Chapter Meeting

Join us the 3rd Thursday of the month for our chapter meeting!

Presentation Title: “Monogamy mythology: Painted Bunting breeding ecology at an urban prairie”.

Presentation Summary: Scientists have long considered Painted Buntings monogamous or polygynous, but recent evidence from the work done at the Lewisville Lake Environmental Learning Area (LLELA) suggests that this might not be true. Based on the limited amount of parental care provided by the male of the species and recently collected female home range data, we suspect that female Painted Buntings are mating with more than one male. This presentation will focus on the life history of the Painted Bunting, our recent findings, and the work currently taking place at LLELA by the UNT Painted Bunting Project.

Name of Speaker: Alejandra Gage

Brief Bio: Brief bio: Alejandra Gage is a graduate student pursuing her master’s degree in biology at the University of North Texas studying Painted Buntings. Her research is focused on exploring the mating system of the Painted Bunting and the possibility of multiple paternity in the broods. She will be using molecular genetic methods to determine paternity, which is something that has not been done before with this species. Before Painted Buntings, Alejandra did behavioral research on Bumble bees (Dr. Elinor Lichtenberg, UNT) and molecular research on Honey bees (Dr. Nancy Moran, UT Austin).

VMS
Business meeting:  Chapter Administrative / Chapter Meeting
Advanced Training: AT: Chapter meeting