The School of Biological Sciences Spring 2023 Seminar Series presents Dr. Sarah Donelan

Live via Zoom

Legacies of stress: eco-evolutionary consequences of transgenerational & carryover effects in coastal systems

Phenotypic plasticity is a critical component of organisms’ responses to environmental change. My seminar will focus on a major component of my research program – “legacy effects,” or how past environmental experiences shape organism phenotypes, the mechanisms of these changes, and the consequences for communities and ecosystems. We will explore how parental experience with predators influences fitness and physiology in intertidal snails and how early life exposure to climate change stressors impacts oyster growth and nitrogen storage, a critical ecosystem service. By asking questions across scales, my work reveals new insights into how legacy effects shape patterns and processes in marine systems.

Host: Dr. Mark Hay