PROJECTS
Awardee: Janine Fischer, Ph.D. candidate co-advised by Dr. Grether and Dr. Shier at UCLA, who is interested in how aggressive interference between species influences their coexistence and habitat use.
Awardee: Stella Yuan, first year Ph.D. student at UCLA, co-advised by Dr. Robert Wayne and Dr. Kirk Lohmueller. Stella is interested in the evolution of small or declining populations and hopes to use genomic and epigenomic tools to further conservation efforts.
Awardee: Benjamin Ha, Ph.D. student in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology in Dr. Dave Jacobs’ lab. Benjamin's general research interests are to understand how anthropogenic factors impact the genetics of marine populations and communities, and how research may be applied to inform marine conservation and policy.
Awardee: Samantha Snowden, Master’s student in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, co-advised by Greg Grether and Debra Shier. Samantha is interested in bridging ecological research and wildlife conservation.
Awardee: Robert Cooper, PhD student in the Shaffer and Grether labs. Robert uses genomics to understand the ecological and evolutionary consequences of recent hybridization between the endangered California tiger salamander and a non-native salamander.
Awardee: Erin Toffelmier, Ph.D. student in Brad Shaffer’s lab. Erin's research focuses on understanding the drivers of population declines in the Santa Barbara County populations of the California tiger salamander, Ambystoma californiense.
The western pond turtle is California’s only native freshwater turtle. The turtle’s numbers have been declining due to urbanization, limited water availability, and competition or predation from invasive species —…
UC Natural Reserve System research has laid the foundation for conserving species across the state. A prime example: UCLA professor Brad Shaffer’s work on California tiger salamanders was instrumental in…
Awardee: Brigit Harvey. Brigit is testing whether the critically endangered Pacific pocket mouse can be trained to consume the seeds of invasive species found across the San Diego County landscape to increase their foraging options in the wild.
Researchers at the La Kretz Center are developing a framework for protecting the genetic integrity of the endangered California tiger salamander from invasive non-natives.
At the La Kretz Center, scientists are working toward a win-win between green energy and endangered species conservation in the Mojave Desert.
Awardee: Kevin Neal. Kevin will be developing a set of genomic tools to use in a pilot study to analyze genetic connectivity of western spadefoot toad populations at the landscape level in Proctor Valley in San Diego County.
In addition to developing a recommendation for creating a self-sustaining population of western pond turtles in the wild, we hope that this project will serve as an educational tool for the nearby community.
Students: Jasneet Bains, Mario Colon, Maxwell Montrose, Vanessa Reyes, Warren Tan, Rachel Thompson, Janet Vu Client: The University of California’s Natural Reserve System Advisor: Dr. Brad Shaffer Final Report