From left, Molly R. Morris, Danielle D’ Amore, Hannah Griebling, M. Luke Weinstein, Neil Hamrick, and Meredith Fitschen-Brown.
Dr. Molly R. Morris, Professor of Biological Sciences, traveled with five Ohio University students to Milwaukee to presents at the Animal Behavior Society Meetings, Aug. 2-6
This international conference is attended each year by more than 600 participants from around the world. The research presented covers both basic and applied aspects of animal behavior, with talks and posters from laboratories that focus on one to several of Tinbergen’s four questions (1963, based on Aristotle’s four causes) about how and why animal’s behave: causal mechanisms, ontogeny (development), function (adaptation) and evolutionary history (phylogeny).
Danielle D’Amore presents at the conference.
Graduate student Danielle D’Amore (’18Ph.D.) presented a seminar on “Invasive process does not produce invasive syndrome.”
She was among 12 recent doctoral students selected to present a talk in the Allee Symposium on her dissertation work, which examined the behavioral predictors and the influence of the pet trade on the invasive success of the hybrid swordtail fish, Xiphophorus helleri-maculatus.
M. Luke Weinstein and Meredith Fitschen-Brown at the conference.
M. Luke Weinstein (’18 B.S. Biological Sciences), now a Ph.D. student at the University of Dayton, presented a poster titled “Optimizing Growth Rates to Increase Survival to Adulthood and Longevity in Xiphophorus multilineatus.” Additional authors are Melissa Liotta, Adam Hunt, Aaron Solitt and Morris from OHIO and Oscar Ríos-Cardenas of the Instituto de Ecologia.
Graduate student Meredith Fitschen-Brown presented a poster titled “Factors affecting variation in female mate-preference between two male reproductive tactics in Xiphophorus multilineatus.” Additional authors are Scarlett Tudor and Heather Hamlin from the University of Maine and undergraduate Jenna Shroyer and Morris from Ohio University.
Hannah Griebling with her poster.
Graduate student Hannah Griebling presented a poster titled “Evidence for Sexual Conflict in Cognitive Traits in Xiphophorus multilineatus.” Morris was an additional author.
“Attending the ABS conference gave me the opportunity to speak with top scientists in my field about both their and my own research,” says Griebling. “The experience was invaluable, and I am returning from the conference full of knowledge and inspiration!”
Neil Hamrick talks about his poster at conference.
Graduate student Neil Hamrick (’16 B.S. Marine, Freshwater and Environmental Biology) presented a poster titled “Variation in Female Mate Preference for Bold Males in the Swordtail Xiphophorus helleri.” Additional authors are D’Amore and Morris.
“It was great to be exposed to lots of new ideas from both inside and outside my previous areas of study. Experiencing the debate surrounding conflicting opinions about topics in animal behavior was the highlight of the trip for me,” says Hamrick. “It was also great getting feedback on my work, and ideas for future directions to take it in, from people who have a lot of experience in the field.”
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