Plant-Insect Chemical Ecology (master's research)

Effect of Experience on Insect Choice

more to come soon...

Fire Ecology (undergraduate research)

Effects of Fire Seasonality on Seed Germination

For my undergraduate research I explored how fire seasonality affected the germination of two rare plant (Ceanothus) species found in the central coast of California. By soaking seeds of both species in water prior to heating) in forced-convection ovens), we simulated conditions during a wet-season burn. As many fires are prescribed during the wet-season (winter in California) because they easier to control, it was important to see whether fires during this time of year would have a detrimental affect of these rare shrubs. While soaking increased germination for fresh seeds, older seeds were negatively impacted from soaking. Our results suggest that while wet-heat may increase germination, for seeds that are exposed to extended periods of heat or for those that are more likely to absorb water prior to heat (e.g., older seeds) wet heat (fires during the wet-season) may lead to increased mortality.