Fieldwork: Lamanai, Belize

This week I’ve been working with a team of bat researchers in Lamanai, Belize (an archaeological site of the ruins of a Mayan city). We are collecting data for a study on the effects of sickness behavior on social associations in wild vampire bats. Last year, PhD student Sebastian "Basti" Stockmaier and I conducted two … Continue reading Fieldwork: Lamanai, Belize

Some pics from Panama and Germany

I'm finally seeing bats flying around here at dusk in Germany, and for the first time I'm missing Panama a bit. But it's not that I don't like Panama, I just love where I am now! I've been trying to make the most of my time here, and that's my excuse for not writing a blogpost … Continue reading Some pics from Panama and Germany

Tracking our vampire bats after they are released into the wild

After almost 2 years of cooperation experiments in captivity, we are now attempting to monitor the social relationships of our vampire bats as we release them back into the wild. We are hoping to track bat-bat and bat-cow encounters. To do this, we are attaching networked proximity sensors to 23 previously captive and captive-born bats … Continue reading Tracking our vampire bats after they are released into the wild

Final month in Panama

I have only one month left in Panama! We wrapped up data collection for our captive experiments, and we are now shifting to fieldwork. On June 28, I hired our last research intern for Panama, Darija Josic (MSc in Biology), a bat researcher from Croatia. She is helping both Sebastian Stockmaier and I with looking … Continue reading Final month in Panama

Meeting with the vampire bat control team, and footage of a white-winged vampire bat

On September 1, bat workers with the Ministry of Agricultural Development (MIDA) in Colon visited the Gamboa Bat Lab. We had an amazing and informative meeting and shared experiences working with vampires and other bats. We are hoping to develop some new long-term projects on vampire bats and discuss useful information to help solve the … Continue reading Meeting with the vampire bat control team, and footage of a white-winged vampire bat

Job opening: Animal Behavior PI position at Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (also 3 ecology positions)

The Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) has openings for 5 Staff Scientists. These are Principle Investigator positions where you run your own research lab as if you were a professor, but with minimal teaching duties. The STRI Staff Scientists pursue independent, internationally recognized research programs in the tropics. Example. Previous tropical experience is not required. We … Continue reading Job opening: Animal Behavior PI position at Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (also 3 ecology positions)

Behaviour17 Conference

Scientific conferences are some of the biggest highlights of my year. I just attended the Behavior2017 Conference in the beautiful seaside town of Estoril, Portugal. I'm still early enough in my scientific career that when I attend a conference, I often meet, for the first time, people whose work I've read. Public speaking is always … Continue reading Behaviour17 Conference

Updates (July 2017)

New timeline July 30- August 4, 2017: I'll be at the Behavior 2017 Meeting in Portugal September 3, 2017: Team Vampire wraps up captive experiments and we begin our fieldwork led by Dr. Simon Ripperger. October 15, 2017: I leave Panama. October 18-21, 2017: I will be at the North American Bat Meeting (prospective students who are attending--> … Continue reading Updates (July 2017)

Some advice for grad students

Advice from experienced and successful scientists: Tips from Stephen Stearns (if link fails, try here) Tips from John Thompson (if link fails, try here) Tim Clutton-Brock on applying for grants and fellowship applications Young Scientist Survival Kit How to Be a Graduate Advisee, by Indira Raman On choosing a graduate program Rather than basing your decision on the … Continue reading Some advice for grad students

Team Vampire, Spring 2017

Jineth Berrío-Martínez (MSc in Biology) is a researcher from Colombia who arrived in April has been travelling around Panama to find additional wild vampire bat colonies. She is working on development of biting ability in young vampire bats. My research interests include tropical biology, population ecology, reproductive biology, evolution, and conservation. Early in my career … Continue reading Team Vampire, Spring 2017