Fall 2016

Unless otherwise noted below, seminars are held on Fridays at 2 p.m. in Room 303 Shoemaker Hall.

Aug. 26	No Seminar
Sept. 2	Dr. Lou Zachos, Associate Professor, Geology and Geological Engineering, University of Mississippi, “Lebensspuren in a Bay of Fundy macro-tidal environment: their paleoenvironmental significance” (hosted by Dr. Ryan Garrick and Dr. Beckie Symula)
Sept. 9	Dr. Keith Bowers, Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences, University of Memphis, “Silver spoons, sexy sons, and the evolution of parental care” (hosted by Dr. Erik Hom)
Sept. 16	Dr. Ami Lokhandwala, Post-doc, Biology, University of Mississippi, “Glomus geosporum MBAL: establishment, identification and priming” (hosted by Dr. Jason Hoeksema)
Sept. 23	Dr. Sara Ruane, Post-doc, Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, “Understanding Malagasy snake systematics: A comparison of traditional and next generation sequencing datasets for species-tree estimation” (hosted by Ph.D. candidate Tim Colston)
Sept. 26                         (Monday, 2pm)	Jessica Heppard, MS student thesis prospectus, “Impact of habitat modification and human disturbance on the basking behavior of the endangered Ringed Map Turtle (Graptemys oculifera)” (Dr. Richard Buchholz)
Sept. 30	Dr. Caroline Tucker, Post-doc, Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive,CNRS, Montpellier, “Understanding biodiversity in a variable world” (hosted by BGSS)
Oct. 7	Dr. Mark Welch, Associate Professor, Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, “Transcribed microsatellites may generate heritable variation for rapid adaptive change” (hosted by Dr. Erik Hom)
Oct. 14	Dr. Nathan Havill, Research Entomologist, Forest Service – Northern Research Station, USDA, “The impact of hybridization between native and non-native insects for invasive forest pest management” (hosted by Dr. Ryan Garrick and Dr. Beckie Symula)
Oct. 17                      (Monday, 2pm)	Lauryn Sperling, MS student thesis prospectus, “Investigating cell cycle regulation in Brevundimonas subvibrioides: How does it compare to the Caulobacter crescentus model?” (Dr. Patrick Curtis)
Oct. 21	Dr. Jennifer Lamb, Post-doc, Biological Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, “Lungless salamanders in the Gulf coastal plain: from ecology to genetics” (hosted by Dr. Ryan Garrick, Dr. Beckie Symula, and Ph.D. candidate Stephanie Burgess)
Oct. 28	Dr. Nicole Ashpole, Assistant Professor, Department of Biomolecular Sciences, University of Mississippi, “Elucidating the Role of Growth Hormone and IGF-1 in the Aging Brain” (hosted by Dr. Ryan Garrick and Dr. Beckie Symula)
Nov. 4	Dr. Kevin Kohl, Post-doc, Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, “Friends for life: gut microbes allow mammalian herbivores to consume toxic plants” (hosted by Dr. Colin Jackson and Ph.D. candidate Tim Colston)
Nov. 11	Dr. John Abbott, Director of Research & Collections, Alabama Museum of Natural History, “The Role of Citizen Science in Odonatology and other Organismal Fields” (hosted by Dr. Ryan Garrick and Dr. Beckie Symula)
Nov. 16                      (Wednesday, 3pm)	Ann Rasmussen, Ph.D. student dissertation defense, “Community ecology of soil microbes in southeast USA oak-pine woodlands” (Dr. Jason Hoeksema)
Nov. 18	Dr. Heather Jordan, Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, “Mysteries of Pathogenesis, transmission, and ecology of Mycobacterium ulcerans”
Nov. 25	No Seminar – Thanksgiving Break
Nov. 28                (Monday, 2pm)	Kartick Shirur, Ph.D. student dissertation defense, “Biochemical responses of Caribbean gorgonian corals to ambient and stressful conditions” (Dr. Tammy Goulet)
Nov. 28               (Monday, 3pm)	Caleb Dodd, M.S. student thesis prospectus, “The Effects of Sub-lethal Acidity on Cope’s Gray Tree Frog (Hyla chrysoscelis) Behavior” (Dr. Richard Buchholz)
Nov. 30 (Room 225, Wednesday, 9am)	Sean Moyer, M.S thesis defense, “Is plant species richness or species identity more important in the competitive suppression of the invasive grass Microstegium vimineum?” (Dr. Stephen Brewer)
Nov. 30         (Wednesday, 2pm)	Tyler Breech, M.S thesis prospectus, “Testing potential chemical camouflage in Aphredoderus sayanus: can pirate perch cloak their presence?” (Dr. William Resetarits)
Nov. 30 (Wednesday, 2:30pm)	Sarah Crocker-Buta, M.S thesis defense, “Stress, sexual signaling, and alternative mating tactics in male green treefrogs, Hyla cinerea” (Dr. Chris Leary)
Nov. 30            (Wednesday, 3:30pm)	Amber Horning, M.S thesis prospectus, “Resource exchange prices and context dependency of Pinus taeda ectomycorrhizal mutualisms” (Dr. Jason Hoeksema)
Dec. 2	Dr. Suzanne McGaugh, Assistant Professor, Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, “Blind cavefish provide big insights” (hosted by Dr. Ryan Garrick and Dr. Beckie Symula)