Course Registration
ADV - Webinar: Cedar Creek-Lunch with a Scientist - Small Mammals
Webinar: Cedar Creek-Lunch with a Scientist - Small Mammals website
2660 Fawn Lake Drive NEEast Bethel, MN 55005
Now you are able to attend our Lunch with a Scientist series from the comfort and cleanliness of your own home!
You must register at z.umn.edu/LWASonline in order to receive the Zoom webinar link and password.
Topic: Small Mammal Research at Cedar Creek
Featured speaker: Janine Mistrick is a 3 rd -year PhD student in the Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior program at the University of Minnesota. She is advised by Dr. Meggan Craft and is interested in how heterogeneity in the environment affects disease occurrence in wild, free-ranging rodent species. Her upcoming dissertation research will focus on understanding the role of rodent space use in influencing viral disease transmission under experimentally-manipulated food availability and intestinal worm infection in wild voles in Finland.
In the summer of 2019, she conducted a field study at Cedar Creek and Itasca State Park live-trapping wild mice (genus Peromyscus) in natural habitats and around buildings and human habitation. She collected fecal and blood samples to test for the presence/absence of pathogens known to be carried by wild rodents but also capable of infecting humans. By extracting DNA from fecal samples and screening for the presence of Giardia-specific gene sequences, she was able to identify individuals positive for Giardia infection. Positive samples were sequenced to identify Giardia species known to be zoonotic (able to infect humans and animals) as opposed to those which are rodent-specific. Overall, this research can contribute to our understanding of how natural and human-shaped landscapes in different geographic regions in the state of Minnesota play a role in shaping disease occurrence in wildlife and potentially how this may affect human health.
For a how-to guide on using Zoom, visit our website: cedarcreek.umn.edu/LWAS
Again, a short registration process is required to virtually attend the webinar (beyond enrolling on Master Naturalist or Destiny One), so plan to spend 5-10 minutes ahead of time making sure you are correctly signed up at z.umn.edu/LWASonline.
Course Dates:
Meeting from 11:30 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. on:
- Tuesday, October 13, 2020
Instructor Information
Dr. Barale Potter is the Associate Director at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve, where she also manages education and community engagement programs. Her background is in wildlife ecology, and she holds a B.S. in Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology as well as a masters and Ph.D in ecology and evolutionary biology. She studied wildlife and animal behavior all over the world (mostly monkeys in Ethiopia) before finding her true passion doing environmental education! Currently, she manages the daily operations of the Cedar Creek field station as well as leading K-12 field trip groups, public science projects, research tours and volunteer opportunities.
Tillery is serving her second year as the Minnesota GreenCorps Member at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve. MN GreenCorps is an AmeriCorps program sponsored by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, which allows young environmental professionals to gain practical experience. At Cedar Creek she serves as a member of the education and outreach team.
Tillery graduated from the University of Minnesota in December 2017 with a BS in Recreation Administration and a Management minor. She loves teaching yoga, spending time outside, and creating the occasional art project.
Sponsor Information
Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve
Register Now!
Seats Taken: 41 of 100