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Orchids, anacondas, piranhas and Piper plants
topped the list in summer school at Mesa State this year.
Led by Dr. Tom Walla, assistant professor of biology, ten
students and two instructors undertook a two-week odyssey
of exploration through the mountains and rainforests of the
Upper Amazon in Ecuador. The intensive biology field course
immersed students in the most diverse habitats on earth, where
they developed and performed novel field research projects
and participated in established projects led by Mesa State
professors.
Dr. Tom Walla lived and worked for three years
in the rainforests of Ecuador before entering graduate school
at the University of Oregon where his work continued to focus
on understanding the patterns of diversity among rainforest
butterflies. He has returned to Ecuador frequently during
the last 5 years to develop field research projects directed
at understanding the influence of insect-plant interactions
on species diversity and evolutionary patterns. As chair of
the Western Colorado Center for Tropical Research (WCCTR)
at Mesa State College, Dr. Walla is working with a multidisciplinary
team of researchers from Mesa State and institutions across
the nation to investigate the mechanisms driving diversity
in tropical forests. Mesa State researchers involved in the
program include Dr. Walt Kelley, Dr. Craig Dodson, Dr. Aparna
Palmer, and Dr. Steve Werman.
Students stayed in field stations and explored
habitats including lowland rainforest, montane cloud forest,
and the paramo and cushion plant habitats at elevations above
14,000 feet. At several locations students designed and performed
field research projects. Mac Lewis, Whitney Marquardt, and
Emarae Garcia developed a project to test the effectiveness
of plant trichomes (small hairs) as a defense against herbivores
and discovered what may be an excellent new system for investigation.
Their results indicated trichomes were very effective against
herbivores but are also associated with ant species that may
protect plants as well. Meghan Stiles and Kelsie Hill investigated
pollination success rates in over 400 individual orchid flowers
in the cloud forest, discovering large differences in seed
set associated with floral patterns. All students participated
in sampling projects to document butterfly diversity patterns
along the Andean altitudinal gradient.
Students also received training in the application
of molecular biology techniques in the field by Dr. Aparna
Palmer, an assistant professor of biology at Mesa State. Dr.
Palmer led students in identifying and collecting samples
from plants in the genus Piper. Upon return to the lab at
Mesa, student researchers will begin unlocking the genetic
code that provides clues to the ancestry of one of the most
diverse groups of plants in the world. In conjunction with
ecological data, Dr. Palmer hopes to identify key patterns
in the diversification of Piper plants and understand why
some species develop
mutualisms with protective insects, and others
become food for hungry caterpillars.
Ecuador provided no shortage of adventures.
Travelers observed monkeys foraging in the treetops, witnessed
enormous beetles crashing through the foliage, and explored
an authentic Amazonian swamp forest. They fed upon giant beetle
larvae and rowed in dugout canoes through the black waters
of the forest. A 14 foot long anaconda escaped amidst the
excitement. Giant blue Morpho butterflies glided in the mist.
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