Losos is the inaugural holder of the William H. Danforth Distinguished University Professorship, established in 2016 by the university in honor of Danforth, the former chancellor, on the occasion of his 90th birthday.
An internationally renowned scholar in the field of evolutionary biology, Losos has deep roots and a long history at Washington University, including as a member of the faculty from 1992-2006.
He previously served as the Lehner Professor for the Study of Latin America, professor of organismic and evolutionary biology, and curator in herpetology at the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University.
Losos’ study of the behavioral and evolutionary ecology of lizards has taken him around the globe and firmly established his position as a leading international expert on the biodiversity of species.
The Living Earth Collaborative is a joint effort among the university and two of the nation’s leading institutions in the study and preservation of plants and animals: the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Saint Louis Zoo. Together, they are creating a new academic center dedicated to advancing the study of biodiversity to help ensure the future of Earth’s species in their many forms.
Losos earned a bachelor’s degree in biology at Harvard University in 1984 and a doctorate in zoology at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1989.
Domestic cats make different sounds than their wild ancestors, suggesting that they have evolved to get our attention, writes Jonathan Losos, the William H. Danforth Distinguished University Professor.
Pioneering research at Washington University helped people understand the fundamental role of gut microbes in human health and disease. Now a community of local scientists is learning more about the diverse microbial systems that support animals, plants and ecosystems.
Islands are hot spots of evolutionary adaptation that can also advantage species returning to the mainland, according to a study led by biologist Jonathan Losos in Arts & Sciences, published the week of Oct. 11 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
New research from the laboratory of Jonathan Losos begins to unravel one of the major mysteries of invasion biology: why animals that tend not to hybridize in their native range abandon their inhibitions when they spread into a new land. The study is published the week of Oct. 11 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Biologists at Washington University in St. Louis examined data from 2,600 lizard species worldwide and discovered that while hundreds of different types of lizards have independently evolved arboreal lifestyles, species that possessed sticky toepads prevailed.
To figure out how to best support two endangered species — black-and-white ruffed lemurs and diademed sifakas — scientists at Washington University in St. Louis are joining up with researchers at the Saint Louis Zoo, Missouri Botanical Garden and Madagascar-based collaborators for an innovative research effort under the Living Earth Collaborative.
“This new study shows that the extinction crisis is even worse than realized,” said Jonathan Losos, the William H. Danforth Distinguished University Professor and professor of biology in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis and director of the Living Earth Collaborative.
The Trump Administration’s proposed overhaul of the landmark Endangered Species Act will “hasten the extinction of countless species,” says Jonathan Losos, director of the Living Earth Collaborative at Washington University in St. Louis and an international biodiversity expert.
A review published in the Nov. 9 issue of Science explores the complexity of evolution’s predictability in extraordinary detail. Jonathan Losos of Arts & Sciences takes on a classic question posed by Stephen Jay Gould in an effort to fully interrogate ideas about contingency’s role in evolution.
Biologists at Washington University in St. Louis have published a first-of-its-kind look at the physical characteristics of lizards that seem to make the difference between life and death in a hurricane, as reported July 25 in the journal Nature.
Natural selection acts on behavioral traits, says evolutionary biologist Jonathan Losos, who helped lead a replicated field experiment with anole lizards on eight small islands in the Caribbean, as reported in the June 1 issue of Science
Three scientists at Washington University in St. Louis were elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS): Sarah C.R. Elgin, Jonathan B. Losos and Richard D. Vierstra, all members of the Department of Biology in Arts & Sciences. Election to the academy is considered one of the highest honors accorded a U.S. scientist or engineer.
In the midst of what scientists consider to be a sixth mass extinction event, Washington University is joining forces with the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Saint Louis Zoo to collaborate on life-saving research and conservation efforts.
Washington University is joining forces with the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Saint Louis Zoo to create the Living Earth Collaborative, a new academic center dedicated to advancing the study of biodiversity to help ensure the future of Earth’s species in their many forms.
The past, present and future of the world’s most popular and beloved pet, from a leading evolutionary biologist and great cat lover, Jonathan Losos in Arts & Sciences.
Improbable Destinies will change the way we think and talk about evolution. Losos’s insights into natural selection and evolutionary change have far-reaching applications for protecting ecosystems, securing our food supply, and fighting off harmful viruses and bacteria. This compelling narrative offers a new understanding of ourselves and our role in the natural world and the cosmos.
