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Faculty Honored at College Awards Banquet

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The 2019 College of Arts and Sciences Faculty Awards banquet took place Thursday, December 5 at the Holiday Inn Downtown. From Diversity Leadership to awards in research, advising, and teaching, the annual awards banquet honors faculty excellence in all areas of the college mission.

Elizabeth Derryberry, Charlie Kwit, and Beth Schussler received awards for their work in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

“As we recognize particularly outstanding faculty this evening, I want to thank all of our faculty in the college, individually and collectively, for everything you do— your teaching, research, service on college and university committees, thesis committees, and tenure and promotion committees, and service to the public through community engagement,” said Theresa Lee, dean of the college and emcee for the awards ceremony. “A college can be no greater or stronger than its faculty and the College of Arts and Sciences is a college of excellence because each of you has a passion for our profession and you work selflessly to make our students, departments and university the best they can be.”

derryberry

Elizabeth Derryberry, associate professor, received a Mid-Career Award for Research and Creative Achievement. Derryberry’s research focuses on passerine bird evolution and bird songs – important topics that are notoriously difficult to study. Her exciting project on the effects of human-mediated noise in urban environments on bird song demonstrate both changes in song parameters in response to noise and consequences for ecosystem fitness. Derryberry is the author of more than 50 highly cited papers and an associate editor for two prestigious journals: Evolution and Journal of Animal Behavior. Her work is top-notch, broad-thinking, impactful science at its best. She is an outstanding student mentor and passionate about her outreach to increase opportunities for girls and women in science.

kwit

Charlie Kwit, professor and joint faculty in EEB and the Department of Forestry, Wildlife, and Fisheries in the Herbert College of Agriculture, received the Academic Outreach Award for Teaching. His work to promote natural history knowledge in the Southeast exemplifies academic outreach in teaching. This year, he received a grant to increase HBCU representation to the Southeastern Chapter of the Ecological Society of America and support students engaged in the work of the Society. He also organized a session at the annual ESA meeting that spotlighted the biodiversity of the Southeast and the challenges we face in maintaining that rich biological heritage. Kwit also fosters UT students in outreach through clubs and courses. Students in his class experience the very best of what is intended as part of the new Experience Learning efforts. They see the utility of what they are learning, enriching their engagement with the material, while also helping to build relationships between UT and the community that strengthen the institution.

schussler

Beth Schussler, professor, received the James R. and Nell W. Cunningham Teaching Award, the college’s highest teaching honor. There are no specific requirements listed for the award, but there are some things that are typical of the winners. One, excellence in the classroom. Schussler is highly praised by students and peers for her work in some of the more demanding biology courses. Two, contributions to excellence in others. Schussler supervised the lecturers and GTAs in the general biology courses, and helped train the GTAs, which came from all three of the departments in the Division of Biology. Finally, contributions to teaching beyond their courses and department. Schussler has organized workshops on teaching for STEM departments, and continues to be involved with nation-wide efforts and grants helping to improve biology and STEM instruction.

Congratulations to our Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology faculty award winners.

Harvey Publishes Article on Speciation

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Michael Harvey

Mike Harvey, a postdoctoral fellow in the UT Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, published an article titled “Beyond Reproductive Isolation: Demographic Controls on the Speciation Process” in the Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics.

The article is a review of the past method of determining the cause of speciation – the process of how new species form. Harvey points out in the article there are other ways to determine the causes that lead to the creation of new species besides reproductive isolation, including the isolation and persistence of certain species populations. 

“Initially, you have one population, and something happens to split that population into two,” Harvey said. “Those two populations need to persist for a long time. If they go extinct, the populations will not survive long enough for reproductive isolation to evolve between them.”

 Harvey outlines the process of speciation in the article, focusing on the role of population isolation and persistence as catalysts for new species.

“We’re not providing new data,” Harvey said. “We’re describing a new way to approach or way to look at how new species form.”

Harvey hopes the article will encourage more researchers to collaborate and to step back and look at other causes of speciation.

“I hope it’s going to get more researchers thinking about being collaborative and integrated in the way they do research. Not just focus on what they do, but maybe reach across different fields and draw from other types of data and research,” Harvey said. “Taking a step back and considering these other parts of the process could be really important.”

Co-authors on the article include Sonal Singhal of California State University and Daniel Rabosky of the University of Michigan.

-By Kelly Alley

Gaoue Coauthors Article about Medicinal Jungle Plants

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Ourou Gaoue, an assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, coauthored a paper titled “Non-random medicinal plants selection in the Kichwa community of the Ecuadorian Amazon,” published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology.

Researchers analyzed data collected on indigenous people’s uses of non-random medicinal jungle plants at the local level, rather than at the national level. This is the first time a village-level study has taken place, better ensuring the consistency of plant availability in certain areas.

“When people are doing this study, they are usually doing it at the national scale,” Gaoue said. “If you’re doing the analysis at the national level, you are overestimating the number of plants from which the indigenous people actually find that have medicine.”

The study is also one of the most diverse in research of non-random medicinal plant selection, analyzing gender, age, and exposure to outside influences, such as ecotourism projects, to determine overuse and underuse of medicinal plants in jungle communities.

“Village level analysis provides a different result than at the national level,” Gaoue said. “A plant is not medicine for everyone. Men and women know different kinds of plants. An older person will see a plant with medicine in it that a younger person will not see. People who are educated would not see medicine in a plant that someone in a rural area would be able to see.”

Other authors on the paper include Daniela Robles Arias of Florida Atlantic University, Daniela Cevallos of Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Maria Fadiman of the University of Parakou, and Tobin Hindle of the University of Johanesburg.

-By Kelly Alley

Budke Publishes Paper on Spore Dispersal of Fern

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Jessica Budke, an assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology and director of UT’s Herbarium, published a paper titled “Evolution of Perine Morphology in the Thelypteridaceae” in the International Journal of Plant Sciences, that looks at the dispersal of fern spores.

Researchers focused their study on Thelypteridaceae, a family of ferns that includes more than 1,000 species. Their research focused on spore ornamentation, or shapes and structural characteristics of the outside of the spores.

Researchers then used different spores from across the family to better understand relationships between the species, using a technique called ancestral character state reconstruction.

“We used a lot of molecular data to build a phylogenetic tree, and then mapped on the spore characteristics onto the tree,” Budke said. “By mapping them on the tree, we can look at the evolution of those features.”

The study used resources like the UT Herbarium, a repository of native and naturalized plants and fungi of Tennessee, for dried samples of previously collected ferns.

“We have more than 600,000 plant specimens on campus,” she said. “It saves time and money and resources because you’re not having to run around collecting everything.”

Other coauthors on the paper include University of Connecticut post-doctoral research assistant Nikisha Patel, University of Vermont graduate student Susan Fawcett, and University of Vermont research assistant professor Michael Sundue.

-By Kelly Alley

Underground fungal relationships key to thriving plants

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Stephanie Kivlin

For a plant to thrive, it needs the help of a friendly fungus–preferably one that will dig its way deep into the cells of the plant’s roots.

Plants live in symbiosis with root-associated, or mycorrhizal, fungi. The fungi provide up to 80 percent of the nutrients and water a plant needs to grow, and the plants produce up to 30 percent of the photosynthate–a food substance made through photosynthesis–that the fungi need.

There are two main types of mycorrhizal fungi – arbuscular and ectomycorrhizal. An arbuscular mycorrhiza penetrates the cortical cells of the roots of a plant. Ectomycorrhizal fungi do not penetrate the plant’s cell walls, instead forming a netlike structure around the plant root.

A new paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and co-authored by ecologist Stephanie Kivlin, an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, shows that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are especially helpful to the plants they colonize.

“Mycorrhizal fungal associations below the ground are one of the largest influences on plant tissue nutrient concentrations,” said Kivlin. “To optimize plant nutrition, we need to incorporate mycorrhizal associations into our agricultural and management frameworks.”

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi increase plant nutrient concentrations in plant leaves, litter, and roots more than ectomycorrhizal fungi. The type of root-associated fungi present has more influence on a plant’s nutrient levels than plant leaf traits or plant associations with nitrogen-fixing bacteria.

Kivlin’s co-authors are Colin Averill from ETH Zürich, Jennifer M. Bhatnagar and Michael C. Dietze from Boston University, and William D. Pearse from Utah State University.

The study analyzed more than 17,000 trait observations from nearly 3,000 woody plant species in six categories that demonstrate how readily the plant uses nutrients: the nitrogen and phosphorous concentrations in green leaves, senescent leaves–leaves that are about to fall off or have recently fallen off–and roots. It looks at how mycorrhizal effects vary across environments, doing similar analyses in boreal, temperate, and tropical latitudinal zones.

The Kivlin Lab studies the effects of global change on the distributions, function, and ecosystem consequences of plant mycorrhizal fungal associations worldwide.

“The next steps are to understand if there is variation in nutrient acquisition among fungal species within each mycorrhizal group and how soil nutrient concentrations may interact to influence plant nutrient concentrations with global change,” Kivlin said.

Derryberry Recognized in Women of Ornithology Article

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Elizabeth Derryberry, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, received recognition in a timeline of important female ornithologists in a Cornell Lab of Ornithology article, focusing on the achievements of female ornithologists and their role in determining the causes of evolutionary advancements in birds.

Part of Derryberry’s research focuses on the how bird songs are shaped by urban environments.

“One of the things I’ve been most interested in over the last five years is looking at how urban noise affects bird song,” she said.

Through research in San Francisco of urban and coastal white-crowned sparrows, Derryberry and other researchers determined that the volume and frequency of a song is correlated to the birds’ environment. As noise frequency increases in a city or along the coast, so does the birds’ songs. This creates loud, high pitched notes in shorter intervals, as compared to songs from birds living in low noise frequency environments.

“We found that within a population, males vary their vocalizations in their songs based on how loud it is on their territory,” said Derryberry. “As traffic noise increases and city noise levels increasing, we are seeing a shift up in frequency.”

The article provides a recognition of women ornithologists and highlights the importance their research has had. “I think women have been really impactful in ornithology for a long time,” she said. “It’s really just a matter of recognition. It’s great to see those sorts of efforts.”

Do I need to go to grad school and how do I apply?

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Please join an EEB Undergraduate Brownbag Workshop aimed at answering your most pressing questions about graduate school! A panel of EEB faculty & current UT Grads will answer questions like:

– Why grad school?

– How to set yourself up for grad school

– How to search for programs & advisers

– How to apply

– What we wish we knew BEFORE getting into grad school

– What the graduate experience is like

Bring your lunch (some snacks will be provided) & come learn about graduate school Wednesday, September 18, 2019, from 12:15 pm to 1:05 pm in Hesler 427

POSITION ANNOUNCEMENT

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ISLAND CONSERVATION STUDY- GUAM KINGFISHER AND THE BROWN TREE SNAKE

1-2 Student Research Assistants will be hired ($15/hour) to work with a multidisciplinary team evaluating the likelihood of Guam kingfisher Todiramphus cinnamominus reintroduction success on the western Pacific island of Guam.

STUDY DESCRIPTION
Since 1988, the critically endangered Guam kingfisher has survived solely in captivity. Now only ca. 140 birds remain in 23 US facilities. Because captive propagation selects for birds that do well in captivity, not necessarily in the wild, re-establishment in the wild is ideal. However, the invasive predator credited with driving the bird close to extinction, the brown tree snake Boiga irregularis, is still present on Guam. To aid development of successful reintroduction strategies, our team will evaluate previous reintroduction successes and failures alongside activities and outcomes associated with needed habitat restoration on Guam, e.g., kingfisher and snake population modeling, snake monitoring and control methods, and impacts of other invasive species.

DUTIES
Student Research Assistants will identify and summarize then thoughtfully interpret and report about outcomes of various captive propagation and invasive species control programs as they relate to reintroduction of the kingfisher and control of the brown tree snake. This position requires office work (10-20 hours/week) at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in the Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology. With timely and detail-oriented progress, employment will continue through 31 December 2020, and extension beyond December 2020 is possible.

STUDENT BENEFIT
Student Research Assistants will gain significant experience through participation in an ongoing, pressing conservation action involving a critically endangered species and a notorious invasive predator in an island ecosystem.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Working familiarity with scientific literature databases; skill in literature-based research and organization; ability to meet deadlines and to write clearly and scientifically (i.e., to produce summaries, progress reports, and draft text for refereed publications); competency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint; willingness to work pleasantly and communicate regularly as part of a team; enthusiasm for digesting large amounts of information to solve problems in conservation biology

TO APPLY
Submit as a single document: cover letter, 500- to 1000-word essay explaining how your qualifications match those of the position, resume or CV, and two references (name, title, affiliation, contact information, relationship, and length of relationship). Please also submit a copy of your transcripts (official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable). Email your application to Dr. Christy Leppanen, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee (cleppane [at] utk.edu) using the subject line: KINGFISHER POSITION.

CLOSING DATE
Applications will be accepted until positions are filled.

New Study on Microbes and Plant Competition

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A new study published in Ecology Letters suggests there is more to plant competition than ecologists initially thought.

Plants interact with many biotic entities – from other plants and microorganisms to animals – but little is known about the relative influence each of these interactions has on determining plant growth and survival. Most plants compete with each other for resources, such as space and light. Plants also interact with microbial mutualists, which can be beneficial for the plants because these microorganisms acquire nutrients the plant needs to grow and thrive. The interplay of all these interactions determines the success and growth of an individual plant.

“The relative importance of competition versus plant soil feedback on plant performance is poorly understood,” says Stephanie Kivlin, co-author and assistant professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

Kivlin and her colleagues quantified the relative importance of plant-plant and plant-microbial interactions on plant growth across 150 difference plant species. They discovered that competitive plant-plant interactions were the main driver of plant growth, but negative plant-microbial interactions were also prevalent.

“What we discovered suggests microbes limit plant growth of the strongest competitor in a variety of natural ecosystems,” Kivlin says.

Microbes and fungi can have a significant impact on plant diversity. Without them, plants that compete best for light, water, and nutrients would dominate environments such as grasslands and forests. This study suggests microorganisms play a key role in maintaining biodiversity of plant species in natural environments.

Since this is the first work to document the relative importance of plant-plant and plant-microbial interactions, it will most likely shape the theory about when and where each of these interactions structures plant community diversity and composition.

“Our department is a hub of biodiversity and conservation research,” Kivlin says. “As we move forward as a center for biodiversity research in one of the most biodiverse areas on the planet, this work will be key in reminding us to consider the invisible microbial actors that silently structure many of the plant communities in this region and across the globe.”

The authors would like to acknowledge MPG Ranch for generously supporting the plant-soil feedback workshop that generated the ideas for this publication.

2018 EEB Awards

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The Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department had their annual awards ceremony on Friday, May 11, 2018. Congratulations to:

o 2018 EEB Outstanding Master’s Thesis: Chad Stachowiak
o 2018 EEB Jim Tanner Outstanding Dissertation: Sara Lipshutz
o 2018 EEB Best Progress Toward Dissertation: Chloe Lash
o 2018 EEB Sandy Echternacht Outstanding Teaching by a Graduate Student: Melqui Gamba-Rios
o 2018 EEB Outstanding Publication by a Graduate Student: Jennifer Summers
o 2018 EEB Outstanding Outreach and Community Service by a Graduate Student: Maggie Mamantov
o 2018 EEB Tom Hallam Appreciation Award: Angela Chuang
o 2018 Outstanding Undergraduate Poster Award: Daniel Malagon (Kalisz Lab) and honorable mentions Samantha Cahill (Giam Lab) and Alexis Case (Hughes Lab)
o 2018 EEB Outstanding Undergraduate: Alexis Case
o 2018 EEB Outstanding Undergraduate Research: Anna Cameron
o 2018 EEB Undergraduate Award for Professional Promise: Kane Lawhorn
o 2018 EEB Outstanding Outreach and Community Service by an Undergraduate Student: Justin Baldwin
o 2018 EEB Outstanding Administrative Service Award: Jeff Martin