Thilina is an ornithologist and evolutionary biologist investigating the global diversity of modern birds. He earned his BSc in Zoology from the University of Peradeniya (Sri Lanka) and his PhD from the University of Kansas, where he was advised by Town Peterson. His dissertation explored the molecular phylogenetics and evolutionary history of weaverbirds (family Ploceidae), a diverse group of primarily Afrotropical passerines. Following his PhD, Thilina was a postdoctoral research associate at Princeton University in the lab of Cassie Stoddard, where he studied the evolution of avian eggshells in Paleognaths and other bird lineages. Thilina integrates molecular phylogenetics and genomics, museum-based natural history research, comparative phylogenetic methods, ecological niche modeling, and historical biogeography and dispersal ecology to uncover the macro- and microevolutionary processes shaping bird diversity.

Sumudu is an evolutionary biologist with interests in behavior, ecology, and dispersal dynamics, primarily in birds. More broadly, she is interested in understanding the evolutionary processes that shape Earth’s vast biodiversity. She received her PhD from the University of Kansas (supervised by Town Peterson), where she studied the evolutionary history of the avian family Corvidae, with a focus on molecular phylogenetics, biogeography, and niche evolution. After completing her PhD, Sumudu joined the Stoddard Lab at Princeton University initially as a senior technician and then a postdoc research associate, where she explored the role of sensory and behavioral ecology in the diversification of the family Cisticolidae and other bird groups, investigated the evolution of avian eggshells through museum-based studies, and carried out curatorial work, overseeing the Princeton bird collection of approximately 6,000 specimens. Her expertise spans genomics, phyloclimatic modeling, and behavioral research.