UMaine Alert

Posted: April 19, 2024 - 1:32 PM

At approximately 9:24 a.m. on Friday, April 19, a University of Maine graduate student was struck by a university vehicle on Long Road at the University of Maine campus in Orono. The student reports that they are at a local hospital with minor injuries.

Emergency services, including the Orono Fire Department, University Volunteer Ambulance Corps, University of Maine Police Department, Orono Police Department and Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene.

The university vehicle involved in the incident was a Chevrolet Express van. It was being operated by a university employee.

Counseling services and support are available for students, faculty or staff who may have been affected. The Counseling Center can be reached at 207-581-1392 and the Dean of Students Office can be reached at 207-581-1406.

The scene has been cleared and Long Road is now accessible. An investigation is being conducted by the University of Maine Police Department with assistance from the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstruction Unit. Any witnesses to the incident are encouraged to contact Lt. Noel Santiago at noel.santiago@maine.edu.

Zachary Wood

Curriculum Vitae (click here)

I joined the Evolutionary Applications Lab (Kinnison Lab) in the fall of 2015 as a PhD student. I received a BA in biology from Dartmouth College, during which I wrote a high honors thesis entitled “Producers and their Environments in Greenlandic Kettle Lakes.” My previous research has focused on ecological modeling, including tree structure, stream temperatures, and algae in Arctic lakes.

My research in the EvoAppsLab focuses on eco-evolutionary dynamics in the form of rapid evolution during trophic cascades. I am specifically focusing on how evolution of antipredator defenses in wild and domesticated (i.e. hatchery) fish can dampen or exacerbate the addition of new predators into aquatic ecosystems. I will be using lab experiments and field manipulations of western mosquitofish to study:

+ The capacity of wild and domesticated mosquitofish to evolve anti-predator defenses

+ The life-history costs of anti-predator defenses, and

+ The contribution of anti-predator defenses to community stability

To examine the long-term effects of rapid evolution during trophic cascades, I also built an individual-based model framework in Matlab, the parameters of which will be informed by my experimental work.

For more info check out my website.