Four students have been awarded Sigma Zeta Undergraduate Research Grants:
· Alissa Edjacin ’24 and Lexi Smith ’23 — $500 for “A Comparison of Microplastic Content in the Gastrointestinal Tracts versus Feces of Urban and Rural Tree and Ground Squirrels (Sciuridae)” in collaboration with Dr. Joseph Whittaker, associate professor of biology, and Dr. Jennifer Sweatman, assistant professor of biology
· Rhaegan Kiland ’23 — $470 for “Comparing Gut Microbiome Between Campus-Dwelling and Rural Squirrels” in collaboration with Grace Ivesdahl’ 23, Andie Kassenborg ’22, Dr. Ellen Aho, professor of biology; Dr. John Flaspohler, chair/associate professor biology; and Dr. Joseph Whitaker
· Maia Lieske ’24 — $500 for “Monitoring Urban Squirrel Activity and Drey Usage in Proximity to Anthropogenic Food Sources in Eastern Gray Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis), American Red Squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), and Northern Flying Squirrels (Glaucomys sabrinus)” in collaboration with Glory Godwin Lekashu ’23 and Amelia Landsverk ’23. A drey is a squirrel’s nest.
All three groups will have members traveling with Whittaker Feb. 21-22 to the Minnesota Chapter of the Wildlife Society meeting in Brainerd, Minn., where they will be presenting a status update on their research. They will also be traveling to Indianapolis in March for the 2023 Sigma Zeta National Convention.
The three projects stemmed from a Research Seminar offered during the fall. The biology department provided many of the resources up front, but Whittaker said the Sigma Zeta (along with Tri-Beta) funding will enable the students to complete the projects and produce results that can help further knowledge on these topics.
“I’m really proud of the effort they put into the Research Seminar class and the additional work they are continuing to put in to these projects,” Whittaker added. “Applying for these grants indicated a commitment to follow through with the projects and ultimately disseminate their findings.”
Whittaker also noted that no squirrels were “collected” (aka harmed) for any of these projects. The students are using roadkill, donations by hunters, and squirrels found deceased.
“Some of them even put together a network to provide the specimens using family members and friends scanning the roadsides,” Whittaker said.
Sigma Zeta is a national honor society that recognizes undergraduate excellence in the natural sciences, computer science, and mathematics.