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UOG Biology students present work at national conference
University of Guam Biology students Ginger Naburn and Megan Volsteadt recently presented their scientific work at the 2014 Society for Advancement of Hispanics/Chicanos and Native Americans in Science National Conference, which was held from Oct. 16 to 18 in Los Angeles, CA.
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- Megan Volsteadt
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- Ginger Naburn
Naburn presented her research about Polybia, a genus of wasps. She studied the relationship wasps have with members of their own colonies, versus members of other colonies. She found that wasps recognize members of their colony and let them to return to the nest without issue. The wasps also recognize when other wasps are not part of the colony and will force non-colony members out of the nest. Naburn will be graduating in December 2015 and is interested in pursuing medical school for ophthalmology.
Volsteadt presented her research about the Costa Rican herb Cuphea racemosa. Two bee species land on the flower of the herb, and one of those species steals nectar from the plant. Volstead measured seed production, population, pollen grains and overall plant reproduction to determine what effect the stolen nectar has on reproduction. She found there was no significant difference in reproduction for plants that had their nectar stolen by bees. Volsteadt is set to graduate in May 2015 and plans to pursue a career in entomology.
Both students conducted their research as part of the eight-week Native American and Pacific Islander Research Experience Program in Costa Rica held this past summer.
“Presenting my work at a national conference was a great experience,” Volsteadt said. “I got to meet a lot of individuals working in the field of science and learn about some of the other types of research out there. It was also a great chance to explain my project and help others understand a relatively unknown herb species.”
For more information about the UOG Biology program or NAPIRE, email Dr. Miller at rmiller@uguam.uog.edu. (UOG)
