Warren Lab undergraduates Jodie Berezin and Christina Seymour completed senior thesis projects in the lab this semester, and we are so proud of them!

Jodie‘s research on male elephant social behavior in different parks and reserves in Tanzania is part of an ongoing project with the School for Field Studies, and she collected her data under the advisement of Dr. John Kioko. Jodie joined the Warren Lab as a field crew technician during the summer of 2017 to help with graduate student Kit Straley’s dissertation on the Wood Thrush, and she analyzed nest camera footage for parental behaviors during her last semester at UMass. Her passion for animal behavior and conservation is inspiring, and she shared that passion by presenting her elephant work at an undergraduate research conference this past month. Way to go, Jodie!

Christina‘s research focuses on the effects of urbanization on ectoparasite loads, anthropogenic nest materials, and nestling health in the House Wren. She joined the lab during the summer of 2017 as a field crew technician to help with graduate student Aaron Grade’s dissertation on the House Wren. She stayed on in the lab during the semester to begin dissecting the very nests she so carefully monitored during the summer. Conclusion: wrens are dirty messy birds. She persevered through thousands of mites, and helped the lab develop an assessment tool for mite loads which we will continue to use in the future. Today Christina did an excellent job presenting her findings to her program. Way to go, Christina!