Project Grant 2209408

This National Science Foundation Project Grant award of $207,000 provides funding for a postdoctoral research fellowship in biology from February 1, 2023 through January 31, 2026. The fellowship supports research and training under the Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074), which aims to advance biological sciences and strengthen the nation's scientific enterprise through increased knowledge and understanding of major problems.

Specifically, the fellow will conduct integrative research investigating the coevolution of climate change responses in grasses. Using the Melicgrass plant tribe as a model, the fellow will produce a comprehensive phylogenetic reconstruction and evaluate the dispersal capabilities and environmental niches of constituent taxa. Combining literature reviews, geospatial data, and growth experiments, the fellow will classify fundamental and realized environmental niches. Phylogenetic comparative methods will test if dispersal ability correlates with rates of environmental niche evolution, realized niche breadth, or ability to acclimate to new conditions. The research aims to further understanding of how stationary organisms like plants respond to and survive climate change through withstanding new conditions or colonizing new areas. Over the course of the fellowship, the awardee will also broaden their technical expertise, mentor students, and pursue independent research projects.