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Jessie Ogden
Jessie is a Masters student with Dr. Colin Garroway and Dr. Margaret Docker. She is currently studying population genetics of invasive species and in her spare time, she enjoys knitting and crafting!
Take a look at her exciting project below!
Sea lamprey are an invasive species in the Great Lakes that predate and kill native economically and environmentally important fish like trout, salmon, and sturgeon. Lamprey invaded the lakes from the Atlantic coast in the mid-1800’s with the increase in shipping and dams that made passing Niagara Falls possible. Currently, significant resources are put into controlling the lamprey in the Great Lakes and my masters research is working to identify population structure through the lakes to help with targeted management. Populations are important for species management because these units contain all of the demography of the area, so treatment in one will minimally affect the others. I am using whole genome sequencing and phenotypic measurements to detail fine resolution population structure. Genetics and phenotypes together can make for better management decisions that target both the reproductive units (populations) and also the larger, more fecund individuals. Right now I am busy dissecting and measuring 500 lamprey for the phenotype analysis, and so far it is apparent that the lamprey have size variation across the lakes. For example, Lake Superior individuals are much smaller and more geographically isolated than the lower Great Lakes individuals. In addition to the management implications of my research, I am interested in testing to see if the genetic and phenotypic populations overlaps with each other, or if there are other pressures, like temperature and environment, influencing the sea lamprey demography.
Jessie is a Masters student with Dr. Colin Garroway and Dr. Margaret Docker. She is currently studying population genetics of invasive species and in her spare time, she enjoys knitting and crafting!
Take a look at her exciting project below!
Sea lamprey are an invasive species in the Great Lakes that predate and kill native economically and environmentally important fish like trout, salmon, and sturgeon. Lamprey invaded the lakes from the Atlantic coast in the mid-1800’s with the increase in shipping and dams that made passing Niagara Falls possible. Currently, significant resources are put into controlling the lamprey in the Great Lakes and my masters research is working to identify population structure through the lakes to help with targeted management. Populations are important for species management because these units contain all of the demography of the area, so treatment in one will minimally affect the others. I am using whole genome sequencing and phenotypic measurements to detail fine resolution population structure. Genetics and phenotypes together can make for better management decisions that target both the reproductive units (populations) and also the larger, more fecund individuals. Right now I am busy dissecting and measuring 500 lamprey for the phenotype analysis, and so far it is apparent that the lamprey have size variation across the lakes. For example, Lake Superior individuals are much smaller and more geographically isolated than the lower Great Lakes individuals. In addition to the management implications of my research, I am interested in testing to see if the genetic and phenotypic populations overlaps with each other, or if there are other pressures, like temperature and environment, influencing the sea lamprey demography.
Chloé Schmidt
Chloé is a PhD student who works in urban evolution with Dr. Colin Garroway. If she is not working, you can probably find her drawing. Combing her work and hobby, she started a science communication website with a friend, Pineapples and Whales. They turn papers into infographics. Take a look at her website at this link (pineapplesandwhales.wordpress.com).
Read below to learn more about her amazing project!
Cities are quickly becoming the world’s newest habitat type, while truly wild spaces are dwindling. Less than 30% of the planet’s surface remains untouched by humans, so animals are increasingly living in human-dominated places. Cities introduce many new selection pressures that force wild populations to either move, adapt, or die out. I study how urbanization affects evolution in animals living in and around cities. My project combines data synthesis approaches that allow me to address broad questions across taxa, whole genome sequencing to examine population responses to urbanization, and physiology to look at effects on individuals. By repurposing publicly available datasets to answer new questions, I could test whether living close to cities generally reduces genetic diversity in animal populations across the US and Canada (spoiler alert, it does in mammals, but effects weren’t consistent in birds). While I analyze genetic data from about 80 different mammal, bird, and amphibian species from all over North America, the only time I go out and collect my own samples is when I’m trapping squirrels! The squirrel study will help us understand whether similar selection pressures (here, those associated with urbanization) act predictably on the genome, and how city life affects squirrel health. I found evidence that squirrels on the U of M campus are, unfortunately but not surprisingly, less healthy than rural Manitoba squirrels. Together, I hope this work will paint a cohesive picture of the ways human-caused environmental change affects wild populations, and provide some direction in mitigating the consequences.
Chloé is a PhD student who works in urban evolution with Dr. Colin Garroway. If she is not working, you can probably find her drawing. Combing her work and hobby, she started a science communication website with a friend, Pineapples and Whales. They turn papers into infographics. Take a look at her website at this link (pineapplesandwhales.wordpress.com).
Read below to learn more about her amazing project!
Cities are quickly becoming the world’s newest habitat type, while truly wild spaces are dwindling. Less than 30% of the planet’s surface remains untouched by humans, so animals are increasingly living in human-dominated places. Cities introduce many new selection pressures that force wild populations to either move, adapt, or die out. I study how urbanization affects evolution in animals living in and around cities. My project combines data synthesis approaches that allow me to address broad questions across taxa, whole genome sequencing to examine population responses to urbanization, and physiology to look at effects on individuals. By repurposing publicly available datasets to answer new questions, I could test whether living close to cities generally reduces genetic diversity in animal populations across the US and Canada (spoiler alert, it does in mammals, but effects weren’t consistent in birds). While I analyze genetic data from about 80 different mammal, bird, and amphibian species from all over North America, the only time I go out and collect my own samples is when I’m trapping squirrels! The squirrel study will help us understand whether similar selection pressures (here, those associated with urbanization) act predictably on the genome, and how city life affects squirrel health. I found evidence that squirrels on the U of M campus are, unfortunately but not surprisingly, less healthy than rural Manitoba squirrels. Together, I hope this work will paint a cohesive picture of the ways human-caused environmental change affects wild populations, and provide some direction in mitigating the consequences.
Alicia Korpach
Alicia is a PhD student who studies avian behavior and ecology with Dr. Kevin Fraser. There is never a moment when she is not scheming about a new place to explore, whether it’s abroad or closer to home, and it will inevitably include some combination of bird-watching, hiking, cycling, and eating good food.
Read below for more of her cool project!
The broad drivers of bird migration have been studied for decades, but modern tracking technologies like GPS now allow us to investigate – in great detail – where, when, and how birds migrate. This also gives us the opportunity to study secretive nocturnal birds that were almost impossible to study only a few years ago. I am GPS-tracking the movements of a nocturnal forest bird, the Eastern Whip-poor-will, to assess whether their migration is influenced by artificial light at night, moonlight, and habitat characteristics at their migratory stopover locations. Doing field work at night in somewhat remote forest locations in Manitoba and Ontario is one of the more challenging things about my project. I trap whip-poor-wills by stretching nearly invisible nets across game trails or forest meadows, then wait quietly in the dark to catch a bird. This also seems like the best way to catch a black bear, deer, or wolf, and I look forward to that never happening! My analyses incorporate theoretical predictive mapping and spatial analyses to investigate flight routes and habitat use. While the main focus of my research is migration ecology, I am also working with Forestry partners in Ontario to better understand what whip-poor-wills require while on their Canadian breeding grounds. Whip-poor-wills are a Species at Risk, and we know so little about how to plan our land use activities to maintain usable habitat for them. I am a conservationist at heart, so I get a lot of satisfaction from doing research that can have tangible management applications.
Alicia is a PhD student who studies avian behavior and ecology with Dr. Kevin Fraser. There is never a moment when she is not scheming about a new place to explore, whether it’s abroad or closer to home, and it will inevitably include some combination of bird-watching, hiking, cycling, and eating good food.
Read below for more of her cool project!
The broad drivers of bird migration have been studied for decades, but modern tracking technologies like GPS now allow us to investigate – in great detail – where, when, and how birds migrate. This also gives us the opportunity to study secretive nocturnal birds that were almost impossible to study only a few years ago. I am GPS-tracking the movements of a nocturnal forest bird, the Eastern Whip-poor-will, to assess whether their migration is influenced by artificial light at night, moonlight, and habitat characteristics at their migratory stopover locations. Doing field work at night in somewhat remote forest locations in Manitoba and Ontario is one of the more challenging things about my project. I trap whip-poor-wills by stretching nearly invisible nets across game trails or forest meadows, then wait quietly in the dark to catch a bird. This also seems like the best way to catch a black bear, deer, or wolf, and I look forward to that never happening! My analyses incorporate theoretical predictive mapping and spatial analyses to investigate flight routes and habitat use. While the main focus of my research is migration ecology, I am also working with Forestry partners in Ontario to better understand what whip-poor-wills require while on their Canadian breeding grounds. Whip-poor-wills are a Species at Risk, and we know so little about how to plan our land use activities to maintain usable habitat for them. I am a conservationist at heart, so I get a lot of satisfaction from doing research that can have tangible management applications.
Nolan Novotny
Nolan is an entomologist and behavioural ecologist doing a M.Sc studying slave-making ants under Dr. Jim Hare. He did a B.Sc (Hons.) at the UofM and also did his undergrad thesis on slave-making ants. He has been interested in insect behaviour ever since he was a small child and as early as the third grade decided he wanted to be an Entomologist when he grew up and just never changed his mind. Besides research his main hobby would be downhill skiing.
Read below about his awesome project!
My research is focused on investigating optimization of the slave workforce by slave-making ants (also known as kidnapper ants). Slave-making ants, as the name suggests, are not your typical ants at a picnic because they raid other species of ants (their hosts), abscond with their brood and raise that brood to perform all the domestic work of the slave-maker colony. While some slave-making species can only use one host species, others can use multiple simultaneously which offers the opportunity that they could optimize the species they choose to raid based on conditions. The species I study is Temnothorax americanus which has two host species, T. ambiguus and T. longispinosus, which have different microhabitat temperature optima. I am investigating whether T. americanus optimizes their use of these two host species by capitalizing on their species-specific microhabitat optima relative to the microhabitat temperature the slave-maker colony experiences. I collect wild ant colonies from the field by traipsing around the woods of Southern Ontario, cracking open acorns and collecting the ant colonies which live inside. I then transfer these colonies to the lab where I can manipulate the temperature conditions they experience and perform behavioural assays to test how slave-maker host preference and the defensive capability of hosts are affected by temperature. My project will further insight into the mechanisms of how slave-makers choose their host species when there are multiple species available and may provide insight into how slave-maker and host communities are shaped relative to the influence of microhabitat temperatures, which influences the coevolution between slave-makers and their hosts.
Nolan is an entomologist and behavioural ecologist doing a M.Sc studying slave-making ants under Dr. Jim Hare. He did a B.Sc (Hons.) at the UofM and also did his undergrad thesis on slave-making ants. He has been interested in insect behaviour ever since he was a small child and as early as the third grade decided he wanted to be an Entomologist when he grew up and just never changed his mind. Besides research his main hobby would be downhill skiing.
Read below about his awesome project!
My research is focused on investigating optimization of the slave workforce by slave-making ants (also known as kidnapper ants). Slave-making ants, as the name suggests, are not your typical ants at a picnic because they raid other species of ants (their hosts), abscond with their brood and raise that brood to perform all the domestic work of the slave-maker colony. While some slave-making species can only use one host species, others can use multiple simultaneously which offers the opportunity that they could optimize the species they choose to raid based on conditions. The species I study is Temnothorax americanus which has two host species, T. ambiguus and T. longispinosus, which have different microhabitat temperature optima. I am investigating whether T. americanus optimizes their use of these two host species by capitalizing on their species-specific microhabitat optima relative to the microhabitat temperature the slave-maker colony experiences. I collect wild ant colonies from the field by traipsing around the woods of Southern Ontario, cracking open acorns and collecting the ant colonies which live inside. I then transfer these colonies to the lab where I can manipulate the temperature conditions they experience and perform behavioural assays to test how slave-maker host preference and the defensive capability of hosts are affected by temperature. My project will further insight into the mechanisms of how slave-makers choose their host species when there are multiple species available and may provide insight into how slave-maker and host communities are shaped relative to the influence of microhabitat temperatures, which influences the coevolution between slave-makers and their hosts.
Dylan Ziegler
Dylan is a traditional botanist at heart. He completed his undergraduate degree from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, BC, and moved to Winnipeg in 2017 where he began his work with Dr. Mark Belmonte. He has very widespread interests in plant biology so while his research is more focused on genetics and molecular analysis, he spends a lot of time doing histology and plant anatomy. On top of his busy schedule, he takes time to volunteer at the Herbarium here at UofM and the Manitoba Museum. “I think it's really important that we value archival collections as a scientific community for use in research and knowledge acquisition.”
Take a look below to read about his project!
My research is focused on combining developmental genetics with anatomical characterization to better understand how the Brassica napus (canola) seed develops. While our understanding of seed development is expanding, we are yet to identify the specific genes and epigenetics that are integral to seed development in canola. Small RNAs (sRNAs) are epigenetic factors known to be tightly associated with developmental processes in plants, and function by binding to messenger RNAs (mRNAs), and consequently block mRNA translation into proteins. Plants use sRNAs to precisely regulate which genes are turned on and off, and act as essential factors in orchestrating complex development. I have sequenced the sRNA profiles of five distinct stages of seed development and divided the sRNA species into subtypes. I have then used this large database to computationally build networks predicting vital regulators of seed development and interpreting the genomic architecture of B. napus. In conjunction with characterization of transcription factors function using traditional anatomy and histology, my project aims to better describe the genetic machinery underpinning development to guide and advance canola seed improvement.
Dylan is a traditional botanist at heart. He completed his undergraduate degree from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, BC, and moved to Winnipeg in 2017 where he began his work with Dr. Mark Belmonte. He has very widespread interests in plant biology so while his research is more focused on genetics and molecular analysis, he spends a lot of time doing histology and plant anatomy. On top of his busy schedule, he takes time to volunteer at the Herbarium here at UofM and the Manitoba Museum. “I think it's really important that we value archival collections as a scientific community for use in research and knowledge acquisition.”
Take a look below to read about his project!
My research is focused on combining developmental genetics with anatomical characterization to better understand how the Brassica napus (canola) seed develops. While our understanding of seed development is expanding, we are yet to identify the specific genes and epigenetics that are integral to seed development in canola. Small RNAs (sRNAs) are epigenetic factors known to be tightly associated with developmental processes in plants, and function by binding to messenger RNAs (mRNAs), and consequently block mRNA translation into proteins. Plants use sRNAs to precisely regulate which genes are turned on and off, and act as essential factors in orchestrating complex development. I have sequenced the sRNA profiles of five distinct stages of seed development and divided the sRNA species into subtypes. I have then used this large database to computationally build networks predicting vital regulators of seed development and interpreting the genomic architecture of B. napus. In conjunction with characterization of transcription factors function using traditional anatomy and histology, my project aims to better describe the genetic machinery underpinning development to guide and advance canola seed improvement.
Krista Shofstall
Krista is a PhD student working with Jane Waterman. With too many hobbies and too little time, Krista is an avid scuba diver and traveler who has a passion for photography and taekwondo. Continue to read below about her work in South Africa on ground squirrels!
The field research in South Africa has been a very rewarding experience. The 4 am wake ups to set out equipment, provided opportunities to see nocturnal wildlife. I watched squirrels for hours of eating, playing, and misbehaving. For my PhD, I have taken an integrative approach by using animal behavior, ecology, and genetics to look at the potential reasons why female squirrels fail to wean offspring. To approach this, I used the Cape ground squirrel (Xerus inauris) from Southern Africa as my model system which have 70%+ failure rate. I will determine the influence of maternal and alloparental care on the survival of the offspring and am taking statistical and genetic approaches to the selection pressures and the possibility of reproductive suppression in this species. Part of my project is looking at the resource limitation and conducting a supplemental feeding experiment using automated feeders to look at how resources influence the life-history trade-offs. This research will allow a greater understanding of the factors influencing reproductive success in this ecologically important and valuable species.
Krista is a PhD student working with Jane Waterman. With too many hobbies and too little time, Krista is an avid scuba diver and traveler who has a passion for photography and taekwondo. Continue to read below about her work in South Africa on ground squirrels!
The field research in South Africa has been a very rewarding experience. The 4 am wake ups to set out equipment, provided opportunities to see nocturnal wildlife. I watched squirrels for hours of eating, playing, and misbehaving. For my PhD, I have taken an integrative approach by using animal behavior, ecology, and genetics to look at the potential reasons why female squirrels fail to wean offspring. To approach this, I used the Cape ground squirrel (Xerus inauris) from Southern Africa as my model system which have 70%+ failure rate. I will determine the influence of maternal and alloparental care on the survival of the offspring and am taking statistical and genetic approaches to the selection pressures and the possibility of reproductive suppression in this species. Part of my project is looking at the resource limitation and conducting a supplemental feeding experiment using automated feeders to look at how resources influence the life-history trade-offs. This research will allow a greater understanding of the factors influencing reproductive success in this ecologically important and valuable species.
Garett Allen
Originally from Yarmouth, NS, Garett is PhD student working with Dr. Dirk Weihrauch. He is very musical and plays as a lead guitarist in the departmental band "Rusty Fingers and the Low Expectations". Continue below to read about his super cool project!
From land to sea, warm to cold, and humid to dry, the world is full of environments that shape the physiological requirements of the organisms within. Brachyuran crabs inhabit environments of all sorts including land, waters of various temperatures and salinities – even deserts and hydrothermal vents long the ocean floor. Two major physiological processes, namely maintaining vital fluid pH and excreting nitrogenous wastes, are heavily influenced by environmental conditions and if excessively challenged may be lethal. My research focuses on investigating and comparing acid-base regulatory strategies of typical and atypical marine crustaceans. While Manitoba isn’t known for its oceanic coasts, annual research ventures with Taiwanese collaborators has allowed me to work with species whom are practically undescribed including one of the few accessible endemic hydrothermal vent species, Xenograpsus testudinatus. This vent crab’s 2-3-millimeter-long gills are capable of immense acid-base compensatory action and appear to even be able to prevent certain gases from entering the animal’s vital fluid. Being amongst the vents and being able to physically handle an organism endemic to such a harsh ‘origin-of-life’ environment is a life-changing experience that I am thankful to have been a part of.
Originally from Yarmouth, NS, Garett is PhD student working with Dr. Dirk Weihrauch. He is very musical and plays as a lead guitarist in the departmental band "Rusty Fingers and the Low Expectations". Continue below to read about his super cool project!
From land to sea, warm to cold, and humid to dry, the world is full of environments that shape the physiological requirements of the organisms within. Brachyuran crabs inhabit environments of all sorts including land, waters of various temperatures and salinities – even deserts and hydrothermal vents long the ocean floor. Two major physiological processes, namely maintaining vital fluid pH and excreting nitrogenous wastes, are heavily influenced by environmental conditions and if excessively challenged may be lethal. My research focuses on investigating and comparing acid-base regulatory strategies of typical and atypical marine crustaceans. While Manitoba isn’t known for its oceanic coasts, annual research ventures with Taiwanese collaborators has allowed me to work with species whom are practically undescribed including one of the few accessible endemic hydrothermal vent species, Xenograpsus testudinatus. This vent crab’s 2-3-millimeter-long gills are capable of immense acid-base compensatory action and appear to even be able to prevent certain gases from entering the animal’s vital fluid. Being amongst the vents and being able to physically handle an organism endemic to such a harsh ‘origin-of-life’ environment is a life-changing experience that I am thankful to have been a part of.