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Graduate students
currently conducting thesis research for the M.S. degree at
Villanova University under the direction of Dr. Robert L. Curry
- Jennifer Mortensen
Jen is studying the
conservation ecology of the endangered White-breasted Thrasher (Ramphocinclus
brachyurus) on the island of St. Lucia, Lesser Antilles. She expects to
complete her thesis in late 2008
- Wendy Lenhart
Wendy works as a Keeper
at the Philadelphia Zoo. Her thesis project is focusing on song repertoires in
Carolina Chickadees.
- Winner of Philadelphia Zoo research award, 2006
- Winner of American Society of Zoo Keepers travel award, 2006
- Jessica Trout-Haney
Jess joined the
lab in August, 2006. She studying the genetic mating system of the Boreal
Chickadee in southwestern Nova Scotia
- Winner of Villanova Graduate Student Research Award, Summer 2007
- Winner of Paul A. Stewart Student Research grant, Wilson Ornithological
Society, 2007
- Christopher Meehan
Chris is completing
Villanova's BS-MS combined 5-year degree program. His thesis project focuses on
a newly discovered twist on a plant-animal interaction, with fieldwork in
Mexico. He expects to complete his thesis in the fall of 2008.
- Winner of
Animal Behavior Society research grant, 2007
- Winner of Sigma Xi Grant-in-Aid of Research, April 2007
- Winner of Villanova Graduate Student Research Award, Summer 2007
- Winner of Villanova Undergraduate Student Research Award, Summer 2006
- Amanda Nicodemus
Amanda is studying
the behavioral ecology of chickadees across the Pennsylvania contact zone. She
is examining relationships between dominance, mate choice, and genetic identity
at Nolde Forest. She expects to complete her thesis in late 2006.
- Josh LaPergola
Josh began our program
in Fall, 2007. He is conducting research on cooperative breeding and mating
system of the Black Catbird on Cozumel and mainland Yucatan .
- Winner of Villanova Graduate Student Research Award, Summer 2008
- Stephanie Wright
Stephanie began our
program in Fall, 2007. She is developing plans for further study of songs in the
chickadee hybrid zone.
Undergraduate students currently conducting Senior
Thesis research or independent study at Villanova under the direction of Dr.
Robert L. Curry:
- Laura Ceccacci
Laura is examining
relationships between male parental care and parentage patterns in Carolina
Chickadees
- Winner of Villanova Undergraduate Student Research Award, Summer 2007
- Karen Zusi
Karen is investigating
the social and genetic mating systems of Swainson's Thrushes in southwestern
Nova Scotia
- Winner of Villanova Undergraduate Student Research Award, Summer 2008
Masters students who have completed their
M.S. degree at Villanova University under Dr. Curry's direction:
- Samantha Slattery
Sam examined
relationships between song repertoires, male genetic identity, and reproductive
success in the chickadee hybrid zone in Pennsylvania.
- Winner of Sigma Xi Grant-in-Aid of Research, October 2007
- Winner
of Villanova Graduate Student Research Award, Summer 2007
- Winner of Villanova Undergraduate Student Research Award, Spring
2006
- Lindsay Zemba
Lindsay is studying the
behavioral ecology of chickadees across the Pennsylvania contact zone. She is
examining relationships between dominance, mate choice, and genetic identity at
Hawk Mountain Sanctuary. She expects to complete her thesis in late 2006.
- Luke Pilipski
Luke conducted
independent work, focusing the diet of the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus)
in Pennsylvania.
Luke is currently a lab technician for a biotechnology company in Pennsylvania.
- Sue Guers
Sue's thesis, based on
fieldwork in 2002-2004, focused on the effects of forest fragmentation on
reproductive success of Black-capped Chickadees (and hybrids) at Hawk Mountain
Sanctuary.
Sue is currently Biologist II/Migration Program Manager for the Alaska Bird
Observatory.
- Matt Reudink
Matt studied the
molecular ecology of chickadees in 2002-2004. His work focused on microsatellite
DNA as a marker for parentage analysis and genotyping of birds within the
Pennsylvania contact zone, and on patterns of extra-pair mating in relation to
genetic identity of males and females.
Matt is currently a doctoral student at Queen's University, studying links
between mating system and wintering biology in American Redstarts.
- Chris Valligny
Chris investigated the
effects of an extraordinary winter fire on foraging and territorial behavior of
Florida Scrub-Jays at Archbold Biological Station. He is currently continuing
work on FSJs, as part of a state-wide analysis of genetic diversity in the
species. Chris was supported while conducting field study by an
Archbold Biological Station internship. Chris is now working as a Research
Assistant at Archbold, where he is involved in a state-wide study of Florida
Scrub-Jays.
Chris currently works for an environmental consulting company in
Pennsylvania.
- Lindsay Rossano
Lindsay's M.S. project
advanced our understanding of the Black-capped / Carolina Chickadee contact
zone. Her project is focused on vocalizations, and especially on variability in
repertoire composition (including both whistled songs and 'chick-a-dee' calls)
at the individual level, within the hybrid zone.
Lindsay currently works for an environmental consulting company in Pennsylvania.
- Kerri Cornell
Kerri contributed to the Pennsylvania part of the Black-capped / Carolina
Chickadee project. She focused on decreased hatching success resulting from
hybridization, and on parentage patterns that could obscure the story. Her work
involved field study of nesting success, analysis of microsatellite DNA, and
PCR-based methods for sexing nestlings.
Kerri received her Ph.D. from the School of Natural Resources at the
University of Vermont in 2006. She is currently a post-doctoral fellow in
Conservation Biology at the College of William & Mary.
- Sean Mullen
Sean completed his thesis project on genetics and morphology of hybridizing
Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile atricapilla) and Carolina Chickadees (P.
carolinensis) in southeastern Pennsylvania. He focused on developing
PCR-based methods for determining the genetic status of birds adjacent to, and
within, the contact zone. Sean recently received his PhD from the Department of
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University, working under the
direction of Dr. Richard Harrison.
Sean received his Ph.D. from Cornell University in 2004. He is currently an
Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at Lehigh University.
- Ilonka Von Lippke
Ilonka completed her study of Española Mockingbirds (Nesomimus macdonaldi)
in the Galápagos Islands, with the goal of assessing the roles of dominance and
within-group conflict on reproductive success in a complex cooperative breeding
system. Ilonka's work concentrated on analysis of microsatellite DNA variation.
Here's a photograph of her study beast!
Ilonka is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Ecology and
Evolutionary Biology at UCLA.
- Liz Borst (1998)
Liz studied social and demographic factors affecting laying date and clutch size
in Florida Scrub-Jays (Aphelocoma coerulescens ). Her work combined
analysis of long-term data collected for more than 25 years at Archbold
Biological Station by Glen Woolfenden and colleagues and field study of the
timing of breeding by newly forming versus previously established jay
pairs. She was supported while conducting field study by an
Archbold Biological Station internship.
- Joel Greshock (1998)
Joel investigated habitat use by northern water snakes (Nerodia sipedon
sipedon ) in southeastern Pennsylvania. His project combined radiotelemetry
of snakes in the field and geographic information systems (GIS) analysis of
habitat use in relation to habitat availability.
Joel is currently a data analyst with Glaxo SmithKline.
- Lee Walton (1997)
Lee focused on nest
site selection in Florida Scrub-Jays
(Aphelocoma coerulescens ), and particularly on the effects of
fragmentation-induced changes in habitat structure on nest placement and
success. Lee was supported while conducting field study by an
Archbold Biological Station internship.
Lee is currently a Senior Ecologist for Biological Research Associates, an
environmental consulting firm in Tampa, Florida.
- Juan E. Martínez-Gómez
(1995)
Juan completed the first detailed population study of the
critically endangered Socorro Mockingbird,
Mimodes graysoni. This species is endemic to a single island (Socorro) in
the Revillagigedo Archipelago, MÈxico. It has declined drastically in numbers
since about 1950. Juan's work suggests that habitat disruption caused by
introduced sheep may have been the primary cause of the decline, with predation
by feral cats also a factor. Here's more about
Juan's thesis, and about the
Revillagigedo Archipelago.
Juan completed his Ph.D. in the Department of Biology at the University of
Missouri at St. Louis in 2007, working under the direction of Dr. Robert E.
Ricklefs. He is currently a Postdoctoral Research at the Institute of Ecology in
Xalapa, Mexico. Juan and I continue to collaborate; we are working together now
on the conservation ecology of the critically endangered
Cozumel Thrasher.
Other Masters students who have worked under Dr. Curry's direction:
- Sharon Hill
Sharon studied the
behavioral ecology of chickadees across the Pennsylvania contact zone. She
followed up on prior work by Lindsay Rossano, focusing on the acoustic structure
of calls or Carolina Chickadees and Black-capped Chickadees.
- Katy Friggle-Norton
Katy completed
field study of nesting success of Gray Catbirds (Dumetella carolinensis )
in southeastern Pennsylvania. Her goal was to determine whether forest
fragmentation of this edge-nesting passerine negatively impacts reproductive
success, as it does for other interior-nesting songbirds.
- Cathy Viverette
Cathy completed field
study of environmental factors affecting reproductive success of Ovenbirds (Seiurus
aurocapillus ) at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Pennsylvania.
Undergraduate students who have completed Senior Thesis
research at Villanova in the past under the direction of Dr. Curry:
- Andy McGann (2007, Biology)
Andy
examined social dominance and flock structure in Carolina Chickadees
- Nick Weber (2005, Comprehensive Science &
Honors)
Nick explored improved microsatellite markers for
distinguishing between Black-capped and Carolina chickadees.
- Steve VanPelt (2005, Biology & Honors)
Steve followed up on Jerri Cornell's previous study of Haldane's Rule in
hybridizing chickadees.
- Alice Ruscica (2004, Biology)
Alice
used microsatellite DNA to further investigate parentage patterns in Carolina
Chickadees at Great Marsh, focusing particularly on variation among years in the
frequency of extra-pair offspring (EPO).
- Christina Yuan (2003, Biology & Honors)
Christina used microsatellite DNA to investigate parentage patterns in Carolina
Chickadees at Great Marsh.
- Ryan Zitnay (2003, Biology)
Ryan's thesis involved using mtDNA and microsatellite DNA to investigate
introgression of Carolina Chickadee genes into the Black-capped Chickadee
population at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary. She also used microsatellite DNA to
evaluate parentage patterns and genetic diversity.
- Mina Innes (2002, Biology & Honors) Mina's
Senior Thesis involved using GIS to map habitats in our chickadee hybrid zone
study followed by analysis of nest-site selection as a function of variation in
habitat types.
- Leanna Massarelli (2001, Biology)
Leanna contributed to the Pennsylvania part of the Black-capped / Carolina
Chickadee project. She focused on the match, or lack thereof, between each
male's genotype and the type of song that he sings. The project involved field
observations and recording of songs, and labwork to determine the genetics of
each individual.
- Matt Rea (2000, Biology)
Matt
contributed to our study of the critically endangered
Socorro Mockingbird, Mimodes graysoni. This species, endemic to a
single island (Socorro) in the Revillagigedo Archipelago, has declined
drastically in numbers since about 1950. Matt used GIS and remote sensing data
to investigate the degree to which the surviving Socorro Mockingbirds are
limited by habitat availability.
- Junior author of poster at the
2000 Society for Conservation Biology conference, University of Montana.
- Cheryl Zecchine (1999, Honors program)
Cheryl focused on genetic methods for sexing Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile
atricapillus) and Carolina Chickadees (P. carolinensis) in
southeastern Pennsylvania.
- Melanie Jenter (1999, Biology)
Melanie investigated genetic methods for sexing
Florida Scrub-Jays.
- Kevin Klesh (1998, Honors Program)
Reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act
- Chadd Criddle (1998, BSC)
Territory occupancy of Black-capped and Boreal Chickadees in southwestern Nova
Scotia
- Jill Wotanis (1998, Biology)
Geography of the contact zone between Black-capped and Carolina Chickadees in
southeastern Pennsylvania.
- Junior co-author of oral presentation at the 1999 Wilson Ornithological
Society annual meeting, Colby College.
- Terry Leland (1996, Honors program)
Historical patterns of confier invasion of serpentine barrens in Maryland:
analysis using GIS
- Cathy Ciarimboli (1996, Biology)
Invasion of serpentine barrens by pitch pine at
Nottingham County Park, Pennsylvania
- Connie Gasda (1994, Biology)
Brood division by Northern Mockingbirds
- Michele Hannon (1992, Biology)
Effects of fire suppression on Florida Scrub-Jays:
food availability and habitat structure in long-unburned habitat at Archbold
Biological Station
- Bryan Spohn (1992, Honors program)
Abiotic edge effects on foraging behavior of woodland birds in Pennsylvania.
Bryan went on to receive his M.S. in Biology from the University of Kentucky in
1995, and his Ph.D. in Biology, also from the University of Kentucky, in 2000.
He is currently an instructor at Lexington Community College. |
