This $240,000 Project Grant awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) will fund a 3-year postdoctoral research fellowship to investigate how lichen holobionts, the symbiotic communities of fungi, algae, and bacteria that form lichens, respond to climate change.
The research will characterize the relationship between the holobiont's microbial community composition and metabolic phenotype, explore how the resulting phenotype influences fitness across environments, and assess how novel environments may shift microbial community composition. Through a range-wide reciprocal transplant experiment and population modeling, the fellow will develop predictive models of how lichen ranges may shift due to climate change. The project also aims to increase participation in science by mentoring undergraduate researchers and developing educational modules for high school students, as well as improving public access to fungal biodiversity data.
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