FY24-ImpactReport-Digital - Flipbook - Page 14
Ronald S. Tykoski, Ph.D.
Vice President of Science and
Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology
D
r. Ron oversees all scienti昀椀c research and collections activities
for the Perot Museum. His research focuses primarily on the
anatomy and evolutionary relationships of various reptile
groups, ranging from dinosaurs (including birds) to crocodilians and
beyond. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin and
has spent years making discoveries and investigating paleontological
questions throughout the Southwest, Alaska, and Texas.
FUN FACTS ABOUT DR. RON
Dr. Ron met his wife of almost 30 years while they
both worked as undergraduate docents at the
University of Michigan Museum of Natural History.
When he’s not looking for fossils, Dr. Ron enjoys
admiring classic cars — with a special fondness for
old Corvettes — and studying military history.
STAFF
SPOTLIGHT
Dori Contreras, Ph.D.
Director of Paleontology and Curator of Paleobotany
D
r. Dori combined her love of ecology and paleontology, earning a Ph.D.
at the University of California, Berkeley, while studying ancient plant
communities. Her research, spanning sites across Texas and the Southwest,
focuses on the evolutionary history of plants, particularly during the Cretaceous
Period when modern forests and 昀氀owering plants emerged. At the Museum,
she reconstructs these ancient 昀氀oras, connecting plants with their dinosaur
inhabitants to understand ecosystem variation across environments.
FUN FACTS ABOUT DR. DORI
At home, Dr. Dori channels her passion for botany
into gardening with native and edible plants, making
homemade jams, jellies, and fruit wines.
Dr. Dori’s love for plants and trees began in her childhood
while exploring the forests of Central and East Texas.
14 | Perot Museum of Nature and Science
