Addie Hughes, in concert with Dr. Hantak’s herpetology lab, has been studying the variation in color polymorphism of Blanchard's Cricket Frogs in Southwestern Ohio. She chose to do a thesis in order to gain a deeper understanding of the research process and explore her interests that go beyond the classroom. Inspired by her love for working outdoors and applying science in real world settings, Addie found a research experience that combined both laboratory and field work.
To test this, Addie was willing to get her hands dirty through fieldwork, observation, and statistical analysis. In order to study how color variations affect predator avoidance, clay replicas of Blanchard’s Cricket Frogs were created. Using experimental design methods, Addie placed a green stripe on half the models to simulate one natural color pattern and kept the other half uniformly brown to replicate the other natural color pattern. Models were placed in a natural pond habitat, and after a few days were collected to examine for predator attack marks. The experiment was repeated to gather more data.
Addie is now in the process of sorting through the data and analyzing results. Reflecting on her research journey thus far, Addie notes growth during setbacks and learning to be adaptable. For instance, when she attempted to repeat the experiment a second time the natural habitat had dried up, so she had to wait until the pond filled with water in order to conduct the experiment again. This prolonged the data collection period, but Addie's resilience paid off.
Addie reaffirms the importance of undergraduate research. “Since not many undergraduate students get the chance to conduct independent research, I wanted to take full advantage of the resources available to me and expand my knowledge in the scientific field.” She sees her research as an important step towards her future career in veterinary medicine and views the support from the University of Dayton Honors Program as a big part of it.
Research is a wonderful opportunity available to students in the Honors Program, and Addie Hughes is one who has taken advantage. From developing her understanding of ecology, data analysis, and the research process as a whole, to contributing to a better understanding of how coloration can play a role in predator avoidance and survival, Addie’s research can help inform conservation efforts for amphibians and other species facing environmental pressures. We can’t wait to see where her research takes her next!