Dr. Robert Cieri

Biography

Robert Cieri is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at Yale University. He is an evolutionary biologist with broad interests in animal evolution, focusing on how physical world interactions constrain and guide the evolutionary processes. Prior to joining Yale in 2025, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the National Science Foundation (NSF), where he studied lung structure and airflow biomechanics in evolved diving marine mammals at the University of British Columbia under the mentorship of Robert Shadwick. His doctoral research investigated the evolution of unidirectional pulmonary airflow patterns in monitor lizards using open-source computational fluid dynamics simulations. Cieri utilized XROMM techniques to explore the evolution of the axial skeleton and aspiration breathing in tetrapods. During his postdoctoral work, he employed musculoskeletal models to examine the biomechanical scaling that drove locomotor innovations and adaptive evolution in Australian varanid lizards. He is currently working to connect marine mammal science with local Nations in British Columbia and is passionate about integrating teaching with research in organismal biology, demonstrating a proven track record in conducting high-quality research with undergraduates.

Research Interests