Undergraduate Research Students (past to present) I have included a list of my undergraduate reseach students, roughly in the order of when I was their mentor, from the last decade or so. Following each student's name is the institution from which they received their Bachelor's degree and the institutions from which they received advanced degrees, if known. I have included the subject of their project as well as their current occupation, if known.
The opportunity to engage undergraduates in research is very important to me as these experiences often open new vistas for students. If you are a UT Martin undergraduate and you are interested in undergraduate research in the areas of behavioral ecology, conservation biology, physiological ecology and/or evolutionary biology, please feel free to contact me.
Lis Nelis (Michigan State University; Field Museum of Natural History; PhD, University of Chicago): former NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) student at RMBL Project: The effect of increased begging calls on parent feeding rate and nestling growth rate in a montane population of Tree Swallows Current occupation: Postdoctoral research associate, Stanford University Tatiana Vasquez (University of California Riverside; MS University of North Carolina, Chaple Hill): former NSF REU student at RMBL Project: The effect of nest box temperature on nestling growth rate and parent feeding rate in a montane population of House Wrens. Current occupation: Adjunct professor, Chaffey College Biology Department and San Bernardino Valley College Emily Vann (UT Martin): UT Martin University Scholars student
Amanda Kelly (UT Martin; Doctorate of Physical Therapy, Belmont University): UT Martin University Scholars student Project: The effect of the frequency of refugia on the male territorial defense in the topminnow Current occupation: Physical Therapist in middle Tennessee
Laura Knipp (UT Martin; MS Clemson University): UT Martin undergraduate; BCI bat project research assistant Project: The effect of bat box color and orientation on bat use
Rachel Lesperance (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate; research intern at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (RMBL) Project: Macroinvertebrate denisty on occupied vs. unoccupied territories in Mountain Bluebirds
Jeff Pierce (Duke University; Fulbright recipient, Swaziland): former NSF REU student at RMBL Project: The effect of scent mound manipulation on the territorial behavior of beaver
Crystal Peterson (Western State College): former research intern at RMBL in conjunction with my collaborator, Dr. Jessica Young at WSC Project: The effect of elevation on nestling growth rate in a montane population of Mountain Bluebirds Current occupation: Colorado Division of Wildlife Officer
Christine Kelly (Ohio University): former research intern at RMBL Project: The effect of nest box density on nesting success in Mountain Bluebirds Current occupation: Wildlife Diversity Biologist with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
Laura Moody Daniel (UT Martin): former UT Martin undergraduate Project: The effect of removal from the egg mass gel on hatching success in spotted salamanders Current occupation: pursuing a master's degree in middle Tennessee
Valerie Tillman (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: The relationship between bat activity and temperature Current occupation: Pursing a master's degree in Alaska
Calie Milliam (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: Red-tailed Hawk perch distribution in urban vs. rural roadways.
Amanda Ray (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: Distance to cover and the foraging behavior of white and grey squirrels in Kenton, TN
Jessica Johnson (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: The effect of temperature on the emergence rate of parasitoid wasps Current occupation: Pursing a doctorate of physical therapy from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Rachel Hazelwood (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: Female bean beetle egg-laying preferences on natal vs. non-natal beans Current occupation: Pursing a master's degree from Austin Peay University
Tianita Duke (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: Macroinvertebrate diversity in a natural riffle, artificial riffle and pool environments Current occupation: Finishing a master's degree from Austin Peay University and 2009 Southern Appalachian Botanical Society Earl Core Student Award recipient
Anna Hartzheim (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: The effect of variation in male sex ratio on male aggression in mollies
Sabrina Shrader (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: The effect of UV radiation on development of green sea urchin embryos Current occupation: Pursing a master's degree
Chris Craig (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: The effect of variation in refugia on territorial behavior in male green anoles
Andrew Landerman (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: Interspecific aggression and avoidance between bison and elk at the Elk and Bison Priarie, Land Between the Lakes Current Occupation: Zoo education at the Memphis Zoo
Davene King (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: The effect of conspecific competitiors on the growth rate of the tobacco hornworm
Keith Paluso (UT Martin): UT Martin undergraduate Project: The efficacy of bat detectors for use in measuring bat diversity in Northwest Tennessee |