Understanding drivers of species distributions is an important challenge for more accurately projecting ecological change under climate warming. Species distributions have often been modeled using solely environmental factors as predictors. However, there is much recent data supporting the hypothesi

Evolution by natural selection is influenced by an organism’s environment. Biodiversity, an aspect of the biotic environment, is rapidly changing due to anthropogenic activity, so its impacts on selection must be better understood. In this study, the effects of diversity on selection for an insect r

Average temperatures are increasing globally and causing shifts in the timing of weather events such as spring snowmelt, which may have profound consequences on the phenology of many organisms. Working at the Rocky Mountain Biological Lab in central Colorado, we examined the relationship between spr

Phenology, or the timing of biological events, has been found to shift in response to changing climates and key environmental cues such as spring temperatures and snowmelt date. These phenological shifts have been observed to be particularly extreme in mid-to-high latitude alpine environments, like

The Arizona Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma mavortium nebulosa) is a keystone species in the Rocky Mountains. Depending on how well they grow as larvae, these salamanders can either metamorphose to have terrestrial traits at maturity or retain their juvenile aquatic traits as adults. We expect that pond

Pathogens can have strong negative effects on individual fitness that scale up to influence population dynamics. Because of this, understanding the ecological contexts that shape pathogen transmission and prevalence is critical for understanding community dynamics and ecosystem function. Puccinia mo

Aquatic insects play many critical ecological roles in their environments. Anthropogenic changes in these environments, particularly those already under stress, leave the insect community more prone to stochastic disturbances. Despite widespread efforts by conservationists, many projects fail to inc

Mountain White-crowned Sparrows and Wilson’s Warblers rely on foraging microhabitats in montane wet meadows during the breeding season to find food for themselves and their offspring. The microhabitats are comprised of vegetation, which can be food itself, but it can also be a substrate for inverteb

Understanding plant reproductive strategies is important for interpreting population dynamics and species resilience. We investigated the mating system, pollen limitation, and pollinator interactions of Geum triflorum (prairie smoke), a subalpine wildflower. Experiments took place at the Rokcky Moun

Humans manage microbes in their built environments by lowering humidity, filtering outside air, and applying antimicrobials that together fosters the selective dominance of microorganisms that can tolerate these harsh conditions and selects for antimicrobial resistance. Other species, however, regul

Species who commonly occupy territories within human settlements are exposed to frequent human disturbance, which has been linked to significant shifts in wildlife behavior in past studies. As urbanization and rural development continue to increase, we can anticipate cohabitation between humans and

Climate change is putting montane plant species at risk that rely on historical patterns of precipitation and snowmelt timing. Floral traits, such as nectar production and morphology can be impacted by water availability. Hybridization of plants has the potential to provide adaptation to climate cha

Ethanol is a natural byproduct of yeast fermentation of plant sugars. In flowering plants, yeasts often form mutualistic relationships by inhabiting nectar, where they benefit from access to sugar and confer antimicrobial protection through the production of ethanol. Ethanol in nectar not only shape

A plant’s functional traits, which aid with survival, growth, and reproduction, are shaped by different abiotic and evolutionary elements. Some communities have a larger degree of variation in their functional traits, and this study aimed to see if this variation is directly linked to the level of e