My ResearchMy research focuses on evolutionary patterns of behavior and endocrine systems when facing novel environmental stressors and the potential for these plastic traits to influence evolution, particularly with their ability to have transgenerational effects.
My primary project focuses on the evolution of the stress response system of reproductive females in populations with and without cannibalism and consequences of the resulting maternal hormonal condition on offspring. In populations with cannibalism, stickleback will eat eggs and fry (young fish) still in the nests of other stickleback and many aspects of behavior, especially courtship, have been altered due to the presence or absence of cannibalism. My hypothesis is that cannibalism intensity has had a similar influence on hormonal patterns of reproductive fish and this will significantly influence offspring phenotype. |
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Studies in the WildStudying wild stickleback is essential to interpret data gathered in the lab and to understand how natural experiences influence behavior, life history traits, hormone systems, and gene expression.
I have had the opportunity to be a member of and lead research groups in three geographic regions. During these trips, teams worked to document behavior, acquire hormone samples and collect specimens for life history study in lakes known to the lab for decades, as well as previously undocumented stickleback populations.
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