Check out my ongoing research projects
Autumn @ Wellesley
Conservation management
Breeding habitat for many bird species in North America is in decline as a result of climate and land use changes. Conservation areas tasked with protecting threatened bird populations often erect artificial nesting habitat to mitigate breeding habitat loss. However, by interfering in nest site selection, humans have the potential to draw birds to unsuitable habitats. I investigate the impacts of artificial nest boxes (like those pictured above) on breeding success in cavity nesting birds to identify management practices that may introduce bias into studies of reproduction in artificial nests as well as those that promote reproduction and survival.
Two proud Tree Swallows sit on an artificial nest box, a human-made structure in which they breed
Undergraduate-led work at Wellesley
Student researchers are currently examining the landscape and climate characteristics associated with success in Tree Swallow reproduction in MA conservation areas. We aim to determine how land use, human presence, and pressure from the invasive House Sparrow are related to phenology and productivity of Tree Swallow nests.
In the Spring of 2023, students in my lab conducted a campus-wide study of microclimates and spring leaf out phenology to document variation in the timing of leaf out across space, species, and temperature. They will continue this work in 2024, asking more questions about local-scale communities and phenological synchrony.
Check out more about student work (in their own words) on the “Lab members” page!
A glittery nailed researcher (me) holding a sample of insects
Insect phenology and abundance
Insects are underrepresented in climate change research, and with recent headlines threatening the dawn of an insect apocalypse, it is important to quantify shifts in insect ecology with climate. In addition to abundance of insects, I investigate shifts in insect phenology. Using a community-collected dataset of butterfly observations, I found that butterfly fall flight is extending later into the year for many, but not all MA species. I am currently studying abundance, phenology, and nutritional content of a broader range of aerial insects in an MA conservation area. Shifts in abundance or phenology of insects could have ecosystem-wide consequences, especially for the aerial insectivores who rely on flying insets for food during the breeding season.
Noise map of the Fenway area in Boston, MA made by community scientists (the loud spot in the upper center of the map is Fenway Park!)
Noise pollution monitoring
Noise is a pervasive form of pollution in urban areas that impacts the health and well-being of humans and wildlife. It is often difficult and expensive to monitor and map noise pollution, which limits the availability of noise data and excludes community members from engaging in monitoring efforts. I lead a project that demonstrates a low-cost noise monitoring method that both engages and educates community members and produces detailed noise maps using smartphones. In February 2021 my research group at BU published an undergrad-lead project quantifying the changes in sound levels in the Boston area during the COVID-19 pandemic using the same method.
A sweet, young (nonnative) honeysuckle leaf is a marker of New England spring
Controls and study of plant phenology
Though my current research focuses on birds and bugs, my roots lie in plant ecology. In addition to my own work on the controls of spring phenology, I regularly collaborate with amazing researchers on plant phenology projects. I was part of an undergrad-lead study that documented novel evergreen phenologies, and a review paper on low-cost methods in plant phenological research.
And just for fun, a drawing by a member of the Girl Scouts of Allston-Brighton depicting a singing Tree Swallow using a nest box
A young community scientist contributes biodiversity observations of Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary, MA in the spring of 1999