More About Me
I am currently working towards my PhD in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL). I am co-advised by Dr. Shizuka in the School of Biological Sciences and Dr. Jeff Stevens in the Department of Psychology, and I am supported by a National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT), which is a program that educates students about resilience theory in agroecosystems. My research focuses on how socially transmitted behavioral traits affect ecosystem resilience at multiple scales of biological organization. I am currently using simulations and empirical data to study the effects of disturbances in animal social systems. I am using data from two long-term study sites to ask questions about long-term social dynamics and the influence of social and environmental factors on spatial use: Asian elephants (Elaphus maximus) in Uda Walawe National Park in Sri Lanka, and golden-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia atricapilla) the University of California Santa Cruz Arboretum.
Prior to accepting a PhD position at UNL, I worked for Dr. Shizuka, managing a RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) bird feeder project at the Pioneers Park Nature Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. This ongoing project uses feeders outfitted with RFID antennas and data loggers (pictured left) to study the winter ecology of birds that participate in mixed-species flocks. I built a weather station controlled by an Arduino Uno to collect fine-scale weather data on-site in conjunction with the RFID feeders. Using the weather station and RFID feeders, I asked questions about the effects of weather on feeding rates of RFID-tagged birds. We also investigated whether birds with similar foraging activity are more connected in a social network, and asked which had a stronger effect, physiological pressures or social pressures. Interestingly, social relationships seemed to have stronger effects on foraging behavior than temperature (Madsen et al. 2021).
Prior to accepting a PhD position at UNL, I worked for Dr. Shizuka, managing a RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) bird feeder project at the Pioneers Park Nature Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. This ongoing project uses feeders outfitted with RFID antennas and data loggers (pictured left) to study the winter ecology of birds that participate in mixed-species flocks. I built a weather station controlled by an Arduino Uno to collect fine-scale weather data on-site in conjunction with the RFID feeders. Using the weather station and RFID feeders, I asked questions about the effects of weather on feeding rates of RFID-tagged birds. We also investigated whether birds with similar foraging activity are more connected in a social network, and asked which had a stronger effect, physiological pressures or social pressures. Interestingly, social relationships seemed to have stronger effects on foraging behavior than temperature (Madsen et al. 2021).
While finishing my BS at UNL, I spent two years working for Dr. Fontaine at the Nebraska Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit (NECFWRU). A large portion of my work at NECFWRU included pheasant and hunter research in Nebraska. I also worked with the Nebraska Canid Project, managing camera trap data and writing a formal research paper for my Cabela's-funded research project on the effects of weather and length of deployment on camera trap detection of coyotes, now published in The Wildlife Society Bulletin.
Some of my broad research interests include: individual variation in social behaviors, the evolution and function of social groups and pair bonds, social network structure, the effects of anthropogenic change on ecosystem structure and function, and the effects of climate change on animal movement and behavioral plasticity.
In my spare time, I draw animals and play music. Below are some of my final illustration pieces from a Science Illustration course I took at UNL.
Some of my broad research interests include: individual variation in social behaviors, the evolution and function of social groups and pair bonds, social network structure, the effects of anthropogenic change on ecosystem structure and function, and the effects of climate change on animal movement and behavioral plasticity.
In my spare time, I draw animals and play music. Below are some of my final illustration pieces from a Science Illustration course I took at UNL.