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Profile: Dr. Mary Burak and her conservation research in African savannas
Research highlight: elephant foraging cohesion study (Brian Gill et al.)The paper led by Brian Gill on individual-level tracking of elephant diets -- Foraging History of Individual Elephants Using DNA Metabarcoding -- was just published by Royal Society Open Science. We are very proud of this paper, which revisits a set of classic studies on seasonal diet switching by elephants using stable isotopes in hair that were led by coauthors Thure Cerling and George Wittemeyer. The work was made possible with support in the field from Save the Elephants and with the botanical expertise of coauthor Paul Musili from the National Museums of Kenya.
The paper was accompanied by a great summary by Corrie Pikul and featured on the Brown University homepage: Similar to Humans, Elephants Vary What they Eat for Dinner. The paper also attracted attention in the media, including interviews on BBC Television and Times Radio. Some nice coverage of the study was also provided by BBC (with hilarious photos), Newsweek, ZME Science, and The Times. Research highlight: CRISPR-linked DNA barcode sequencing (Bethan Littleford-Coluhoun et al.)Led by Bethan Littleford-Colquhoun, the Kartzinel Lab published a paper describes our efforts to repurpose CRISPR technology in ways that might help overcome persistent drawbacks to PCR and other targeted enrichment strategies in molecular ecology. This post provides a summary of the strategy we used and the lessons we learned in publishing A CRISPR-based strategy for targeted sequencing in biodiversity science at Molecular Ecology Resources. The article was originally posted as a BioRxiv preprint.
Research highlight: lizard “bite and seek” study (Thomas Patti et al.)An exciting paper from the lab on lizard behavior, let by (former) undergraduate all-star Thomas Patti, has been published in Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. The "Bite and Seek" paper focuses on the exploratory behaviors and bite force of the Podarcis lizard colony that we had on campus. Thomas and the team tested an extensive series of hypotheses about the relationship between behaviors observed in populations of this non-native lizard species and the recency of population establishment. All else equal, propensity for exploration might be expected to facilitate the establishment of new populations -- lizards have to explore at least a little to get somewhere new -- and thus recently founded populations should comprise groups of explorers. Not so in nature, Thomas reports, and this requires us to take a more nuanced view of behavioral 'syndromes' as sets of traits and behaviors that may be associated with invasion potential and success in non-native species. Great work Thomas, Colin, Andy, and Caroline!
Caroline Dressler wins the James F. Kidwell Prize in Genetics & Population Biology
Andy Luo wins Fulbright ScholarshipCongratulations to Andy Luo for a 2023 Fulbright Scholarship! On top of completing his Honors thesis and preparing to graduate, Andy can look forward to joining the amazing community of Fulbright scholars. During his program, Andy plans to teach English in Taiwan -- an amazing opportunity for a top-notch student.
Brown is typically among the top Fulbright-producing universities and Andy is the third Honors student from the lab to earn one. Amazing! Research highlight: paper in African Journal of Ecology (Robert Ang'ila et al.)Robert Ang'ila published Fine-scale variation in soil and topography influences herbaceous vegetation and the distribution of large mammalian herbivores based on his Masters research in African Journal of Ecology! Robert's paper reports on spatial associations between the abundance and diversity of wildlife and understory plant communities across the massive CTFS-ForestGEO plot at Mpala Research Centre in Kenya. The work highlights how fine-scale variation in soil and topography can shape plant-herbivore interaction networks that play out over much broader scales. Great work, Robert!
Bethan Littleford-Colquhoun wins 2023 Postdoctoral Excellence Award
Beth’s scientific research is world-class. She is developing cutting-edge CRISPR-based techniques that are poised to become foundational tools in the fields of molecular ecology, food web ecology, and conservation biology. While other research wunderkinds sequester themselves, Beth has done just the opposite; she is the linchpin of the Kartzinel lab. She has expertly mentored numerous graduate and undergraduate students in the lab, but her standout achievement was in BIOL1515/2015 last Fall where she masterfully blended cutting-edge science research with creative learn-by-doing pedagogy. Beth gave those students access to authentic and impactful research experiences in the classroom that are wholly unique. I have no doubt that every undergrad from that class that goes on to a career in science will point to that semester as a pivotal experience Research highlight: Phylosymbiosis in host-microbiome interactions in Molecular Ecology (Bianca Brown et al.)Bianca Brown published a paper entitled Host phylogeny and functional traits differentiate gut microbiomes in a diverse natural community of small mammals in Molecular Ecology. This paper was the result of a major collaborative effort that benefited from Bianca's insight, creativity, and leadership. This post summarizes the paper that emerged from the Kartzinel Lab's long-term research on food webs in African savannas.
Fieldwork: first giant armadillos studied in ArgentinaEzequiel Vanderhoeven from the Kartzinel Lab at Brown University participated in the capture of the first two Giant Armadillos from Argentina. The animals were sampled and outfitted with tracking devices to understand more about the health and ecology of their population. This amazing species is very rare, and its global population is listed as Vulnerable and Declining on the Red List of Endangered Species. Knowledge of how they move and find enough to eat in their modern habitats will be essential for developing lasting conservation strategies.
An article was published entitled, "Rosenda, la primera tatú carreta monitoreada en el Chaco" Research highlight: lizard team publishes natural history note (Colin Donihue et al.)There is a fascinating population of Italian Wall Lizards living in Boston's Fenway Gardens. Even during the height of the pandemic, members of the Lizard Team were able to do some fieldwork observing and tracking the lizard population at this novel site for the species. In the first of several publications the team is leading from this time, we recently published a Natural History Note in Herpetological Review describing a couple of instances of avian predation observed: a hawk and a grackle separately preyed on individuals from this population. The population has only been around for a short number of years, and there are no native lizards in this region, so this represented novel predatory behaviors on a no-analog lizard population in the region. Scroll to page 500 of this Issue of Herpetological Review for some interesting observation and incredible photos published!
Research highlight: News & Views published in Molecular Ecology (Bethan Littleford-Colquhoun et al.)Led by Bethan Littleford-Colquhoun, the Kartzinel Lab published a strong, thoughtful, and evidence-based reply to an earlier comment in Molecular Ecology: Evidence-based strategies to navigate the complexity of dietary DNA.
The take-home: there are a lot of challenges and opportunities when it comes to using dietary DNA metabarcoding strategies to advance a variety of important research agendas; Beth is leading the way when it comes to clear-thinking about how we conduct our studies and how we can strengthen the evidence we use to support our conclusions. Dr. Haldre Rogers joins a class at Brown University
Profile: Hannah Hoff and her work on Yellowstone plant-herbivore interactions
Lab in action at Yellowstone National Park
Research highlight: review about dietary DNA published in Molecular Ecology (Bethan Littleford-Coluqhoun et al.)The Kartzinel Lab led an Open Access review in Molecular Ecology to help you avoid one of the most common mistakes we see in dietary DNA metabarcoding studies. Learn about why "abundance thresholds" may not always be appropriate to use in bioinformatic pipelines, and how to be careful about interpreting them when they are used. Our paper -- The precautionary principle and dietary DNA metabarcoding: commonly used abundance thresholds change ecological interpretation -- was highlighted by the Editorial Board of Molecular Ecology for its contribution to key discussions on this important topic.
Ezequiel Vanderhoeven receives Rufford Foundation awardCongratulations to Dr. Ezequiel Vanderhoeven for your Rufford Foundation Grant! Ezequiel plans to study infectious diseases circulating in populations of armadillo species native to the Argentinian Chaco. The goal of the study is to understand how diseases impact populations of these species for the benefit of conservation and to support local governments and communities in the adoption of environmental practices that minimize the risk of spillover. It is an extremely important and ambitious project. The Rufford award not only provides crucial financial support, but also represents a valuable endorsement of the work from a leading international authority on applied conservation biology.
Feature: Bianca Brown in Brown Alumni MagazineBianca Brown was featured as one of seven "exceptional alumni" profiled by the Brown Alumni Magazine in 2021. As quoted below, the article "Emerging Victorious" features seven of the many exemplary students who thrived and graduated despite the pandemic. It's a very fitting and well deserved highlight for Bianca, who we are incredibly proud to have had as the first PhD to fledge from the lab. Congratulations, Bianca, we can't wait to see all the good you do in your life and career!
Research highlight: new paper in Journal of Animal Ecology (Tyler Kartzinel et al.)
Profile: Chrishen Gomez joins the lab
Papers on diet-microbiome linkages in humans and wildlife published in tandem
Research highlight: paper featured on the cover of Nature (Robert Pringle et al.)
Two seniors awarded Fulbright scholarshipsWe could not be more proud of Ashley Bang (DEEPs, left) and Molly Magid (EEB, right), two seniors completing Honors theses in the lab: both recipients of the 2019 Fulbright Scholarship! Ashley is destined for Singapore and Molly for New Zealand. We have been lucky to work with rising stars, and we look forward to seeing them amplify their research and conservation impacts around the world!
2019 Diamondback terrapin conservation genetics field seasonAmanda Lyons and Bianca Brown braved the rainy weather to kick off our terrapin field season. Diamondback terrapins are the only "critically imperiled" reptile in Rhode Island, and a major conservation priority for the state. Amanda and Bianca were joined by our collaborators from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and The Roger Williams Park Zoo. Our research goal is to understand how genetically interconnected are the remaining few terrapin populations in the state, and relatedness to populations from neighboring states. This research is supported in part by a 2019 Voss Undergraduate Research Fellowship in Environmental Science and Communication to Amanda Lyons. Congratulations Amanda, and thanks IBES for supporting this research.
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