Jill Newman
Wildlife Biologist
Other Projects/Outreach
Check out some of the side projects and public outreach I've been involved with!
Chattahoochee National Fish Hatchery
The Chattahoochee National Fish Hatchery produces ~1 million rainbow trout per year for northern Georgia tailwaters, streams, and lakes (in collaboration with DNR). The hatchery is responsible for supporting recreational fishing in public water and service lands as well as developing environmental education programs (i.e. fishing rodeos).
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Alligator snapping turtles (Macrochelys temminckii) are one of the largest freshwater turtles in the world. They are listed as "Vulnerable" under the IUCN due to the pet trade, over-harvesting for food, and habitat loss. FWC is interested in the distribution and genetics of these animals. They survey for these turtles by setting large hoop nets in creeks and rivers in northern Florida.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Sirens (Sirenidae) are a family of aquatic salamanders with very small fore limbs, no hind limbs, and have external gills in both their larval and adult stages. Not much is known about siren, however, we are learning that their genetics are more complicated than we once thought. FWC is collecting genetic samples from sirens across northern Florida to determine the genetic history of the family.
Coastal Plains Institute
Striped newts (Notophthalmus perstriatus) are listed as "Near Threatened" by the IUCN and are threatened by habitat loss and lack of fire in their habitat. The Coastal Plains Institute is pushing to have this species listed under the Endangered Species Act due to the fact that this species has become nearly undetectable in the Apalachicola National Forest beginning in the early 2000's. Their goal is to repatriate these populations with head-started newts.
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Clemson University
While in graduate school, I had the opportunity to assist my labmates with their research projects. One project examined nesting success of endangered bog turtles (Glyptemys muhlenbergii) in North Carolina. I helped with radiotelemetry and nest searching for bog turtles. A second project consisted of conducting anuran call surveys along an urban to forested gradient in South Carolina.
Virginia Tech
While working on Eglin AFB, I was invited to help with a relocation project for red-cockaded woodpeckers (RCWs). RCWs are listed as Near-threatened by the IUCN and are threatened by habitat loss/degradation. We took woodpeckers from different parts of their range and released them on Eglin.
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Northeastern University
I helped the Dr. Charles Meszoely Lab classify Pleistocene fossil snake jaw bones to describe the differences in morphologies of Pleistocene snakes as well as to compare them to current day morphologies of snakes.
Northeastern University Marine Science Center
The Northeastern University Marine Science Center (NU MSC), located in coastal Massachusetts, was home to one of the largest vertebrate collections in the country! Specimens in the collection are often used for educational purposes. I volunteered to update catalogued amphibian specimens in the collection as anuran taxonomy was updated. The MSC is always looking for volunteers - plus, it's a good excuse to go check out Massachusetts Bay!
University of Massachusetts Boston
The Revell Lab at UMASS Boston is interested in tropical herpetofauna and evolutionary biology. One project in particular was looking at the origin of invasive boas in Puerto Rico. I helped with DNA-extraction and PCR of invasive boa constrictor specimens. I also helped take care of the anole colony.
University of Rhode Island
I observed videos of anole behavior to compare stereotyped behavior patterns of green
anoles (Anolis carolinensis) to Cuban green anoles (Anolis porcatus). The goal of this project was to answer the question of how biological invasions drive evolutionary changes in native taxa.
For more information, check out the Kolbe Lab!
Roger Williams University
Coral banded shrimp, Stenopus hispidus, are found on both sides of the Panama Canal. For this project, we were interested in seeing if the shrimp on the Pacific side and the shrimp on the Atlantic side had speciated. For more information on the "Wet Lab" check here!