REU Site: Ecology and Environment of the Southern High Plains

Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station, College Station TX

Investigators

Abstract

The southern high plains of Texas are a diverse mixture of grasslands, playa lakes, and canyon lands interspersed with row crop agriculture, cattle feed lots, and urban areas. While this region is sparsely populated by most standards, it has been heavily impacted by agricultural activities. Historically the southern high plains were dominated by shortgrass prairie but row crop agriculture has replaced large tracts of grasslands and cattle have replaced once vast herds of bison. Today about 30% of all US cattle (on feed) are housed in feedlots on the southern high plains of Texas. Large areas of grasslands remain but fire suppression and over grazing have led to the degradation of grasslands and the invasion of woody vegetation. This REU site will engage 8 students each summer during a 10 week program to examine ecological and environmental issues impacting the southern high plains. Research topics for this REU include vertebrate and prairie ecology, microbiology, disease ecology, ecological risk assessment and toxicology, and other topics in environmental science. Students will work with faculty mentors to develop research questions and hypotheses, design experiments, collect data and analyze results, and present their findings at a conference during the last week of the summer session. Numerous activities have been designed to enhance the student's research experience including: (1) an ethics course that also addresses the region's history, ecology, and environmental issues; (2) field trips to ecologically significant sites; (3) seminars and brown bag sessions on research methodology, communication skills, and graduate school and science careers; and (4) informal events including movie nights and cookouts that allow time for networking. More information about this program can be found at http://www.wtamu.edu/reu, or by contacting Ray Matlack at rmatlack@mail.wtamu.edu.