Michael Landis

Michael Landis is Assistant Professor of Biology at Washington University in St. Louis, developing statistical models and computational tools to reconstruct evolutionary patterns. Research integrates phylogenetics, biogeography, and trait evolution to study historical biodiversity dynamics across deep timescales.

Key research areas:

• Developing Bayesian methods for phylogenetic biogeography
• Modeling biome shifts and diversification patterns
• Creating open-source software for evolutionary analysis (RevBayes, phyddle)
• Reconstructing ancestral networks for pierid butterflies

Recent work includes novel approaches for state-dependent diversification modeling, deep learning applications in phylogenetics, and global-scale analyses of butterfly evolution. The lab emphasizes collaborative software development and evolutionary hypothesis testing.