UW Graduate Students Studying Biodiversity Awarded $47,500 in Grants

Thirteen master’s and Ph.D. students studying biodiversity at the University of Wyoming have received $47,500 in grants from UW’s Biodiversity Institute.

 

The biodiversity graduate student research enhancement grants are awarded each year to multiple UW master’s and doctoral students to enhance or expand their ongoing research.

Because of many generous donors, the Biodiversity Institute was able to fund 13 different projects, ranging from freshwater mussel populations in Wyoming to white-nose syndrome in bats in South Dakota, to a comprehensive plant inventory in northern Montana. In addition to producing world-class science, successful applicants had to show how they would communicate their research to diverse Wyoming audiences and assess their communication’s effectiveness.

 

In the last 13 years, the Biodiversity Institute, housed under the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, has awarded more than 80 grants totaling nearly $200,000. This grant is possible due to the support of private donors and, this year, the Haub School.

 

“I am incredibly thankful for this award from the Biodiversity Institute. I will be using the award money to support a technician, which is necessary for the successful completion of my field work,” says one awardee, Walker Bensch, who is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Zoology and Physiology. “Support from the Biodiversity Institute is special to me, as the organization embodies outreach and education on overlooked and imperiled species. Improving both scientific and public knowledge of our native bees is central to my career goals, and I am excited to continue to do so through this project and its support from the Biodiversity Institute.”

 

Bensch is interested in learning more about ground nesting bees -- which make up the majority of bee species -- and their ecology within the West Green River elk herd at Fossil Butte National Monument.

 

All recipients are asked to communicate their research through public outreach. The Biodiversity Institute hosts a science communication training for the students so that they can effectively communicate their work to both academic and non-academic audiences.

 

The 2025 Biodiversity Institute graduate research enhancement grant awardees, listed by hometowns, departments and their project titles, are:

 

Cheyenne -- Daniel Coles, Department of Botany, “A flora of the Bighorn Mountains: Sheridan, Big Horn, Johnson and Washakie counties, Wyoming.”

 

Clancy, Mont. -- Charles Williams, Department of Zoology and Physiology, Program in Ecology and Evolution, “Patterns of spatiotemporal thermal heterogeneity in the Upper Snake River, WY: Implications for the Snake River Cutthroat Trout.”

 

Columbus, Ind. -- Lauren Wetterau, Department of Zoology and Physiology, “Effects of red squirrel middens on biodiversity and species occupancy in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.”

 

Emerald Isle, N.C. -- Meredith Journey, Department of Zoology and Physiology, Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, “Exploring impacts of increased glacial sediment on alpine lake zooplankton ecology.”

 

Jupiter, Fla. -- Bensch, Department of Zoology and Physiology, Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, “Does elk trampling alter the nesting bee community at Fossil Butte National Monument?”

 

Lakewood, Colo. -- Renee Lile, Department of Zoology and Physiology, Program in Ecology and Evolution, “Investigating the community composition and diet of bats in the Black Hills of South Dakota following white-nose syndrome invasion.”

 

Laramie -- Caroline Brose, Department of Botany, Program in Ecology and Evolution, “Evolutionary consequences of adaptive introgression and polyploidy; Salix as a system for understanding generation and maintenance of species diversity.”

 

Laramie -- Lindsey Mitchell, Program in Ecology and Evolution, Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, “Understanding biodiversity by assessing mechanisms underlying avian population declines.”

 

Londonderry, N.H. -- Olivia Beaudette, Department of Zoology and Physiology, “Bottom-up influences on juvenile fitness in a suite of declining songbirds.”

 

Nashville, Tenn. -- Marguerite Trost, Department of Botany, “A community-powered, first comprehensive vascular inventory of the Kootenai National Forest, Northwest Montana.”

 

Philadelphia, Pa. -- Emily Shertzer, Department of Zoology and Physiology, Program in Ecology and Evolution, “Identifying molt and movement during sensitive periods for understudied passerines.”

 

Portage, Wis. -- Alexis Hollander, Program in Ecology and Evolution, “Comparing modern freshwater mussel populations to an arch.”

 

Woodbury, Minn. -- Lindsey Gapinski, Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Program in Ecology and Evolution, “Understanding biodiversity by assessing mechanisms underlying avian population declines.”

 

To learn more about these biodiversity projects or about this grant, visit wyobiodiversity.org.