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Elizabeth Hunter |
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B.S. Botany and Environmental Studies 2006 Univerisity of Wisconsin-Madison
M.S. Conservation Biology Exp. 2011 SUNY-ESF |
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305 Illick Hall Department of Environmental Forest Biology SUNY– College of Environmental Science and Forestry Syracuse, NY 13210
E-mail: ehunte01@syr.edu Cell: (402) 314-2742 |
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MASTERS CANDIDATE |
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EDUCATION |
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RESEARCH |
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My interests in ecology have always centered around how plant and animal communities interact: how plants provide habitat to animals and how animals can affect plant communities through processes like herbivory and seed dispersal. As a conservation biologist, I am interested in how human activities impact these interactions, if and how organisms can adapt to human stresses, and whether management can mediate humanity’s detrimental impacts on biodiversity. For my Master’s research, I will be studying the interactions between Galapagos giant tortoises and their environment in a group of introduced tortoises on Pinta island. Pinta is home to the famous “Lonesome George”, the last of his subspecies. Without the presence of a large herbivore population, the vegetation on Pinta has become overgrown with woody shrubs, which is a threat to several endemic plant species. In an effort to see if giant tortoises can halt the vegetation regime shift, the Galapagos National Park will be releasing a group of tortoises to Pinta this spring. I will be studying the interactions between the released tortoises and the vegetation community, particularly how tortoise movement decisions affect and are affected by the surrounding environment. This work will help to inform the Park on the utility of any future reintroduction efforts on Pinta. I will be in the Galapagos May-August 2010.
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Subduing an American Alligator in Titusville, FL. |
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A radio-tagged Black Rail in Browns Valley, CA. |
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Desert Tortoise, Mojave Desert. |
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Awesome moth, Costa Rica. |
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Cattail marsh, Louisiana. |
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Violet-green Swallow, California. |