Amber Wright

Amber Wright is a Professor in the School of Life Sciences at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Her research focuses on population, community, and behavioral ecology of reptiles, amphibians, and mammals, particularly studying species interactions and disease ecology in invasive and introduced species. Her work examines how animals respond to resource variability through field experiments and modeling.

Key research projects include studying lizard clinging mechanisms (Anolis and Phelsuma in Hawaii), disease ecology of leptospirosis in small mammals, and resource pulse dynamics in island ecosystems. Collaborators include Prof. Tim Higham and Dr. Matthew Medeiros.

Her team’s 2021 study on lizard habitat use demonstrated ecological partitioning via clinging ability, published in Functional Ecology. Advises PhD student Robyn Screen and former master’s student Stevie Kennedy-Gold.