REU: Natural History of the Hispaniolan Herpetofauna

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The award provides Avila College with funds to continue an exciting summer program providing 9 undergraduates with research experiences in tropical studies. Participants will learn and develop skills by interacting with faculty as they work on projects dealing with herpetological communities on Hispaniola. To foster student development, a 3-phase program is planned: orientation--introducing students to research methodology and ecological studies in the West Indies; apprenticeship--developing skills; and individual research-- resulting in publication-quality reports. Seminars on research and graduate studies are included to facilitate applications of acquired knowledge and skills to participants' future academic pursuits. Presentations will be made by scientists in both the United States and Dominican Republic. Evaluation will be by participants, their academic advisors, and one outside faculty. This program is designed to induce participants to consider graduate studies favorably and to increase the likelihood of their choosing careers in science. The faculty will "coach" students, instilling a vision of research by explaining the rules and delivering a feeling of the excitement that comes with addressing questions with conceptual orientations. A focus on frog and lizard communities provides opportunities to apply theories and methods used in ecological research while working with organisms that are abundant, accessible, and remarkably well and visibly adapted to their environment. Investigations may address aspects of niche dimensions or parasite infections. Students may choose projects within these topics or develop investigations of their own, including, but not limited to, physiological or ethological studies of selected taxa.