Mehmet Kürşat Şahin PhD

My research lies at the intersection of evolutionary biology, functional ecology, and herpetology. I am broadly interested in how animal morphology, physiology, and life-history traits adapt to their environments, and how these phenotypes are shaped by complex biotic and abiotic interaction dynamics across varying spatio-temporal scales.

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Amphibians and reptiles serve as my primary model systems to investigate how ectotherms respond to environmental shifts, with a specific focus on thermal biology and climatic adaptation. By monitoring physiological tolerance limits (such as CTmax and CTmin) and locomotor performance, my work links physiological constraints to macroecological patterns.

 

Furthermore, a core drive of my fieldwork is discovering and documenting cryptic or previously unknown herptile populations in the highly diverse Anatolia-Caucasus regions before they face local extinction.

Understanding these multifaceted ecological and evolutionary phenomena requires an integrative, multi-locus approach.

 

Our lab and collaborative networks utilize a diverse methodology:

• Genomics & Systematics: Integrating high-density RAD sequencing and individual-level whole-genome re-sequencing to investigate population genomics, selection signatures, phylogenomics, and gene flow dynamics.

• Spatial Ecology & Conservation: Utilizing high-tech GPS telemetry, PIT-tagging, and multi-temporal Ecological Niche Modeling (ENM) to evaluate home range dynamics from the Last Glacial Maximum to future climate scenarios.

• Organismal Biology & Sympatry: Examining multidimensional adaptation through morphometrics, diet analysis, and gut/fecal microbiome composition via DNA metabarcoding to understand how niche differentiation maintains species co-habitation.

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Given the comprehensive scope of these questions, each study is carried out in close synergy with an international network of specialized colleagues, bridging the gap between field herpetology and modern lab infrastructure.