The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany
School: Master’s student, Biology, College of William & Mary

The Impact of Microbial Communities on Nectar Sugar Chemistry and Plant Fitness in Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)

Machiorlete will look closely at how insects regularly introduce microbes into nectar in common milkweed flowers. After collecting nectar from milkweed plants in Northern Virginia, Machiorlete will use DNA sequencing to characterize sugar chemistry and microbial diversity. Pollen germination tests will quantify the impact of microbial activity in nectar on plant reproduction.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany
School: Undergraduate, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Michigan Technological University

Plant Survey (Native and Invasive) with Collection on Isle Royale's Volcanic Bedrock Glades

Stone will travel to Michigan’s Isle Royale National Park to survey invasive yellow hawkweeds that are encroaching on the area’s unique bedrock glades. Stone will research how the invasive colonies are altering the floral composition of the endangered ecosystem. Stone will also identify potential hawkweed hybrids for further lab analysis. Collections of new specimens will be prepared for herbarium cataloging.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany
School: Undergraduate, Biology and Ecology and Biodiversity, Sewanee: The University of the South

Spatial Segregation among Phacelia bipinnatifida Morphotypes in a Southern Appalachian Cove Population

Michel’s plant ecology and genetics research will focus on the rare ecological phenomenon of spatial segregation between two variations of purple phacelia, a biennial wildflower species. Michel will focus on pollinator behavior and genetic analyses to determine the level of gene flow that occurs between the two large, non-overlapping yet adjacent patches of P. bipinnatifida morphotypes. Additional ecological fieldwork will identify why morphological distinctions remain segregated within the wildflower population that can experience gene flow.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany

A Preliminary Assessment of Calcareous Grasslands in the Jackson Prairie Region

Kees will investigate the distribution and species composition of prairies and other plant communities associated with calcareous outcrops in the Jackson Prairie and related areas of southern Mississippi and Alabama. Kees will map, inventory, and collect voucher specimens and will plot data from sites across the region to develop an improved floristic checklist and community classification.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany

Evolutionary History and Floral Traits of Angiosperms using DNA Sequences

Rees’s project will examine the evolutionary history of petal development within the carnation family by looking at floral traits and comparative DNA analysis. Different pathways utilized for evolving petals will be observed in the early development stages of flowering and will be compared against a reconstructed phylogeny made using DNA sequences.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany

Evaluating the Impact of Key Drivers on Forest Regeneration Following a Windthrow in a Mature Hardwood Forest: On the Relative Importance of Browsers, Logging, and Competition

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany
School: Undergraduate, Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources Program, Rutgers University

Rediscovering the “Weeds” of New Jersey: Understanding the Distribution of Weedy and Nonnative Species in New Jersey through Specimen Collection

In his research, Schmidt aims to gain insights into the current and past distributions of the “weedy” and non-native plants of New Jersey through the use of recent and historical herbarium records. He will collect new herbarium specimens of many of these under-collected species, present throughout the state of New Jersey along the urban-to-rural gradient, in order to better understand the current impact of these plants and how their distribution has changed over time.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany
School: Master’s Student, Plant Biology, Ohio University

Bird-mediated Seed Dispersal of Forest Herbs in a Temperate Deciduous Forest

Oh studies the seed dispersal of herbaceous plants in post-agricultural, temperate deciduous forests to understand the population dynamics of forest herbs. Forest herbs are limited by dispersal since they largely lack seed banks, but these dispersal networks are understudied and under threat due to human land use. Since birds are likely dispersers of forest herbs in these systems,  she is studying the interactions between native forest herbs and migratory birds passing through southeast Ohio.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany

Floristic Checklist of Gilbert’s Corner

Cameron Hugh Pierce is a recent graduate of George Mason University, with a bachelor of science degree in biology. He will be surveying a seven-acre meadow undergoing old-field succession, located in Gilbert’s Corner, Virginia. The goal of his project is
 to establish a baseline checklist of flowering plants found there. Over the summer he will collect both woody and herbaceous flowering plants to 
be dried and mounted at the Ted R. Bradley Herbarium at George Mason University. Once completed, the checklist will be made available for public use and education.

The Joan K. Hunt and Rachel M. Hunt Summer Scholarship in Field Botany

Restoration of Plant Biodiversity
in Adirondack Northern Hardwood Forests through Mechanical Control of American Beech Understories

Anna Sweeney is a master’s student 
in plant ecology at The State University of New York-College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Her project, “Structure of a Northern Hardwood Stand after Cutting to Control American Beech,” is about controlling dense layers of American beech sprouts on a commercial scale. These sprouts shade out all of the plants growing underneath them, reducing the biodiversity of trees and herbaceous plants.