Research Background
I am broadly interested in inter- and intra-specific interactions between wildlife species as well as adaptations of species to their environment. I also enjoy using theoretical modeling to answer questions that are difficult to approach using field studies.
My MS research focused on adaptations of eastern gray squirrels to seasonal flooding on a wildlife management area in Alabama. Gray squirrels are scatterhoarders, meaning they bury food during the fall to eat later during winter. However, in this environment, most of the hardwood stands were flooded in November and remained flooded until the following summer. I investigated habitat selection, hoarding behavior, diet, and survival of squirrels and could not find any apparent adaptations to this flooding- the population had a very high winter mortality rate.
Through my PhD research, I continued to answer questions about scatterhoarding behavior, but focused more specifically on behavioral adaptations of scatterhoarders and the evolution of hoarding behavior. Through multiple field studies conducted in Auburn, AL, I was able to document evidence of long-term survival of hoarded seeds, hoarder use of seedlings to find buried food, and selective pilferage (theft) of buried seeds based on seed condition. I successfully created a citizen science project called the Auburn Squirrel Project to show that geographic variation exists in the importance of scatterhoarding behavior throughout the large range of the eastern gray squirrel. Finally, I used a simulation to show that predation risk and food availability are driving forces in the persistence of scatterhoarding behavior within a population.
After my PhD, I completed a short postdoc position with Auburn’s College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment and investigated spatial and temporal interactions between the two separate black bear populations in Alabama. I joined the Zuckerberg lab (also co-advised by Jake Vander Zanden) to conduct research on phenotypic resilience of midwestern fish and wildlife species to climate change and to help inform management of a few select species to promote healthy populations in the face of future climate change.
Education:
PhD in Biological Sciences, Auburn University, 2023
MS in Wildlife Sciences, Auburn University, 2018
BS in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology, Clemson University, 2015
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