“Each team member brings a different perspective and different skills, which will allow us to attack the problem from different angles,” says David Borst, Project Leader. The team will investigate geographic variation in body size in the lubber grasshopper, a species found in the southeastern regions of the U.S. Laboratory studies will test whether the differences in body size and other traits are determined by local environmental differences, inherent genetic differences among populations, or the interaction of environment and genetics. These results will be used to develop mathematical models to describe the physiological control of growth and development in this grasshopper. Finally, field studies will determine how body size and other characteristics affect the survival and reproductive success of these animals in their natural environment. Overall, these studies will yield a greater understanding of how different traits are produced in animals and why these differences may be adaptive.

Much of the research in this program will be done by undergraduate students. Each year, 8 undergraduates will conduct research at ISU and in the Florida Everglades. Undergraduates will work side-by-side with professors in planning and executing projects, and will receive $6,500 fellowships.  “We push our students pretty hard,” says Whitman. “This isn’t play science; we expect undergraduates to design and conduct their own research projects, analyze their data, present their results at national scientific meetings, and publish their work.” Students may remain in the program for up to three years, allowing long-term intensive training in research. “We want our undergraduates to do more than just absorb information in classrooms. We want them to conduct their own research and to create new knowledge. This program gives students a chance to see what a career in biological research is like, and to take their first steps toward becoming professional scientists,” says Juliano. “One of the exciting rewards of this grant is going to be the experience our students will gain by working on real-life applications of the theoretical concepts they learned in classroom” says Akman.           

The grant is the third such award to this team at ISU. This award is also the fourth CRUI award granted to Illinois State University (the other involving Robert Preston, team leader from Biology, and George Kidder, professor emeritus of Biology). Receiving four such awards places Illinois State University among the nation’s elite institutions for undergraduate research.