Alex Forde

Advisor: Dr. Dan Gruner

Previous Education:
B.A. Biology, Carleton College

Research Interests:
I am interested in the consequences of genotypic and phenotypic diversity for ecological communities. More specifically, I would like to better understand how biodiversity affects food web processes, focusing on intraspecific diversity in secondary consumers, such as arthropod predators and parasitoids. I am also interested in multi-trophic interactions that involve conflict or synergism between plants and predators, with regards to their effects on the abundance and distribution of herbivore populations.

Location of Research:
Carrie Bow Cay, Belize

Publications:
Forde AJ, Applewhite HS, and Bass HW. 2009 A Laboratory and Field Survey of Leaf Feeding Resistance in Diverse Maize Inbred Lines. Maize Genetics Newsletter 83 (in press)

Funding Sources:
2010 Darwin Fellowship, University of Maryland
2009 Pre-Doctoral Fellowship, Smithsonian Institution
2009 Flagship Fellowship, University of Maryland

Awards:
2008 Ecological Society of America Student Section Best Undergraduate Poster Presentation