historical observations.

Adaptive Differentiation

Many species have large geographic ranges that span spatial gradients of environmental forces and biotic factors. If these variables are consistent over time, organisms can adapt to these selection landscapes. To study spatial patterns of adaptive differentiation (i.e., local adaptation), I use a combination of field observations, laboratory experiments and genomics.

Publications

Longman, E.K., Nunez, J.C.B., Sanford, E. & Pespeni, M. (2025). Geographic divergence in population genomics and shell morphology reveal history of
glacial refugia in a coastal dogwhelk. bioRxiv, 2025-07.

Price, D.,K., West, K., Cevallos-Zea, M., Helms Cahan, S., Longman, E.K., Nunez, J.C.B., Yew, J., & Mederios, M.J. (2025). Microbiome composition shapes
temperature tolerance in a Hawaiian picture-winged Drosophila. Journal of Experimental Biology, jeb-250973.

Longman, E.K., & Sanford, E. (2025). Biogeographic variation in mussel shell thickness and drilling predation on rocky shores. Oecologia, 207 (8), 126.

Neylan, I., Longman, E.K., Sanford, E., Stachowicz, J.J. & Sih, A. (2024). Long-term anti-predator learning and memory differ across populations and
sexes in an intertidal snail. Proceedings B, 291(2032), 20240944.

Eco-evolutionary Dynamics

Recent advances have shown that evolution can proceed rapidly and that contemporary evolutionary processes can impact ecological dynamics. However, few studies have tested whether eco-evolutionary feedbacks occur in natural communities. Using a marine invertebrate system, I performed a suite of experiments to test whether selection on a population of drilling snails can drive eco-evolutionary dynamics in a rocky shore community.

Publication

Longman, E.K., & Sanford, E. (2025). An experimental test of eco-evolutionary dynamics on rocky shores. Ecology, 106(1), e4505.

Ecological Change over Time

Global biodiversity and natural ecosystems are threatened by a multitude of anthropogenic forces, including introduced species and climate change. My research incorporates non-traditional sources of data including historical observations and population genomics to evaluate how communities have changed over time.

Publications

Longman, E.K., Nunez, J.C.B., Sanford, E. & Pespeni, M. (2025). Geographic divergence in population genomics and shell morphology reveal history of
glacial refugia in a coastal dogwhelk. bioRxiv, 2025-07.

Longman, E.K., Merolla, S., Talke, S.A., Trautman, N., Largier, J.L., Harris, L., & Sanford, E. (2025). Evaluating historical changes in a mussel bed
community in northern California. Scientific Reports, 15(1), 1930.

Longman, E.K., Rosenblad, K. & Sax D.F. (2018). Extreme homogenization: the past, present and future of mammal assemblages on islands. Global
Ecology and Biogeography, 27(1), 77-95.

Follow progress of current research on GitHub.