Featured News

Fall 2022 Seminar Series with Dr. Stephen T. Jackson - USGS, University of Arizona, and University of Wyoming

Support from UW’s Biodiversity Institute’s Research Grant enabled me to complete my dissertation on Asian elephant personality and problem solving in the Program in Ecology and the Department of Zoology & Physiology. As part of this work, I assessed links between personality and cognition in captive elephants at the San Diego Zoo, Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park, and the Oklahoma City Zoo.

My career as a conservation research biologist was jumpstarted by the generous biodiversity grant, I received as a graduate student. The Biodiversity Grant provided me with an opportunity to develop foundational skills that I am applying in other systems of conservation concern and prepared me for my next steps as a scientist and conservation advocate.

I received a Biodiversity Institute Research Grant in 2015, to aid in my dissertation research on Colorado River basin suckers (fish) in Wyoming and Colorado. My BI-funded research focused on identifying ecological roles of hybrid fish - i.e., fish produced when two species interbreed.

We are pleased to announce the publication of K-12 educational materials on the Global Vegetation Project website. This project was developed to fill a need for more resources to teach vegetation ecology online. The vision for this project is to curate a global database of open-access vegetation photos that can be used by educators around the world. We realized that while K-12 educators were interested in using the platform, they were constrained by curricular demands. These educational materials are designed in alignment with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and are readily adaptable for educators to use them in their classrooms. We believe these materials are relevant for educators in any setting, whether they teach with NGSS or are simply looking for a new, innovative way to teach topics in ecology. It is our hope that the Global Vegetation Project is able to bring vegetation ecology into classrooms in a manner that was not previously accessible.

In Wyoming, when we think of an umbrella species, we usually think of sage grouse. In 2014, the BI helped to fund the research of Jason Carlisle, then a PhD student at the University of Wyoming, which looked at whether umbrella species conservation was working to protect species that share habitat with greater sage grouse. His results were eye-opening for many biologists and conservationists.

Since its inception in 2012, the BI has been in the business of supporting world-class biodiversity science, especially that being done by UW’s most talented students. As our 10th anniversary nears, we’re taking a look at some of those students today - where they’ve gone and what they have achieved.

The Rocky Mountain Amphibian Project (RMAP) began including community scientists in amphibian monitoring in Wyoming and Colorado in 2014. Since then, more than 320 community scientists have contributed data to this long-term monitoring project.