Previous studies on plant phenology have found that shifts in the timing of life cycle events are connected to changes in the surrounding climate. Alpine and subalpine wildflowers are of particular interest, considering that the initiation of flowering often depends on the timing of snowmelt, which has been occurring earlier as temperatures warm. However, we often lack the information needed to predict exactly how much wildflower phenology will shift in response to warming. Herbaria, collections of plant specimens collected over the last 100-200 years, have recently been paired with climate data (from the geographic locations and dates of specimens) to examine the relationship between climate and plant phenology. I aim to answer 1) How does climate influence the timing of phenological stages in wildflowers? and 2) Do species vary in their responses according to their average bloom time after snowmelt (e.g. early season vs. late season bloomers)? This study involves five alpine/subalpine species that very in the timing of blooming relative to snowmelt date: Western pasqueflower (Anemone occidentalis), Sitka valerian (Valeriana sitchensis), Sickletop lousewort (Pedicularis racemosa), Rainier pleated gentian (Gentiana calycosa), and Glacier lily (Erythronium grandiflorum). I will access specimen data from the University of Washington Herbarium and the Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria. Phenological stage will be recorded with the date of collection, geographic locations will be determined using GEOLocate coordinate and elevation data, and climate conditions will be spatially modeled using ClimateWNA historical records. I predict that there will be an overall trend of earlier flowering for all four species over time, but that species with later bloom times will experience less deviation from their historical average than those with earlier bloom times. This study is significant in providing information that will help the preservation of wildflower meadows in the high mountains of the Northwest.

Coniferous forests, such as those of Mount Rainier National Park (MORA), provide invaluable ecological and economic services. Climate change may directly affect this vital biome as it imposes physiological limits on tree performance. Seedlings, close to the forest floor, can experience significantly different climatic conditions (microclimates) than those of mature trees. Given their crucial role in establishing new tree growth, it is important to understand how variation in microclimate may affect seedling physiology. We sought to understand which factors of microclimate interact to influence conifer seedling photosynthetic performance. We collected data on the south side of MORA for seedlings in the following criteria: 1) two species; pacific silver fir (Abies amabilis) and western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla), 2) two elevation; 600m and 1000m, and 3) two light conditions; in dense canopy cover and under a canopy gap. We recorded microclimate factors of temperature, light radiation, wind speed, soil moisture, and relative humidity. Using a combination of sap flow sensors and the Photosynq, an instrument that measures photosynthetic phenotypes of plants, we collected data on photosynthetic parameters indicative of plant health and growth. In our preliminary analysis, using only the parameters measured with the Photosynq, we find that elevation and species differences correlate with differences in the photosynthetic performance. Notably, Abies amabilis outperforms Tsuga heterophylla at the higher elevation, regardless of differences in canopy coverage. Further data analysis will be performed to include sap flow measurements and microclimate conditions to develop a more complete picture of the factors affecting seedling performance. Understanding the photosynthetic activity of these seedlings, within the context of their microclimate, may provide insight into the future coniferous tree distribution at MORA as climate changes.

 Seed dispersal is a crucial phase of plant lifecycles. Effective dispersal is important to the ecosystem as a whole because it affects composition of the community, ecological succession, and response to climate change. Given the importance of seed dispersal, understanding the factors that contribute to the evolution of varied dispersal modes and promote convergence on specific dispersal strategies is particularly important to understanding grass ecology because it may allow us to understand the relationship between dispersal mode and habitat. In this study, we are interested in dispersal modes within the onion grasses (Melica), a small genus of perennial grasses, primarily distributed in temperate regions. The onion grasses are found in a wide variety of habitats and possess a remarkable diversity of seed dispersal strategies. These traits make them a useful case study for better understanding the factors that influence the evolution of dispersal strategies in grasses. We are testing the hypothesis that evolution in traits associated with seed dispersal is correlated with changes in habitat. In particular, we hypothesize that the evolution of wind dispersed seeds follows transitions into open habitats. Seed dispersal structures (diaspores) were collected from 46 grass species (35 Melica and 11 outgroup). To assess wind dispersal potential, we quantify falling velocity by filming seed descent at 1000 fps. Lower falling velocities are associated with higher wind dispersal potential. Diaspores were photographed and the images were used to measure surface roughness, which is associated with adhesive dispersal potential. These data, along with diaspore mass and plant height, were mapped onto the evolutionary tree of the onion grasses. We then ran tests of correlated evolution between seed dispersal traits and habitat type. Initial results indicate that convergence upon wind dispersal may be in part driven by convergence upon disturbed habitat types.

Throughout history, human-induced habitat loss, pollution, and hunting have pressured mammals to adapt to lifestyles that limit human interaction. When humans threaten wildlife, a fitness advantage is provided to animals who avoid human interaction. But what about in protected regions where these threats are limited? Cocha Cashu Biological Station, located in Manu National Park, is an example of one of these regions. While native communities continue to hunt within the research station, overall levels of hunting, deforestation, and pollution, are significantly lower than in the surrounding unprotected areas. Our research team chose to design a study in Cocha Cashu to analyze terrestrial mammal distribution in relation to human habitation in areas where human threats have historically been limited. Our hypothesis was that mammal abundance would increase with distance from human habitation. Our study design involved a northern and eastern transect with a near (N), medium-distanced (M), and far (F) trap location. Each trap location had both a sand and camera trap, and data was collected from the traps morning and night for four consecutive days. On the eastern transect, there was a positive linear relationship between distance from human habitation and number of mammals observed (N: 2 mammals, M: 4 mammals, F: 8 mammals). On the northern route, the highest number of mammals was observed at the medium-distanced location (N: 1 mammal, M: 7 mammals, F: 3 mammals). Overall, our data did not support our hypothesis that mammal abundance increases with distance from human habitation in protected areas. Our results do, however, provide a platform for further research on resource accessibility and its potentially larger influence on mammal distribution patterns than the influence of human habitation.

Today there are more than 5,000 species of extant mammals that are categorized into three major clades: placentals, marsupials, and monotremes. The deep evolutionary history of marsupials is poorly known due to a fragmentary fossil record. In particular, cranial fossils of the ancient relatives of marsupials (stem marsupials) are extremely rare. The few cranial elements of these taxa that have been found are fragmentary, crushed, or missing major elements. Recently, some more complete cranial fossils of stem marsupials have been discovered at the Late Cretaceous (75 million years ago) Egg Mountain fossil locality in northwestern Montana. My research will describe the morphology of a partial skull of a stem marsupial from Egg Mountain. This delicate skull is encased in a hard siltstone, making it difficult to mechanically remove without damage to the fossil. Instead, we used micro-computed tomography (µCT) to scan the specimen block. Then I used Avizo software to virtually remove the rock and expose the details of the encased fossil. From the resulting files, I will study and describe the cranial morphology in detail. Thus far, we have identified the stem marsupial as Alphadon halleyi. With further study, I hope to (1) expand upon current knowledge regarding the morphology of Alphadon halleyi, (2) make comparisons with other stem marsupials and extant marsupials, and (3) more broadly, incorporate our findings into a phylogenic analysis of early metatherians (the clade that includes stem marsupials and marsupials) that will further elucidate the evolutionary history of marsupials.

 Dravet syndrome is a severe form of epilepsy characterized by intractable infantile-onset seizures and other symptoms including sleep disturbances, which are highly detrimental to patient and caregiver quality of life. Circadian rhythms, including the sleep-wake cycle, are regulated in mammals by the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus. Dravet syndrome has been associated with a heterozygous loss-of-function mutation in the SCN1A gene, coding for the Na_v1.1 voltage-gated sodium channel. An animal model with the same heterozygous deletion of the SCN1A gene displays the disease phenotype, including sleep disturbances, and previous work in our lab has shown that Scn1a+/- mice have a longer circadian period than wild-type mice. This is compatible with the fact that the Na_v1.1 channel is highly expressed in SCN neurons. Here we test the hypothesis that Na_v1.1 depletion specifically in the SCN is responsible for the long circadian period of sleep and locomotor activity reported in Scn1a+/- mice. We bred Scn1a+/- mice with mice in which a luminescent reporter gene is fused to the Per2 circadian clock gene to produce Scn1a+/- /Per2::Luc mice. Brain slices expressing Per2::Luc display ~24h rhythms in bioluminescence. We first measured the circadian period of locomotor activity of Per2::Luc/Scn1a+/- mice under conditions of constant darkness using running wheels and confirmed that these mice had the same long circadian period as Scn1a+/- mice. Our hypothesis predicts that the period of clock gene expression rhythms--reported through bioluminescence -- in the SCN of Scn1a+/- mice will reflect their behavioral circadian period. I am testing this prediction by measuring Per2::Luc bioluminescence in brain slices of wild type and Scn1a+/- mice. Our results will provide greater insight into the mechanisms underlying sleep disturbances in Dravet syndrome patients, and could reveal new avenues for treatments that specifically target these disturbances. 

Herbivory is a fundamental species interaction and one of the pillars of an ecosystem, yet little is known about how it will respond to climate change over the next several decades. With temperatures rising rapidly, knowledge of past herbivory levels has become critical to research and management programs aiming to maintain or restore environmental health. The advent of herbaria, collections of preserved plant specimens, roughly coincides with the beginning of major climate change, giving us a window into herbivory across the last century of changing temperatures and allowing us to more accurately predict future changes. The goal of this study was to determine whether herbivory rates in lupines, a widespread native wildflower, have changed over time in response to rising average temperatures, and whether those changes are consistent across species. We hypothesized that specimens collected recently would show more evidence of herbivory due to increased insect activity at higher temperatures, and that herbivory would differ between species due to differences in leaf size and thickness. We investigated herbivory on specimens of three common native lupines, Lupinus lyallii, L. latifolius, and L. polyphyllus, all of which occur at a wide range of climates and elevations. Lupines were chosen because, as nitrogen fixers, they improve poor quality soil and allow other species to settle after major disturbances, like volcanic eruptions or landslides. We gathered data on herbivory using specimens collected between 1888 and 2019 and housed in the University of Washington Herbarium. As the ability of lupines to fix nitrogen decreases with decreased leaf area, changes in herbivory may have a strong effect on meadow biodiversity, soil quality, and regeneration after disturbances. Given their importance in ecosystem regeneration, it is probable that any changes in lupine herbivory will have far-reaching ecological consequences.

The Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary is one of the most well-studied mass extinction events in history. However, there are still many questions left about what was occurring in terrestrial ecosystems in the 10-15 million years prior to the event. One major question is if theropod dinosaurs were declining in diversity and ecological stability prior to the event, or if they all died off suddenly. This stability is partially interpreted in this project through a geometric morphometric approach comparing Judithian and Lancian theropod teeth. Geometric morphometrics quantitatively analyzes tooth shape based on points called landmarks, that are universal across theropod teeth so variance can be measured and compared. Teeth are digitally imaged and processed with the landmarks to compute and then interpret their shapes in specialized programs. The landmarks measured are based on established standard literature of mesial and distal points of the tooth, the apex, and the mesial and distal terminal denticle. If the finalized analysis of the remaining confirms theropod dinosaurs are shown to have consistent morphological disparity through this time, this will be an indication that this group of organisms were not declining and were settled in their niches prior to the K-Pg boundary. Given that theropods were a diverse group that occupied many niches, as well as being the top carnivores that would have curbed other taxonomic populations, studying their economic stability through the window of deep time lasting from the Judithian to the Lancian immediately before the K-Pg boundary is leading to an invaluable understanding of how this environment was changing during this time.