HEATHER E LIWANAG

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

BIOLOGY

SCIENCE BUILDING
ROOM 118

p - 516-877-4210

f - 516-877-4209

e - HLIWANAG@ADELPHI.EDU

w - http://www.heatherml.com

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Diplomas/Degrees

PhD, University of California, Santa Cruz (2008)
BS, University of California, San Diego (2001)

Recent Courses

Biological Concepts And Methods I I (lab)
Honors Colloquium
Mammalian Physiology
Principles Of Regulatory Physiology
Principles Of Regulatory Physiology Lab

Research Interests

I am interested in the physiological adaptations of animals to their environment, and the evolutionary processes involved in those adaptations. To understand how animals function in their environment, I examine their physiology in a comparative framework. Much of my research has focused on thermoregulation - the regulation of body temperature - in both endotherms and ectotherms.

Refereed Articles

Liwanag, H.E.M., Berta, A., Costa, D.P., Budge, S., and Williams, T.M. (2012), Morphological and thermal properties of mammalian insulation: The evolutionary transition to blubber in pinnipeds. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 107, 774-787.

Liwanag, H.E.M., Berta, A., Costa, D.P., Abney, M., and Williams, T.M. (2012), Morphological and thermal properties of mammalian insulation: The evolution of fur for aquatic living. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 106, 926-939.

Davis Rabosky, A.R., Corl, A., Liwanag, H.E.M., Surget-Groba, Y., and Sinervo, B. (2012), Direct fitness correlates and thermal consequences of facultative aggregation in a desert lizard. PLoS ONE, 7, e40866.

Liwanag, H.E.M. (2010), Energetic costs and thermoregulation in northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus) pups: The importance of behavioral strategies for thermal balance in furred marine mammals. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology, 83, 898–910.

Liwanag, H.E.M., Williams, T.M., Costa, D.P., Kanatous, S.B., Davis, R.W., and Boyd, I.L. (2009), The effects of water temperature on the energetic costs of juvenile and adult California sea lions (Zalophus californianus): The importance of skeletal muscle thermogenesis for thermal balance. The Journal of Experimental Biology, 212, 3977-3984.

Williams, T.M., Rutishauser, M., Long, B., Fink, T., Gafney, J., Mostman-Liwanag, H., and Casper, D. (2007), easonal variability in otariid energetics: Implications for the effects of predators on localized prey resources. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology, 80, 433-443.

Invited Presentation/Lecture

(2012, May). The fast and the furriest: Keeping warm in cold water. Institute for Conservation Research, San Diego Zoological Society, San Diego, CA.

(2011, November). Fur vs. Blubber: A comparative look at marine mammal insulation and its metabolic and behavioral consequences. Department of Biology, California State University, Northridge.

(2011, April). Is fur still in fashion? What to wear in a watery world. Institute for Conservation Research, San Diego Zoological Society, San Diego, CA.

(2010, April). Fur vs. Blubber: A comparative look at marine mammal insulation and its metabolic and behavioral consequences. Department of Biology, San Diego State University.

(2009, March). Pinnipeds (seals, sea lions, walrus): Field identification and thermoregulation. Save Our Shores, Santa Cruz, CA.

Conference Presentations/Papers

Dickson, M.M., Zimmermann, S.A., Liwanag, H.E.M., and Espinoza, R.E. (2013). Evolution on your porch: Physiological adaptation by Mediterranean House Geckos to their introduced niches. In Annual Meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. San Francisco, CA.

Zimmermann, S.A., Dickson, M.M., Liwanag, H.E.M., and Espinoza, R.E. (2012). Comparative physiology of an invasive reptile: Have Mediterranean House Geckos adapted to their local niches? In Annual Meeting of the World Congress of Herpteology. Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Liwanag, H.E.M., Berta, A., Costa, D.P., Abney, M., and Williams, T.M. (2011). Morphological and thermal properties of mammalian insulation: the evolution of fur for aquatic living. In Sixth Triennial Conference on Secondary Adaptation of Tetrapods to Life in Water. San Diego, CA.

Davis, A.R., Corl, A., Surget-Groba, Y., Liwanag, H.E.M., and Sinervo, B. (2010). Group dynamics and direct fitness benefits of kin sociality in an aggregating lizard. In Evolution. Portland, OR.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E., Berta, A., Costa, D.P., Budge, S., Abney, M., Arnould, J.P.Y., and Williams, T.M. (2009). Morphological and thermal properties of mammalian insulation: implications for the evolutionary transition to an aquatic lifestyle. In 18th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals. Quebec City, QC, Canada.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E., Berta, A., Costa, D.P., Budge, S., Abney, M., Arnould, J.P.Y., and Williams, T.M. (2009). Morphological and thermal properties of mammalian insulation: implications for the evolutionary transition to an aquatic lifestyle. In Annual Meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. Boston, MA.

Davis, A.R. and Mostman-Liwanag, H.E. (2008). Thermal effects of winter aggregation in the desert night lizard (Xantusia vigilis). In Physiological Ecology Meeting. Bishop, CA.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E. and Davis, A.R. (2008). Heat flux in desert night lizards (Xantusia vigilis): the effects of temperature, season, and aggregation on thermal stability. In Physiological Ecology Meeting. Bishop, CA.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E. and Berta, A. (2008). Morphological and thermal properties of mammalian insulation: implications for the evolutionary transition to an aquatic lifestyle. In 2nd Annual Western Evolutionary Biology Meeting. Irvine, CA.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E., Williams, T.M., and Costa, D.P. (2008). Thermal benefits of huddling behavior in California sea lions on San Nicolas Island. In Seventh California Islands Symposium. Oxnard, CA.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E., Williams, T.M., Gulland, F., Rowles, T., and Costa, D.P. (2008). Energetic costs of a unique thermoregulatory behavior: Jughandling in northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus) pups resting at sea. In Annual Meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. San Antonio, TX.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E., Williams, T.M., Gulland, F., Rowles, T., and Costa, D.P. (2007). Jughandling behavior in northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus) pups: Energetic costs without thermal consequences? In Physiological Ecology Meeting. Bishop, CA.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E., Williams, T.M., and Costa, D.P. (2007). Share the warmth: Thermal benefits of huddling behavior in California sea lions (Zalophus californianus). In 3rd Annual Graduate Research Symposium. University of California, Santa Cruz, CA.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E., Williams, T.M., and Costa, D.P. (2007). Share the warmth: Thermal benefits of huddling behavior in California sea lions (Zalophus californianus). In Annual Meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. Phoenix, AZ.

Mostman-Liwanag, H.E. and Williams, T.M. (2006). The effects of water temperature on energetic costs of juvenile and adult California sea lions. In 2nd Annual Graduate Research Symposium. University of California, Santa Cruz, CA.

Mostman, H.E., and Williams, T.M. (2005). The effects of water temperature on energetic costs of juvenile and adult California sea lions (Zalophus californianus). In 16th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals. San Diego, CA.

Mostman, H.E. and Williams, T.M. (2005). Is life better with blubber? Lower critical temperature of the California sea lion. In Physiological Ecology Meeting. Bishop, CA.

Mostman, H.E. and Williams, T.M. (2004). Lower critical temperature of the California sea lion. In Kenneth S. Norris Marine Mammal Research Symposium. Santa Cruz, CA.