Two biology grad students receive grants for environmental projects
Two graduate students in William and Mary’s biology program received external grants totaling $42,900 to continue their work on environmentally sensitive projects.
Ryan Burdge was awarded $27,500 by the National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation for his project on the effects of golf course
pesticides on bluebirds, while Jonathan Holley received $15,400 from
the Virginia Environmental Endowment to study the effectiveness of
current storm water management practices. Both Burdge and Holley are in
the Master of Science program and expect to receive their degrees in
2008.
Burdge will continue research by his advisor, Dan Cristol, and by John
Swaddle, both associate professors of biology at William and Mary.
Their work has shown that eastern bluebird nestlings have poorer body
conditions on golf courses than found among comparable chicks in
pesticide-free locations. Burdge’s contribution will be to examine
blood levels of organophosphate pesticides in bluebirds on heavily
treated golf courses, comparing them with birds from sites with no
pesticide management.
Holley’s advisor is Randy Chambers, director of the William and Mary’s
Keck Environmental Laboratory. Water retention ponds are a standard
feature in runoff management across the Commonwealth, and Holly’s work
will add to the knowledge of the ponds’ effectiveness in filtering
heavily polluted runoff. Holley also will examine the outflow of
retention ponds and will examine its effects on aquatic invertebrate
communities in managed streams.
“Students in our M.S. program provide an invaluable boost to the
productivity of the faculty,” said George W. Gilchrist, director of
graduate studies for the biology department. “Many masters’ students
work as research assistants to professors, mentor undergraduate
research and aid as teaching assistants. Their independent work,
however, regularly contributes quality research on a variety of
projects ranging from cells to ecosystems.”