Mentors and Project Scientists
Program mentors and instructors include research professionals from the University of Alabama, University of Florida, the JCI, NEON, Alabama A & M University, Geological Survey of Alabama, and other state and federal natural resources agencies
Mentor: Dr. Carla Atkinson, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama
Biodiversity in Freshwater Ecosystems Lab
Globally, freshwater ecosystems host a disproportionately high amount of biodiversity, but there have been alarming population declines and extinctions. The southeast is a global hotspot of freshwater diversity and work in the Atkinson’s lab has the goal of the advancing basic scientific understanding as well as better conservation prioritization of biodiversity in freshwater ecosystems. Work in the lab employs a combination of observational approaches field studies, field experiments, mesocosm, and laboratory studies. Mentees participating in independent projects will contribute to the understanding the ecology of freshwater communities and ecosystems and their conservation and will interact regularly with post-docs, graduate students, and other labs in the biology department.
Lab website: atkinsonlab.ua.edu
Mentor: Dr. Arial Shogren, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama
Stream ecology, Biogeochemistry, and Hydrology Lab
In the Stream Science Lab at UA, research projects leverage perspectives and methods from stream ecology, biogeochemistry, and hydrology to address questions about the conditions that control how dissolved and particulate material is transported into and processed within freshwater networks. More specifically, recent lab projects have focused on the role of shifting hydrologic regimes, where wet and dry conditions are becoming more extreme, even in “wet” regions like the Southeastern US. Understanding river network chemistry in the Southeast will reveal critical information about how these critical ecosystems are changing in the face of climate change. Depending on student interests, RaMP scholars might focus on projects such as: (i) simple experiments to measure the fate of materials in streams, (ii) collecting spatially distributed samples that can help identify emergent patterns of terrestrial-aquatic connectivity, and (iii) analyzing data from in situ water quality sensors that can help detect the impacts of altered wetting and drying on downstream water quality.
Lab Website: sites.google.com/view/shogrenscience/
Mentor: Dr. Bill Pine, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida
Aquatic Ecosytems Lab
Dr. Pine works to understand how aquatic ecosystems respond to changes in water availability, due to climate change and increases in human use related to population growth. He works with resource management agencies to evaluate how ecosystems respond to different policy choices related to how water resources are allocated. These evaluations can lead to improvements in decision making, by highlighting tradeoffs in ecosystem responses to the different policy choices. In a world with rapidly increasing competition for water resources,
Mentor: Dr. Elica Moss, Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, Alabama A & M University
Environmental Microbiology, Environmental Justice Lab
My research focuses on Bacterial Community Microbiology of Surface and Subsurface Irrigation Water; Water Quality Assessment of the Prevalence and Persistence of Fecal Indicator Bacteria in the Indian Creek Watershed; Bacterial Monitoring of Open and Closed Looped Cooling Water Systems; Characterization of the Absolute and Relative Microbiota Abundance in Soil under Different Agricultural Management Systems; Evaluation of Pollution, Health Disparities, and Climatic Factors within Cities in North, Central, and South Alabama
Co-mentors: Dr. Stephen Golladay and Caitlin Sweeney, The Jones Center at Ichauway
Affiliate Mussel Conservation Lab – Freshwater Mussel Conservation
Mussel communities of the lower Flint River Basin (LFRB) in southwestern Georgia are among the richest in the southeastern United States. Historically, 29 species of mussels, seven which were endemic, existed in our basin. We currently have five federally listed mussel species. Freshwater mussels are key inhabitants of many streams and rivers. They live in and on the sediment where they spend their lives filtering water to obtain nutrition. Because of filtration, mussels enhance stream health. Filtering purifies the water and mussel beds provide a nutrient rich habitat for other aquatic life. Join Steve and Caitlin in taking a deep dive into the shallow waters of the LFRB. Mentees will have an opportunity to learn basic mussel taxonomy and develop an independent project assessing the responses of stream biota to seasonal and drought related drying. They will also participate in data collection to support the development of a Habitat Conservation Plan for the mussel fauna of the LFRB.
Lab website: https://lab.jonesctr.org/golladay/research/
Mentor: Dr. Rebecca Bearden, Ecosystems Investigations Program, Geological Survey of Alabama
I am a biologist with the Geological Survey of Alabama researching restoration opportunities for watersheds harboring aquatic species of concern.
Mentor: Dr. Christina Staudhammer, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama
Forest Ecology, Quantitative Research Lab
Quantitative research is increasingly important to quantify change in ecological systems. RaMP participants in my lab will focus on developing statistical models using vegetation data, quantifying size and structure, as well as distributional differences in these natural systems, and quantifying uncertainty. We will concentrate on developing skills in data science, learning advanced programming skills to manipulate large datasets and exploring various modeling techniques. We will work together to answer questions about forested NEON sites, exploring changes across time and space, and in response to weather and/or disturbance.
Lab Website: https://cstaudhammer.people.ua.edu/
Co-mentors: Dr. Jeffery Cannon and Leah Andino, Forest Landscape Ecology, Jones Center at Ichauway
Landscape Ecology Lab - Disturbance ecology in longleaf pine
Forested ecosystems of the southeastern U.S. are situated along a coastline vulnerable to frequent hurricanes. Much research focuses on the ecological effects of catastrophic wind, but we know far less about how species and ecosystems adapt to chronic wind. Work in the lab will include surveying tree composition using a combination of field and remote sensing techniques. Mentees will process and interpret remotely-sensed data from terrestrial lidar. Mentees participating in independent projects will contribute to understanding the ecology and conservation of longleaf pine and will have the opportunity to interact with graduate students, post-docs, and faculty from across the southeast.
Lab website: https://lab.jonesctr.org/cannon
Mentor: Dr. Gregory Starr, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama
Climate, Biogeochemistry, and Plant Physiology Lab
My research focuses on understanding the controls over carbon, water, and energy fluxes through terrestrial ecosystems. This includes the interaction between abiotic and biotic processes and the feedback to global biogeochemical cycles and climate change. I am particularly interested in understanding these processes across multiple scales (e.g. internal plant signals to continental level carbon dynamics) using plant physiological ecology as a foundation for my research. My research makes use of the latest environmental instrumentation to understand the relationships among climate, biogeochemistry, and plant physiology.
Lab website: https://starrlab.ua.edu/
Mentor: Dr. Kier Klepzig, The Jones Center at Ichauway
Entomology & Microbiology Lab
Research in the entomology lab focuses on the health of southern forests, especially insect pests and fungal pathogens. The lab also studies the diversity and functions of insects in the biologically rich longleaf pine ecosystem. We study the many ways insects contribute to the overall health of the forest, both as pests and through beneficial roles. Mentees will work along graduate students studying a range of projects including pollinators, ant communities, and insect response to prescribed fire. Specific projects for RaMP participants may include, plant-pollinator interactions, eye gnat control methods, general insect diversity collection, and understanding fungal pathogens.
Co-mentors: Dr. Nick Marzolf and Jamie Rogers, The Jones Center at Ichauway
Aquatic Sciences Lab – Freshwater greenhouse gas emissions
Freshwater ecosystems play an important role in the global carbon (C) cycle, but there are large uncertainties that arise in quantifying C processes. The projects in the Aquatic Sciences Lab will focus on methods to measure C emissions from wetlands and rivers, using a variety of methods and instruments, and spend time in both the field and the lab. Participants will construct, install, deploy, and quality control continuous sensors and collect direct measures of C emissions from the freshwater ecosystems around Ichauway, combine emissions data with hydrologic and climate data, and develop field protocols for the lab.Lab website: https://lab.jonesctr.org/marzolf/
Co-mentors: Dr. Lora Smith and Jen Howe, The Jones Center at Ichauway
Herpetology Lab – Ecology of a keystone species
In the Herpetology lab we are currently studying the ecology of the gopher tortoise, a threatened keystone species whose burrows are used by hundreds of other organisms. As part of this study a mentee will assist with capture, marking, and release of gopher tortoises, and assessing their general body condition and health status. As an independent study, a mentee will investigate factors that affect the abundance of the gopher tortoise tick, an ectoparasite endemic to gopher tortoises and their burrows. Additional activities for mentees in our lab will include sampling two species of giant aquatic salamanders, the two-toed amphiuma and greater siren in seasonal wetlands.
Lab website: https://labs.jonesctr.org/smith
Co-mentors: Dr. David Mason and Lisa Giencke, The Jones Center at Ichauway
Plant Ecology Lab – Rare plant conservation
The Coastal Plain of the southeastern United States has been recognized as a global biodiversity hotspot. It is home to more than 5,000 species of plants, of which ~1,600 species are found nowhere else on Earth. Many of these species are considered rare, and the Plant Ecology lab works to document the abundance and distribution of these rare species, as well as to converse their seeds in our growing conservation seed bank. Mentees will assist with surveys and seed collections of some of these rare species (and possibly some more common ones as well). As an independent project, mentees will conduct germination and viability tests to develop protocols for propagating rare species.
Lab website: https://lab.jonesctr.org/giencke/
Co-mentors: Dr. Mike Conner and Gail Morris, The Jones Center at Ichauway
Wildlife Ecology Lab – Animal-habitat associations
In the wildlife lab, much of our research explores how predation risk influences prey (herbivore) behaviors, e.g., foraging and habitat selection, and how those behaviors affect vegetation response. Mentees in our lab will have opportunities to sample animal behavior using mark-recapture of small mammals, radio-tracking of northern bobwhite, camera trapping, automated behavioral recorders, and/or giving up densities (a method for quantifying perceived predation risk in a foraging animal). As an independent research project, mentees will use camera trapping to measure animal-habitat associations of multiple wildlife species.
Lab website: https://lab.jonesctr.org/conner/
Co-mentors: Dr. Josh Puhlick and Scott Taylor, The Jones Center at Ichauway
Ecological Silviculture Lab – Silvicultural strategies for enhancing carbon sequestration
Our lab is interested in developing silvicultural strategies for enhancing carbon accumulation in forests as a contribution to mitigating climate change. The mentee will conduct repeat measurements of live trees, dead wood, understory vegetation, and soils on permanent plots of the Adaptive Silviculture for Climate Change (ASCC) study at Ichauway. The mentee might work with PhD student Gabe Nyen on an independent project related to the ASCC study. Alternatively, the mentee might collaborate with PhD student Bryce Messer to explore how cattle can be used to supplement prescribed fire in longleaf pine ecosystems.
Lab website: https://lab.jonesctr.org/puhlick/
Project Scientist: Director of Strategic Development, Environment and Infrastructure:
National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), Battelle: Boulder Colorado
Dr. Hank Loescher
Micrometeorology and Eddy Covariance
Dr. Hank Loescher is the Director of Strategic Development in the Environment and Research Infrastructure section within Battelle, the world’s largest non-profit Research and Development organization. He was a prime NEON architect, and successfully led the NEON terrestrial, aquatic, and mobile observation designs. Broadly trained in Ecosystem Ecology, Fluid Dynamics, Biogeochemistry, and Project Management, he has 30+ years of experience architecting, creating vision and, managing and leading numerous scientific / engineering / innovation research projects.
Co- Mentors: Dr. Steven Brantley and Emma Marzolf
Ecohydrology Lab – Long-term trends in forest structure and growth
Prescribed fire is an essential part of longleaf ecosystem management that affects forest structure and the provision of ecosystem services, including water. In 2025, our lab will be resurveying 20 forest plots as part of a long-term project on the effects of prescribed fire and soil moisture on forest structure and function. The individual working on this project would have opportunities to use this long-term data set to look at trends in forest growth and structural changes under different fire frequencies across a soil moisture gradient. We are especially interested in the effect of mid-story density changes on tree growth, or other interactions between canopy layers.
Nicole Conner and Laura Nagel
National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON)
NEON monitors ecosystems across the United States. Freshwater ecosystems include streams, rivers, and lakes while terrestrial ecosystems span from deserts to tropical forests. Laura Nagel is an insect field ecologist and splits her time between NEON Domain 08 field science and overseeing the data associated with the ground beetle protocol with the science team at NEON headquarters. Nicole Conner is a senior member of the Domain 08 Aquatics Team. NEON’s database of terrestrial and aquatic measurements enables analyses of questions across regional and national scales.