Julia is working in the lab of Biology faculty Molly Stanley on a project that aims to increase understanding of neural circuitry and the neurobiology of taste, which can inform human feeding behaviors! She is investigating the roles of the sweet-sensing Gr64f pathway and the mildly aversive IR94e pathway in amino acid feeding behavior in Drosophila melanogaster (fruit flies). Using established genetic tools (Gal4/UAS system), light-sensitive ion channels are expressed in a key neuron in each pathway, which can be manipulated to directly activate and/or silence them. Julia is conducting a behavioral assay called Proboscis Extension Response, which measures feeding initiation in response to stimuli. She uses light to either activate or silence the neuron, and holds a stimulus (a mix of amino acids - yummy!) near the labellum (tongue homolog) of the fly, to see if it extends its proboscis to eat. Julia hopes to go to grad school to continue researching neuroscience!  In her free time, she loves to hike and ski.

I am a junior biological science major with a minor in animal science. The title of my research is Female Productivity and Calf Survivorship of Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in Bocas, Panama. I am using photo identification, which matches photographed animals to the catalog of dolphins we have, in order to track who was where and when. From there, I examine mothers with calves and juveniles, recording the year of the calf’s birth, how many times it was seen with its mother, and whether it survived past two years of age (which means it survived to become a juvenile).

We are using data from 2004 to 2014 to infer dolphin female reproductivity and calf mortality rates. A total of 35 females were identified from 140 dolphins in the current catalog. Twenty-three of these have Dolphin Bay as a key part of their home range, where they regularly interact with dolphin-watching boats. The resident bottlenose dolphins of the Archipelago of Bocas del Toro are regularly exposed to intense interactions with dolphin-watching boats. The high calf mortality rate is of great concern for the Bocas population, highlighting the need for increased monitoring of Dolphin Bay. Increased boat activity, especially tourism, has had detrimental effects on mother-calf pairs. Increased stress caused by net entanglement, avoidance of areas, and greater injury rates have all been observed since boat activity in Bocas increased. We propose that Dolphin Bay of Bocas del Toro should have governmental enforcement of the whale-watching guidelines from 8 AM to 5 PM every day to ensure the health of mothers and their calves.