The Frederickson Lab

What we study

How does cooperation evolve and what are the consequences of cooperation for ecological communities? I am broadly interested in all forms of cooperation in biological systems, but research in the Frederickson Lab focuses on the ecology and evolution of mutualism, or cooperation between species. Mutualisms are extremely common in nature—so common, in fact, that every plant and animal on Earth may be involved in at least one mutualism. Yet mutualisms are vulnerable to conflicts of interest between partners, often with profound consequences for evolutionary and ecological dynamics. We use a variety of approaches to study mutualisms involving insects (especially ants), plants, and microbes, with the goal of understanding how and why species cooperate.

Opportunities in the lab

I am looking for graduate students and postdocs to join my lab. I am particularly interested in applicants who want to study the ecology and evolution of species interactions, especially mutualisms, in terrestrial ecosystems. Projects in my lab will likely involve a field research component, and possibly also laboratory or greenhouse experiments or molecular studies. Applicants should be highly motivated and able to work well independently. They should also have experience in at least some of the following areas: field research, entomology, botany, experimental design, statistics, programming, molecular biology, and chemical ecology. If you are interested in joining my lab, please email me your CV and a description of your research interests and background.

For prospective graduate students

A wealth of information about graduate admissions is available on the EEB website. I strongly encourage interested students to apply for funding from NSERC (for Canadian citizens and permanent residents), OGS, or other agencies. For advice on succeeding in grad school, I suggest John Thompson’s On Being a Successful Graduate Student.

For prospective post-docs

Potential post-docs should apply for funding from NSERC (for Canadian citizens and permanent residents) or NSF (for US citizens). The Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology also has a competitive postdoctoral fellowship program, the details of which can be found here. I am happy to provide advice and feedback on grant applications from prospective post-docs, so don’t be shy!

 

Photo credits

Myrmelachista schumanni photo, top left © BBC NHU; Cephalotes atratus photo © J. Sanders; all other photos © G. Miller