Work on biodiversity on farms presented at Ecological Society of America
Amanda Chunco, an assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Studies, presented a poster on research conducted with Elon College Fellow Susie Masecar ’15 and Professor Patricia Thomas-Laemont, also in Environmental Studies, at the centennial meeting of the Ecological Society of America.
The Ecological Society of America is the largest professional society of ecologists, and over 4,000 members attended this year’s conference. Their poster, “Diversity vs. Sustenance: Mammal Diversity and Agricultural Practices”, examined the correlation between several farming practices and the diversity of mammal species living on those farms.
Masecar received several grants, including a prestigious grant from Sigma Xi, to complete the field work for this project, which was a major component of her College Fellows experience. This research is ongoing, and will ultimately be used to inform best practices for maintaining high biodiversity as more land is converted for agricultural use.