Before I could walk or talk, I was fascinated by creatures both great and small. Indeed, I loved and still love them all. A fascination fostered by careful observation of and play in and with flora and fauna as a child developed into an interest in the intricacies of animal behavior and a desire to explore this realm of science so as to better understand the complex interrelationships between and among organisms of this biosphere.
At Dartmouth, I was able to pursue my intellectual passion in the laboratory of Mark Laidre, Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences. At the Biological Sciences Department’s Open House my freshman fall, my interest was piqued by Professor Laidre’s enthusiasm for crustaceans, specifically hermit crabs, and his desire to understand their behaviors. Following the Open House, I sent him an email asking if he was in need of an undergraduate research assistant. And, the rest is history. As a member of the Laidre lab since my freshman fall term, I have had the opportunity not only to learn the ropes of working in such a lab from the ground up—meticulously floy-tagging shells and caring for terrestrial crustaceans—but also to interact with graduate students in the Ecology, Evolution, Ecosystems and Society Program and to conduct my own independent research.
This past summer, I received a grant to conduct an independent research study at The Shoals Marine Laboratory, a facility located on Appledore Island, roughly a thirty-minute boat trip from the coast of Maine. As an avid and enthusiastic outdoorswoman, I explored every inch of the island in addition to snorkeling daily to further my research. My research focused on the theory that subtidal hermit crabs exploit long-distance chemical cues to determine the availability of nearby gastropod shells that have been recently emptied. I used the Acadian hermit crab (Pagurus acadianus) to identify the gastropod shell characteristics that marine hermit crabs use to determine shell refuge quality—that is, which characteristics of gastropod shell architecture (e.g., shell diameter, wall thickness, aperture size, and weight) P. acadianus values in assessing the overall quality of a potential home. In addition, by releasing long-distance chemical cues simulating nondestructive predation, indicative to P. acadianus of the availability of the emptied gastropod shell, I determined a preference for a specific gastropod species shell—whether that be the shell of the dog whelk (Nucella lapillus) or of the common periwinkle (Littorina littorea).
Having the opportunity to hone my research skills in animal behavior by working in both the laboratory and the field has been an invaluable and indelible part of my Dartmouth experience and has further confirmed for me my career choice: to be a veterinarian with a focus on conservation efforts.