Stephanie Loria

Stephanie Loria is an Assistant Professor in the Biology Department at the University of Central Oklahoma, where she joined in spring 2025. Her research focuses on the biogeography and systematics of poorly studied arthropod groups, particularly scorpions, spiders and their relatives.

Dr. Loria completed her Ph.D. in Comparative Biology at the Richard Gilder Graduate School of the American Museum of Natural History in New York (2016) and earned her B.S. in Environmental Studies: Ecology and Biodiversity from Sewanee: The University of the South (2011). She has held postdoctoral positions at the Museum of Nature Hamburg (2021-24), the American Museum of Natural History (2018-20), and the California Academy of Sciences (2017).

Her research interests include biogeography, systematics, taxonomy, arachnology, myriapodology, and paleontology. She employs a multidisciplinary approach combining DNA data, GIS mapping, R-based analyses, and advanced imaging techniques to study taxon origins, diversification patterns, morphological innovation, and evolution in arthropods.

Dr. Loria's recent publications (2020-2025) reveal a strong focus on arachnid evolution, particularly pseudoscorpions and scorpions. Her work spans paleontological studies of fossil arthropods in amber, biogeographical analyses of contemporary distributions, and systematic revisions of poorly studied taxa. Her research demonstrates expertise in evolutionary biology, biogeography, and systematic methods.

Dr. Loria is also committed to scientific outreach and education. Since 2011, she has served as co-founder and president of The Metropolitan Society of Natural Historians, a 501(c) nonprofit organization based in New York City dedicated to science education for the general public. She has organized over 100 events serving approximately 2000 people. Her teaching experience includes courses in Invertebrate Zoology, Diversity, and Parasitology at UCO, as well as previous adjunct instruction at SUNY College at Old Westbury and educational programs at the American Museum of Natural History.