Jessie Rack
Contact Information
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Connecticut
75 North Eagleville Road
Storrs, CT 06269
Office: Pharmacy/Biology 211
Phone: 860-486-6154
E-mail: jessica.rack@uconn.edu
About Me
I am currently a doctoral student at the University of Connecticut, working for Dr. Mark Urban.
I am interested in predator-prey chemical communication over a geographic scale. My focal species is Ambystoma maculatum, the spotted salamander, and my research focuses on whether this species demonstrates different behavioral responses to predator chemical cues depending on predator origin (near versus more distant ponds)
In my "free time" I run, hike, and play roller derby with the Hartford Area Roller Derby.
I'm also on Facebook
Education
Ph.D. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
2010-present
University of Connecticut, Storrs CT
B.S. Biology
2007-2010
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
Research Experience: (1) Behavioral Response to Olfactory Cues in the Convict Cichlid, Amatitlania nigrofasciatum, with Dr. Simon Beeching. (2) Sexual dimorphism of electrocommunication signals across populations of weakly electric fish, Apteronotus albifrons, with Dr. Troy Smith.
B.A. Music
2000-2005
West Virginia University
Research Interests
I am broadly interested in animal communication behaviors, specifically chemical signalling. I am currently investigating the behavioral responses of spotted salamander larvae (Ambystoma maculatum) to predator chemical cues originating from predators that vary geographically from a focal pond. With this work, I hope to address whether predator-prey chemical communication can evolve across a geographic landscape.
Teaching Experience
EEB 3247 - Limnology: Fall 2011
BIO 1102 - Foundations of Biology: Fall 2010 and Spring 2011