I used the travel support to cover my travels and expenses associated with attending and presenting at the Animal Behavior Society’s conference, in Portland, Oregon.
During the conference, I presented the preliminary results from my second chapter, which focused on understanding the trait- and behavior-level responses of mixed-species bird flocks to plantation forestry in SW China. In addition to my own talk, I established several important connections including with Dr. Dale Clayton from the University of Utah and with Dr. Andrew Fulmer from Fort Lewis College. Dr. Fulmer and I are currently working on a review/perspective paper understanding the adaptive significance of interspecific allopreening and allogrooming behavior in birds and mammals.
In addition, during the ABS conference, I attended the symposium organized by the conservation behavior committee. Impressed by their work, I decided to join the committee myself as my work is closely related to both conservation biology and behavioral ecology. My colleagues and I are currently organizing a workshop that will be held during this year’s ABS conference in Ontario, Canada. We will gather a group of experts and early career scientists to select topics used for a horizon scan study. The study will identify potential conservation issues that impact biodiversity through behavioral mechanisms in the Great Lakes region.
Wenyi Zhou is a graduate student pursuing a Ph.D. through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Department of Biology, advised by Dr. Scott Robinson, Katharine Ordway Professor of Ecosystem Conservation and Eminent Scholar here at the Florida Museum.
The 2023 Summer Student Travel Awards are supported by the FLMNH Department of Natural History, including funds from the Louis C. and Jane Gapenski Endowed Fellowship. If you would like to help support this fund for future student awards, please go to:
Louis C. and Jane Gapenski EndowedFellowship