Jeanette Wyneken
Education
- Ph.D., University of Illinois, 1988
Research Interests
- Vertebrate Morphology (comparative, functional and developmental)
- Physiological ecology
- Behavioral ecology
- Marine conservation biology
Research Description
My lab’s research program addresses how organisms interact with their environments. To explore questions, test ideas, and develop a methodology, we draw our approaches from several biological disciplines including conservation biology, functional morphology, ecology, ethology, physiology, and developmental biology. Evolutionary processes and adaptation are important considerations in my lab’s work. My broad-based training enables me to address such diverse questions as for how behavioral patterns are associated with migratory swimming in sea turtles, and how do weather and climate affect eggs and rookeries, and what are the implications for common sea turtle management techniques? Additionally, my long-term studies of nest temperatures and primary sex ratios show how species differ in their responses to changing climate and weather conditions. Recent studies are assessing how primary sex ratios in sea turtle are skewed and the implications of skewing? Other, current research stresses the implications of an animal's structure and behavior to how it functions within its environment. Recent work examines suites of morphological characters and how they either constrain behavioral options or are exploited to allow behavioral plasticity. Several contemporary collaborative studies integrate morphological, developmental, and physiological data of four sea turtle species in comparisons of migratory behavior. While many of my lab's studies focus on marine turtles, other species are considered where applicable.
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