Sally Leys

Sally Leys (Sally Penelope Leys) is a Canadian spongiologist. She is a professor of biology at the University of Alberta^[1] where she and her colleagues study sponges in all their aspects^[2] including ecology,^[3] physiology,^[4][5][6] their adaptations to a fluid environment^[2] and the evolution of sensory systems using sponges as their model organism.^[1] A current project is Evaluating ecosystem function, vulnerability, resilience, and ability to recover from multiple stressors.^[7]

She earned a B.Sc. in 1990 from the University of British Columbia and a Ph.D from University of Victoria in 1996, entitled Cytoskeletal architecture, organelle transport, and impulse conduction in hexactinellid sponge syncytia,^[8] followed by post-doctoral work in Barbados, in Marseille, and at the University of Queensland.^[1]