Profile

• Time Zone

  Central

  
  
• Organization

  Field Museum

  
  
• Role

  Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online

  
  
• Research Interests (300 words)

  My primary interest is in the evolution of interactions between species. I am currently working with ant-plant interactions, but my background is in mycology (fungi).

  
  
• Profile Question 1

  Can you share a funny/interesting lab or field story?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 1 here (300 words):

  I was collecting lichens in Amazonian Peru when I felt something on my neck. It suddenly started hurting...more and more and more! I flicked it off and noticed it was a bullet ant. I was very disappointed as I thought I'd ruin our collecting trip, and dejectedly walked over to my group. Fortunately, one of them applied some lotion and the pain and swelling was very minimal. I think it was just a gentle warning sting as the subsequent effects were not at all like the horror stories I'd heard! Very relieved!

  
  
• Profile Question 2

  What is the coolest thing you have discovered or learned about plants?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 2 here (300 words):

  Some don't photosynthesize. I always think of plants as autotrophs - organisms able to make their own food. But some have lost the ability to photosynthesize and have become parasites of other plants! In doing so, they derive their nutrition from other plants. In fact, the largest flower in the world is made by a plant that can't photosynthesize (Rafflesia). Pretty cool in my book.

  
  
• Profile Question 3

  What is your favorite plant? Why?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 3 here (300 words):

  This is a very difficult question. I'm not sure this is my absolute favorite, but this is one of my favorites. It's a moss called Splachnum. This is a plant that lacks specialized water- (xylem) and food- (phloem) conducting cells. A couple things I find so cool about this is that it grows on poop from plant-eating mammals (herbivore dung) and that its spores are dispersed by insects, which is quite unusual for mosses! AND, it just looks beautiful!

  
  
• Availability

  I am NOT available, please temporarily remove me from the available mentor list