Claire M. Curry
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology program
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Claire M. Curry Ecology and Evolutionary Biology program
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Mailing address:
Department of Biology
University of Oklahoma
730 Van Vleet
Oval, Room 314
Norman, OK 73019
Email: cmcurry@ou.edu
Website: http://students.ou.edu/C/Claire.M.Curry-1/
Ph.D. candidate in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology doctoral program in Zoology Department at University of Oklahoma in Norman, OK. August 2008 to present. Advisor: Michael Patten.
Relevant coursework: evolution of social behavior, ecological genetics, phylogeography, molecular techniques for field biologists, multivariate statistics, molecular methods and phylogenetics, evolution of life histories.
Workshop attended: geometric morphology analysis.
Graduated summa cum laude with Bachelor of Science in Biology (chemistry minor) at University of North Texas (Denton, TX). January 2005 to December 2007 (graduation).
Relevant coursework: stream ecology, principles of ecology, insect biology, biogeography, comparative animal physiology, genetics, and biological resource conservation and management.
Current research: genetic and behavioral dynamics of an avian hybrid zone, using the Tufted and Black-crested Titmouse species complex of Oklahoma and Texas as a model system. Hybrid zones such as this one, where two closely related species’ ranges overlap, provide insight into gene flow and speciation.
Field techniques include mist-netting and banding (requiring state and federal permits), blood sampling, re-sighting banded birds with binoculars, sound recording, nest box monitoring, and vegetation measurement.
Study sites are on state, federal, and private lands, giving me experience in working with site managers and landowners.
A total of 17 current and past volunteers have monitored nest boxes for me, providing experience in organizing volunteers across two states.
Spring 2009: observed color-banded Dark-eyed Juncos (Junco hyemalis) using spotting scope for migration study (see Bridge et al. 2010 in Publications).
Undergraduate biology honors thesis under Dr. James Kennedy’s direction, titled “Factors affecting interaction rates and space use of Plathemis lydia (Odonata: Libellulidae)”.
Intraspecific and interspecific interaction rates, space use, and area used were observed for P. lydia at three ponds in north-central Texas.
Interaction rates were found to be different depending on the space use category of interacting odonates (perching or flying), supporting the hypothesis that the thermoregulatory categories of perching and flying aid in partitioning the environment among species.
Field techniques included capture with an aerial net and marking of odonates with acrylic paint, re-sighting with binoculars, and vegetation measurements around ponds.
Curry, C.M. and J.H. Kennedy. 2010. Factors affecting interaction rates in Plathemis lydia (Drury) (Anisoptera: Libellulidae). Odonatologica. 39(1):27-39.
Bridge, E. S., J. F. Kelly, P. E. Bjornen, C. M. Curry, P. M. Crawford, and J. M. Parritte. 2010. Effects of nutritional condition on spring migration: do migrants use resource availability to keep pace with a changing world? Journal of Experimental Biology. 213:2424-2429. Available online: http://jeb.biologists.org/content/213/14/2424.full .
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2011. Song varies across younger and older hybrid zones in Black-crested (Baeolophus atricristatus) and Tufted (B. bicolor) titmice. Evolution 2011 meeting: Norman, OK. (Oral presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2011. Song varies across younger and older hybrid zones in Black-crested (Baeolophus atricristatus) and Tufted (B. bicolor) titmice. Association of Field Ornithologists/Cooper Ornithological Society/Wilson Ornithological Society joint meeting: Kearney, NE. (Oral presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2010. Vocal dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone. Oklahoma Ornithological Society meeting: Stillwater, OK. (Oral presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2010. Vocal dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone. Association of Field Ornithologists’ annual meeting: Ogden, UT. (Poster presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2010. Vocal dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone. Southwestern Association of Naturalists annual meeting: Junction, TX. (Poster presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and J.H. Kennedy. 2008. Factors affecting interaction rates and space use of Plathemis lydia (Drury 1773) (Odonata: Libellulidae). Southwestern Branch of the Entomological Society of America/Society of Southwestern Entomologists joint meeting: Fort Worth, TX. (Poster presentation.)
Curry, C.M.* and J.H. Kennedy. 2008. Factors affecting interaction rates and space use of Plathemis lydia (Drury 1773) (Odonata: Libellulidae). Southwestern Association of Naturalists annual meeting: Memphis, TN. (Oral presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2011. Song varies across younger and older hybrid zones in Black-crested (Baeolophus atricristatus) and Tufted (B. bicolor) titmice. Ecomunch seminar at University of Oklahoma: Norman, OK. (Oral presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2011. Song varies across younger and older hybrid zones in Black-crested (Baeolophus atricristatus) and Tufted (B. bicolor) titmice. Graduate College Student Research and Performance Day, University of Oklahoma: Norman, OK. (Poster presentation).
Curry, C.M.* and M.A. Patten. 2010. Song differences between Tufted and Black-crested Titmouse. Graduate College Student Research and Performance Day, University of Oklahoma: Norman, OK. (Poster presentation).
Curry, C.M.* 2009. Hybrid zones: titmice and the nature of species. Darwin-a-thon public education event at University of Oklahoma: Norman, OK. (Oral presentation).
Curry, C.M.* 2009. Genetic and behavioral dynamics in a complex avian hybrid zone. Ecomunch seminar at University of Oklahoma: Norman, OK. (Oral presentation).
TA for Entomology Lab (Fall 2009 and Fall 2010) at OU; duties include presentation of insect orders and families; creating and grading quizzes and exam; and leading students on field trips.
TA for Principles of Ecology Lab (Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Fall 2010) at OU; duties include discussion of concepts, guiding students through field experiments; and grading lab reports.
TA for Introductory Zoology Lab (Fall 2008) at OU; duties included lecturing on the day’s lab topic, assisting students with dissections, and writing, administering, and grading quizzes.
Assisted teaching Insect Biology Lab at UNT in Fall 2006 and Fall 2007; duties included helping students with keying insects, assisting students on field trips, and proctoring exams and quizzes with the TAs.
Contracted by the U.S. Forest Service at the LBJ National Grasslands to conduct a Black-capped Vireo survey and design a Loggerhead Shrike survey from March to June 2008.
Worked March to August 2007 as part-time undergraduate research assistant in Dr. James Kennedy’s Aquatic Ecology Lab at UNT, sorting aquatic invertebrates in sediment samples, identifying Chironomidae subfamilies, and formatting data.
Worked May to July 2006 as Seasonal Field Biologist for Leon River Restoration Project (with Texas A&M University) in Gatesville, TX, where duties included point counts of birds, nest searching, fledgling searching, and entering data.
Worked as part-time undergraduate research assistant from October 2005 to May 2006 in Dr. James Kennedy’s Aquatic Ecology Lab at UNT, sorting aquatic invertebrates in sediment samples.
Worked June to mid-August 2005 at Texas Agricultural Experiment Station in Vernon, Texas, counting birds, nest searching, measuring vegetation, and sampling insects.
Contracted by U.S. Forest Service to assist with Project Prairie Birds in winter of 2001-2002 on the Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands.
OU Alumni Fellowship, 2008-present; “emphasizes the recruitment and retention of outstanding graduate students”. More information at <http://gradweb.ou.edu/Funding/Fellowships/alumni/index.asp>.
M. Blanche Adams and M. Frances Adams Memorial Scholarships in Zoology: Academic Year Scholarship 2011-2012, proposal title “Behavioral and genetic dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”; for professional travel and research expenses, $1000.
M. Blanche Adams and M. Frances Adams Memorial Scholarships in Zoology: Summer Research Scholarship, summer 2011, proposal title “Behavioral and genetic dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”; summer research assistantship in department, $2500.
American Museum of Natural History, funding period 2011-2013, proposal title “Why songs change over space and time in a complex avian hybrid zone”, research expenses and genetic analysis costs, $2000.
George
Miksch Sutton Scholarship in Ornithology, 2011, proposal title
“Testing hybrid zone models using the Tufted (Baeolophus
bicolor) and Black-crested (B. atricristatus)
Titmouse
hybrid zone”, research equipment, travel, and lab
expenses, $6700.
OU Department of Zoology, February 2011, travel to Association of Field Ornithologists/Cooper Ornithological Society/Wilson Ornithological Society joint meeting in Kearney, Nebraska in March 2011, $250.
OU College of Arts and Sciences Student Travel Fund, October 2010, travel to Association of Field Ornithologists' conference in Ogden, Utah in August 2010, $750.
OU Robberson Travel Grant, October 2010, travel to Association of Field Ornithologists' conference in Ogden, Utah in August 2010, $500 (granted once per degree).
Oklahoma Ornithological Society, 2010, proposal title “Genetic and vocal dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”, research expenses, $400.
M. Blanche Adams and M. Frances Adams Memorial Scholarships in Zoology: Academic Year Scholarship 2010-2011, proposal title “Behavioral and genetic dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”; for professional travel and research expenses, $1000.
M. Blanche Adams and M. Frances Adams Memorial Scholarships in Zoology: Summer Research Scholarship, summer 2010, proposal title “Behavioral and genetic dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”; partial summer research assistantship in department (complements 2010 Sutton Scholarship stipend, below), $756.
George Miksch Sutton Scholarship in Ornithology, 2010, proposal title “Dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”, research equipment, travel, lab expenses, and partial summer stipend, $4800.
OU Graduate Student Senate Research and Creative Endeavors Grant, spring 2010; research equipment and travel to north-central Texas to examine field sites, $224.82.
OU Graduate Student Senate Conference and Creative Exhibition Grant, spring 2010; lodging and daily expenses at Southwestern Association of Naturalists’ meeting in Junction, TX, $79.86.
OU Robberson Research Grant, February 2010, research travel and genetic analysis costs, $1000 (granted once per degree).
OU Graduate Student Senate Research and Creative Endeavors Grant, fall 2009; travel expenses to southwestern Oklahoma to examine field sites, $315.62.
Carl and Pat Bynum Riggs Scholarship, Summer 2009; to defray expenses of course tuition and fees for O.U. Biological Station summer session; Molecular Techniques for Field Biology class, $500.
M. Blanche Adams and M. Frances Adams Memorial Scholarships in Zoology: Summer Research Scholarship, summer 2009, proposal title “Behavioral and genetic dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”; summer research assistantship in department, $2500.
George Miksch Sutton Scholarship in Ornithology, 2009, proposal title “Dynamics of a complex avian hybrid zone”; research equipment and travel expenses, $5000.
Write monthly “Birds and Beyond” column for small Texas newspaper, the Wise County Messenger. September 2002 to September 2007 as volunteer; November 2007 to present as paid columnist. Articles generally focus on natural history and identification of north-central Texas birds, butterflies, plants, and other organisms and descriptions of trips in other areas of Texas and Oklahoma.
Additional popular articles:
Curry, Claire. 2004. West Nile virus: birds, people, and Texas.” Texas Birds 5(1):14-16.
-A short review of West Nile Virus after its initial outbreak.
Curry, Claire. 2004. Killer meadowlarks. Texas Birds 5(1):29-30.
-Observations on an Eastern Meadowlark killing American Goldfinches during a winter storm.
Curry, Claire. 2004. Flight path: Young Birder of the Year contest ~ A birding essay: Stubs. Birding August 36(4):354-356.
-Observations on a female Archilochus sp. hummingbird with a broken beak.
Curry, Claire. 2004. Real birders drool. IN Claire Curry, Robert M. Milardo, and Richard Frechette. 2004. Dimensions: Three flights of fancy. Birding 36(3):288-289.
-Humorous essay on the canine birding experience.
Curry, Claire. 2002. The tail of an unfortunate chickadee. Winging It 14(2):4.
-Description of a Carolina Chickadee trapped in an Argiope sp. spider web.
American Ornithologists’ Union (2010-present)
Wilson Ornithological Society (2011-present)
Cooper Ornithological Society (2011-present)
Society for the Study of Evolution (2011-present)
Department of Zoology Graduate Selections Committee graduate student representative (2010-2011 academic year); provide comments on new graduate student applications to the department.
Reviewer for The Condor (journal of the Cooper Ornithological Society).
Student representative on website committee of the Cooper Ornithological Society (2011-present).
Volunteer, Evolution 2011 meeting, 17-21 July, Norman OK; driving van.
Session Chair (“Diversification- Birds”), Evolution 2011 meeting, 17-21 July 2011, Norman OK.
Nominated to serve as a OU Graduate College Academic Appeals and Misconduct student panelist (2011-2012 academic year); nominated by the OU Department of Zoology’s Graduate Liaison for being “an experienced Graduate Student and hav[ing] demonstrated the qualities necessary to serve as an Appeals or Misconduct panelist such as judgment, discretion and commitment.”
SAS 9.2 statistical analysis
Word processing, spreadsheet, and database programs:
Microsoft Office: Word 2007, Access 2007, Excel 2007, PowerPoint 2007
LibreOffice 3.3.0: Writer, Base, Impress
Gnumeric 1.10.11 spreadsheet
PostgreSQL database and pgAdmin III database interface
Proficient in ArcGIS 9.2 after completing Introduction to Geographic Information Systems course (UNT, Fall 2007).
Raven Pro 1.4 sound analysis software
EndNote X4 bibliography software
SigmaPlot 11.0 graphing software
Phylogenetic software: MRBAYES 3.1.2, RAxML, GARLI 1.0, FigTree, and MEGA 4.0
UNT President’s List for 4.00 GPA while completing at least 12 credit hours in a semester in all semesters from Spring 2005 (admitted) to Fall 2007 (graduation)
National Grasslands Prairie Partner Award 2003 (shared) from National Grasslands Council for volunteer work at the Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands.
Guided bird walk for Fort Griffin State Historic Site, TX, June 2011.
Assisted in preparing bird specimens and mounts for display at the U.S. Forest Service office in Decatur, TX.
Completed volunteer hours and advanced training hours for Elm Fork chapter of Texas Master Naturalist program, Class of 2000. Certified from 2000 to 2006.
Have co-presented talks about birds and ecology to Denton County Master Gardeners (TX), Elm Fork Chapter of Texas Master Naturalists, Decatur Lions’ Club, Tallgrass Prairie Audubon Society, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, elementary school students in Decatur, TX, and 2001, 2006, and 2007 JAKES (Juniors Acquiring Knowledge, Ethics, and Sportsmanship) events (U.S. Forest Service; Texas Parks and Wildlife) at the Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands.
Co-led monthly field trips to the Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands from February 2004 to January 2005.
Compiled checklists of Wise County birds and butterflies for distribution at the U.S. Forest Service office in Decatur.
Participated in Wise County Christmas Bird Count circle from 2000-2007.
Participated in Project Prairie Birds in winters of 2002-2006 on the Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands.
Co-editor of Tall Grass Tales, newsletter of Tallgrass Prairie Audubon Society, from December 2001 to October 2004.
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Advisor: Michael Patten |
Contact information:
Department
of Biology
University
of Oklahoma
730 Van Vleet Oval
Room 314
Norman, OK 73019
This page last updated 06 September 2011.