Flowering phenology and its influence on population dynamics. For my postdoctoral work, I'm working with Jennifer Williams to incorporate flowering phenology into integral projection models of the perennial forb Lomatium utriculatum in Garry oak savannas in British Columbia.
Variation in light environment and timing of flowering. Beginning in summer of 2020, I began monitoring individual plants of two species across a light gradient, recording timing of and investment in flowering. Future plans for this project include measuring environmental variables (e.g., soil moisture) and plant traits as well as some genomic work. I am doing this work at CU's Mountain Research Station with help from several CU EBIO faculty.
Remote sensing and fine-scale environmental variation. Together with fellow students Anna Spiers and Matt Bitters, I am helping to use remote sensing techniques to build fine-scale microclimate models at CU's Mountain Research Station. These include models of solar radiation, soil moisture, and soil temperature, and include data collected using an EnviroDIY Arduino-based sensor network.
Demography in fragmented tallgrass prairie. Together with a series of wonderful friends and collaborators at the Echinacea Project, I am involved in a series of projects looking at demographic processes in fragmented pouplations of Echinacea angustifolia in western Minnesota. Read more about one of these projects below in Prior projects.
Population dynamics and rapid adaptation. I have been collaborating with Brett Melbourne at CU Boulder and Ruth Hufbauer at Colorado State University, among others, to study the ecology and evolution of populations experiencing rapid phenotypic change. Currently, I am incorporating the effects of longevity, overlapping generations, and age structure into models of phenotypic change. Prior work includes studying the joint effects of negative density dependence and genetic erosion on evolutionary rescue and
Effects of fire on population growth rates in a Echinacea angustifolia. I am constructing a matrix projection models for several populations of the narrow-leaved purple coneflower in Minnesota. In particular, I am quantifying the contributions of individual demographic rates (e.g., increased flowering, increased survival) to population-level responses to fire. I am doing this work with Stuart Wagenius (the Echinacea Project) and Amy Dykstra at Bethel University. This work was published in 2021 at Oecologia.
For my senior thesis at the College of William and Mary, I modeled a selection-migration balance in populations of birds in mercury-contaminated habitat. I then implemented this model, using simulations to determine which demographic and spatial processes were most influential in the fixation of a tolerance allele or migration load occurring in contaminated and uncontaminated populations. I worked on this project with M. Drew Lamar. Read more about this project here.
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(2023 - ) | Postdoctoral researcher, Geography Department and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia. Advised by Jennifer Williams. |
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(2017 - 2023) | PhD student, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and IQ Biology Certificate Program, University of Colorado, Boulder. Advised by Brett Melbourne. |
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(2016 - 2017) | Research Intern, Echinacea Project at the Chicago Botanic Garden, advised by Stuart Wagenius. |
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(2015 - 2016) | Masters Student and Teaching Assistant, Department of Mathematics, College of William and Mary. M.S. awarded in Computer Science (specialization in Computational Operations Research). |
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(2011 - 2015) | Undergraduate Student, College of William and Mary. B.S. awarded in Biology (with Honors) and Applied Mathematics. Advised by M. Drew Lamar and Sarah Day. |
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Fall 2022 | EBIO 4410/5410: Biological Statistics (Lab) |
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Spring 2022 | EBIO 1240: General Biology (Lab) |
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Spring 2021 | EBIO 2040: Principles of Ecology (Lab) |
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Fall 2019 | EBIO 2040: Principles of Ecology (Lab) |
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Spring 2016 | MATH 112: Calculus II (Lab) |
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Fall 2015 | MATH 111: Calculus I (Lab) |
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Summer 2023 | ORISE Postdoctoral Fellow, U.S. Forest Service |
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Spring 2023 | Interdisciplinary data consultant, Center for Data and Digital Research |
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Spring 2022 | Consultant, EBIO 3980: Surviving the EBIO Honors Thesis |
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Spring 2022 | Grading assistant, MATH 2130: Linear Algebra for Non-Math Majors |
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Spring 2021 | Statistical consultant, EBIO 3980: Surviving the EBIO Honors Thesis |
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Fall 2020 | Rangeland vegetation monitoring volunteer, Boulder County Open Space |
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Fall 2018 - Spring 2020 | Statistical collaborator, Laboratory for Interdisciplinary Statistal Analysis (LISA) |
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Spring 2016 | Grading assistant, MATH 213: Multivariable Calculus for Scientists and Engineers |
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Fall 2015 | Grading assistant, MATH 441/551: Ordinary Differential Equations II |
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Summer 2015 | Field technician at University of Idaho |
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Summer 2014 | Field technician, with Harmony Dalgleish. |
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Spring 2014 | Grading assistant, MATH 351: Applied Statistics |
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Fall 2013 - Spring 2015 | Dean of Students Office Tutor in Math, Biology, and Computer Science (2014 - 2015: Dean of Students Tutoring Award Winner) |
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Summer 2013 | Summer REU at Oregon State University, Eco-Informatics Summer Institute |
Last updated April 2024.