Florida’s wildlife is closely connected to the environments it has inhabited for generations. But as temperatures rise and rainfall patterns shift, those conditions are changing, creating new challenges for species across the state.

For white-tailed deer and Florida panthers, those challenges may look very different. Southern deer populations could face greater pressure as rising temperatures and shifting water conditions alter their habitat, while Florida panthers’ limited genetic variety may restrict their ability to respond to future environmental change.

Research conducted by UCF College of Sciences postdoctoral scholar George Zaragoza ’26PhD combines genomic data with habitat suitability models to examine how suitable habitats may change and whether individual populations have the genetic variety and adaptive potential needed to respond.

“The main goal is putting this research on … the radar for wildlife managers so they can use it to implement conservation measures. ” — George Zaragoza ’26PhD, postdoctoral scholar.

The research revealed a latitudinal pattern among Florida’s white-tailed deer, with southeastern populations more vulnerable than those farther north. For Florida panthers, the concern is their low genetic variety and limited adaptive potential despite a genetic rescue program in the 1990s.

“The main goal is putting this research on these interconnected species on the radar for wildlife managers so they can use it to implement conservation measures that will help these species thrive in the future,” says Zaragoza, who earned a doctorate in integrative conservation biology at UCF.

South Florida Deer Face a Hotter, Drier Future

The greatest concerns for white-tailed deer are concentrated in South Florida and the greater Everglades, where projections indicate increasingly dry conditions over the next 50 to 100 years.

“The ecology of the South Everglades relies a lot on water dynamics and how populations respond to higher or lower water levels,” Zaragoza says.

For deer, those changes can affect the plants they rely on for food.

“If water levels are lower than historically expected, those nutrient-rich food sources may become less available,” he says. “Too much water can create a different challenge by making low-lying areas unreachable to deer.”

Central and northern Florida deer populations are projected to face similar conditions, though the shift is expected to be less pronounced than in South Florida.

Genetics Reveal How Deer Are Adapted to Their Environment

Zaragoza’s research also examined genetic characteristics that may help explain how Florida deer have adapted to their environments.

Two genes of particular interest related to circadian rhythm are THADA, associated with metabolism and thermoregulation, and PROK2, associated with the timing of nocturnal activity.

Zaragoza says the findings may point to a role in regulating seasonal metabolic energy use and reproduction-related physiological processes.

“There are consistently these sort of genes that are involved in the timing of these physiological processes that have to do with how deer are storing energy,” Zaragoza says.

Zaragoza also identified genes associated with immune processes more often than expected by chance. This may be particularly important in Florida, where deer are exposed to a wide range of viruses, including those transmitted by arthropod vectors such as ticks, mosquitoes and biting flies.

The research may also help explain why Florida deer have a different reproductive timeline than populations farther north. Differences in sunlight, temperature and other environmental conditions may have contributed to adaptations in these cycles.

Florida Panthers Face a Different Challenge

For Florida panthers, the primary concern is whether the species has enough genetic variety to respond to future environmental conditions.

The population experienced a severe genetic bottleneck, leading to a genetic rescue program in the 1990s that introduced Texas pumas into the Florida population.

While subsequent research has shown that Florida panthers remain a distinct population, Zaragoza’s research indicates that genetic variation remains low.

“With limited genetic variation, Florida panthers have limited adaptive potential, especially as their habitat is also threatened,” he says. “It highlights the importance of suitable habitat and ensuring that it remains for the future.”

The research identified genetic variants involved in regulatory processes, including how and when genes are expressed. While this does not provide direct evidence of epigenetic mechanisms, it raises questions about whether epigenetic mechanisms could contribute to the panthers’ ability to respond to environmental changes despite their limited genetic variety.

“If a population with low genetic variation is able to use these epigenetic mechanisms to respond to future change, then that gives that population another potential way to adapt to future change that we’d like to better understand,” Zaragoza says.

For now, habitat protection remains particularly important for the species. Some South Florida habitats remain at risk of development or conversion, including in protected areas and wildlife refuges.

Connecting Genetics and Habitat

A central part of Zaragoza’s research brings together two types of information often studied separately: genetics and ecology.

By comparing projected changes in suitable habitat with genetics and adaptive potential, researchers can begin to prioritize populations based on vulnerability.

A population experiencing a substantial shift in suitable habitat may be better positioned to respond if it has high genetic variation and adaptive potential. Conversely, a population facing a similar environmental shift but lacking genetic variation could be at greater risk.

Zaragoza says this approach could give wildlife managers another tool for making decisions about Florida’s wildlife.

“There has been some work before, but especially in terms of environmental change, there really haven’t been these vulnerability assessments done with white-tailed deer and Florida panthers in the past,” Zaragoza says.

Making this information accessible could help managers identify populations that may need additional support, minimize habitat loss and consider strategies to protect vulnerable species.

An Integrative Approach to Conservation

For Zaragoza, the work also demonstrates the value of combining disciplines to answer complex conservation questions.

“There are so many tools and technologies available that really help us merge ecology and genetics into more of an integrative perspective,” Zaragoza says.

For him, understanding wildlife is ultimately about using science and technology to improve humanity’s relationship with the natural world.

“It comes down to realizing that we’re part of this greater ecosystem and we have a responsibility to steward it,” Zaragoza says.

Robin Marquez ’26 has re-prioritized his necessities at the University of Minnesota: he has clothes for exploring, clothes for frigid winters and somewhere he’s safely stored a new passport. This is Marquez’s latest stop in a lifelong itinerary that’s taken him from Brooklyn, New York, to Palm Beach County to Tampa, Florida, to UCF.

Oct. 19-23 is National Transfer Student Week

“I created a new road by going offroad,” he says.

Marquez is coming up on his 31^st birthday. He graduated from UCF in May with a biology degree and an unexpected interest. Among the possessions he took north are arthropod samples collected from the UCF Arboretum, an 80-acre parcel of research-rich ecosystems. He’s studying the microscopic insects for information about biological diversity. They’ve already provided the direction Marquez sought for so long.

“What I’m doing now, I couldn’t fathom a few years ago,” he says.

In his mid-20s, Marquez felt as if he were stuck in the weeds with a high school education and blurry future. Today, this same Robin Marquez has achieved the following: awarded the Order of Pegasus, recognition as the first student nominated through Valencia College for a Goldwater Scholarship, collaborated with researchers at Yale University and the Smithsonian Institution, and stood as the only undergraduate to receive the coveted Entomological Society of America Alate Award in 2025.

All of this has led him to the Twin Cities to work on a Ph.D. in entomology.

“I still don’t know where the limit is,” Marquez says.

His successes aren’t just for him. They’re for anyone who thinks they’ve wandered off the academic road.

“I no longer buy the narrative of hitting traditional checkpoints, like [completing an uninterrupted path to graduation] and starting a career by your early 20s,” he says. “It might take time to find the right people to propel you in ways you never thought possible.”

Marquez tried the “traditional checkpoints” route after high school, enrolling at the University of South Florida on a full ride in 2013. He imagined cruising along to medical school. However, 16 months later he departed USF with a failing GPA and mounting mental health challenges.

“I felt crushed,” he says. “I thought college would be my ticket out of socioeconomic hardship, that I’d be a first-generation graduate and break a cycle. Instead, it came to a grinding halt. I had the capability but not the right mindset. So, I kind of floated in this nebulous space of ‘adulthood.’ ”

Marquez carried the label “college dropout” in his mind for years. To this day, it’s hard for him to explain how misunderstood he felt.

Volunteering at an animal shelter became an escape. He moved to Orlando and grew plants in his apartment, hoping to shake himself out of stasis. A friend noticed how he enjoyed gardening and said he could make a career at it.

“I grew up in the concrete jungle of Brooklyn before my family moved to Florida,” Marquez says. “A gardening career sounded impossible until I heard Valencia [College] offers a degree in plant science. I thought I’d take a class, set the bar low and get back on my feet.”

A botany instructor at Valencia, Fabiano Isenhour, told Marquez to aim higher and consider research. The program director, Javier Garces, suggested he pursue a doctorate.

“I went from thinking two years of college would be my path into the workforce,” Marquez says, “to wondering where research might take me.”

The Fascinated Bug Librarian

In January of 2024, nearly 10 years after leaving college with a 0.9 GPA, Marquez transferred through the DirectConnect to UCF program with multiple plant certifications and a 4.0 earned at Valencia. His mental health had improved, too.

“Everything snowballed,” he says. “ɫ����, I spent time with a wellness coach in the McNair Scholars Program. Mentors like (former Professor) Patrick Bohlen were invested in my potential. I found this intersection of passion, support and community, which fueled my drive.

Marquez also discovered the Arboretum and UCF’s Bug Closet, a collection of more than 575,000 specimens — one of the largest completely databased collections in the world — that heightened his new curiosity about the relationship between insects and agriculture.

“Insect specimens are like books,” he says. “They provide knowledge about the world. In the Bug Closet, I was the librarian. My research there led me to the Smithsonian, where I worked with species that are new to science. Someday I could be involved in giving them names.”

On His Own Track in Life

“When I look back at where I’ve been and where I’ve come, it’s exhilarating. I can’t imagine making it this far if my path hadn’t led to UCF.”

The dispiriting label Marquez once shouldered has been shed. In its place, he has that new passport, which he’s using to present research at international conferences. He envisions completing his doctorate and working for the U.S. Department of Agriculture or Smithsonian to support America’s natural resources through entomology.

“I’m just now finding where I belong,” he says. “When I look back at where I’ve been and where I’ve come, it’s exhilarating. I can’t imagine making it this far if my path hadn’t led to UCF.”

While immune systems are well studied in mammals and birds, reptiles — particularly sea turtles — remain less explored, leaving critical gaps in scientific understanding.

New research published in helps address this gap by examining the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), a critical group of immune system genes that enables organisms to recognize and fight diseases.

The study, which examined four species — loggerheads, green turtles, Kemp’s ridleys and leatherbacks — found that most sea turtles maintain high levels of immune gene variation, likely inherited from a common ancestor. However, variation differs across species and different copies of these genes can function in distinct ways.

“Sea turtles are an interesting case for studying immune system evolution,” says Katherine Martin ’24PhD, an integrative conservation biology alum and postdoctoral researcher at Oregon State University who led the study. “They live for a long time and encounter many different types of pathogens across multiple habitats.”

How MHC and Genetic Variation Work Together

MHC plays a key role in identifying and flagging pathogens for destruction by the immune system.

“MHC is essentially holding a small molecular flag that says to T cells, ‘This is the invader that you need to seek and destroy’,” says Martin, who specializes in immune system genetics in sea turtles.

Because pathogens vary widely, immune defenses must also adapt, creating strong evolutionary pressure for variation in MHC genes.

“For each different pathogen, you need a different MHC protein,” Martin says. “You can think of it kind of like a lock and key.”

Martin adds that immune gene variation is critical for population health and studying this builds insight on how well a population might respond to disease.

Key Findings and Evolutionary Insights

The study revealed differences in genetic variation across species, with leatherbacks showing lower MHC diversity than others.

“One of the things that can contribute to low genetic variation is low population size,” Martin says. “We think this might be the case with leatherbacks.”

Another key finding was the presence of shared genetic variants across species, suggesting deep evolutionary roots.

“The results indicate that shared ancestry is the most likely explanation,” Martin says. “That likely underscores their importance and their function.”

Martin also identified balancing selection as a key evolutionary force maintaining immune gene variation.

“Instead of selecting for a single trait, it’s the variation within that trait that’s advantageous,” Martin says.

A Comparative Approach Across Species

“The turtle species have different diets, habitats and disease prevalence, and [these samples] provided a useful comparison of the different ways of living that sea turtles have and how that might bear out in patterns of MHC variation.”

To establish a baseline for variations, Martin analyzed MHC genes from more than 300 turtles samples collected through and collaborators, highlighting the shared effort behind large-scale conservation research.

“[The turtle species] have different diets, habitats and disease prevalence,” Martin says. “[These samples] provided a useful comparison of the different ways of living that sea turtles have and how that might bear out in patterns of MHC variation.”

Martin extracted DNA from samples across coastal nesting sites, lagoons and offshore waters. She then amplified target genes and sequenced them using next-generation DNA sequencing technology.

“In a single sequencing run, you can analyze multiple individuals all at once,” Martin says. “We also get high sequencing depth, meaning each bit of DNA is sequenced multiple times.”

This approach improves accuracy, especially for highly variable genes like MHC.

Expanding Studies and Conservation Efforts

Martin plans to expand her research to additional sea turtle populations worldwide rather than just the northwest Atlantic, as well as to reptiles more broadly.

“I really love being able to ask questions about how that variation arises in the first place and what forces maintain it over time,” Martin says.  Understanding immune gene variation has direct applications for conservation strategies, particularly as sea turtles face increasing environmental pressures.

“If we protect the habitats these sea turtles rely on, we can bolster population sizes and, in turn, maintain genetic variation across all genes,” Martin says.

While advanced interventions such as gene editing may be possible in the future, Martin emphasizes that habitat protection remains the most practical and effective approach.

“The most effective solution is public advocacy for [protection of] the natural world,” Martin says.

Funding and support for this research was provided in part by the Sea Turtle Grants Program funded from the proceeds of the Florida Sea Turtle License Plate, the Sigma Xi Grants in Aid of Research Program, the NOAA Oil Spill Supplemental Spend Plan, the Florida RESTORE Act Centers of Excellence Program administered through the Florida Institute of Oceanography and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

Turtle handling conducted as part of permitted research (FL-MTP-225, FL-MTP-231, NMFS 19508, and predecessors).

This project was paid for in part with federal funding from the Department of the Treasury under the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012 (RESTORE Act). The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of the Treasury.

Florida’s coastlines are changing, and so are the fish that depend on them.

As rising temperatures push tropical species northward and mangrove habitats expand into areas historically dominated by salt marshes, scientists are racing to understand how these shifts could affect marine food webs and long-term ecosystem stability.

Meredith Pratt, a UCF integrative and conservation biology doctoral student, is helping answer those questions. Her research on sustainable fisheries management along Florida’s east coast earned her the prestigious Florida Sea Grant/Guy Harvey Fellowship. The highly competitive award supports graduate students conducting research that informs marine conservation and fisheries management while cultivating future leaders in marine science.

Tracking a Changing Ecosystem

Pratt studies how tropicalization — the northward movement of tropical species and habitats — is altering Florida’s coastal ecosystems.

“As temperatures rise, mangroves, traditionally found in warmer, tropical regions, are expanding northward into areas historically dominated by salt marshes,” she says. “This shift is influencing the species that live there.”

To understand these changes, Pratt and her team study fish communities along Florida’s east coast. One fellowship-supported project focuses on predator-prey dynamics among popular sport fish, including common snook, red drum and spotted sea trout.

“The most interesting result so far is that the same fish species are eating different things, … and that raises important questions about how continued mangrove expansion could impact the ecosystem in the long term.”

“The most interesting result so far is that the same fish species are eating different things depending on whether they inhabit traditional salt marshes or increasingly dominant mangrove environments,” Pratt says. “While most species primarily feed on shrimp, common snook tend to consume more fish, and that raises important questions about how continued mangrove expansion could impact the ecosystem in the long term.”

These findings were supported through lab gut analysis of fish samples collected in the field using seine nets to determine stomach contents. Because digestion can make some prey difficult to identify, Pratt also used stable isotope analysis, which provides insight into a fish’sposition in the food web based on chemical signatures in its tissue.

“Gut content analysis shows us exactly what a fish recently ate, while stable isotopes give us a longer-term picture of its diet,” she says. “Together, they allow us to answer questions we couldn’t with just one method alone.”

Guiding Future Fisheries Management

The research is both environmentally and economically important to Florida. As one of the world’s premier fishing destinations, the state depends on healthy coastal ecosystems and fish populations to support its recreational and commercial fisheries.

“Many of the fish we rely on start in estuaries and coastal environments,” Pratt says. “They grow in protected areas like mangroves and salt marshes before moving offshore. If we don’t understand how those habitats are changing, we can’t effectively manage the fisheries that depend on them.”

Connecting Science and Community

Pratt is also expanding the impact of her research beyond the lab. Through her National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Margaret A. Davidson Graduate Fellowship, she launched the Guana Tolomato Matanzas (GTM) Fisheries Monitoring Program at the GTM National Estuarine Research Reserve.

“Getting people involved and helping them understand the importance of this work makes a big difference.”

The volunteer-driven initiative trains community members to collect fisheries data at designated sites, including species identification, abundance and size measurements. With nearly 20 volunteers participating, the program provides valuable long-term data while increasing public involvement in scientific research.

“It’s been one of the most rewarding parts of my Ph.D.,” Pratt says. “Getting people involved and helping them understand the importance of this work makes a big difference.”

A Full Circle Moment

For Pratt, earning the Florida Sea Grant/Guy Harvey Fellowship was a full-circle moment. As an undergraduate, she completed many of her classes and research experiences at the Guy Harvey Oceanographic Center at Nova Southeastern University. Now, funding from Florida Sea Grant and the Guy Harvey Foundation is helping advance her research while providing professional development opportunities in science communication.

“This fellowship not only supports my research but also allows me to connect with other scientists, stakeholders and the public,” she says. “Sharing our findings and contributing to science communication is a really meaningful part of the experience.”

Looking ahead, Pratt hopes her work will support more informed decision-making around fisheries management and conservation.

“Conservation requires research and education working together,” she says. “If we can understand what’s happening and communicate that effectively, we can make better decisions to protect these ecosystems for future generations.”

To advance knowledge in this area, UCF Assistant Professor of Biology , collaborated with international researchers through the Antscan, a global initiave led by the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) and Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), with contributions from universities and museums.

The effort has led to a Nature Methods publication and created a freely available, morphological database of over 2,000 ant specimens representing nearly 800 species.

“Ants are important to study because they are ubiquitous, abundant and highly varied, ecologically dominant, and some species practice agriculture, facing challenges similar to human agriculture, such as crop pests,” says Sosa-Calvo, who began researching insect diversity at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and the University of Maryland.

Using a fast and powerful X-ray scanning technique, researchers created phenotypically accurate 3D models, providing a detailed look at both ants’ external and internal anatomy that can benefit a wide range of fields.

“There is strong potential for more ant species to be added to Antscan and that other small insect or invertebrate groups create similar repositories of phenotypic data to advance our understanding of biological morphology,” Sosa-Calvo says.

Closing the Gap Between Genetic and Morphological Data

Standard imaging tools used to photograph specimens, like high-resolution cameras, can capture the external morphology of ants from multiple angles, and micro-CT scanning can capture the internal morphology like organs and muscle tissue. However, these methods are time-consuming and limit how many specimens can be studied.

The Antscan initiative is filling this gap of available data by providing a library of morphologically accurate 3D models of ant anatomy. To solve the throughput bottleneck, the team of researchers is using high-throughput X-ray micro-CT scanning powered by a synchrotron particle accelerator.

“The synchrotron particle accelerator produces much higher intensity light beams, resulting in images with higher contrast and faster processing times than a normal micro-CT scanner,” Sosa-Calvo says. “It takes about 3,000 images per specimen in a short period of time. So instead of taking most of the day to scan a single specimen, researchers can scan a single ant in about a minute or so.”

Once the 2D images are captured, they are reconstructed into a 3D tomogram of the specimen, allowing researchers to see fine details from the exoskeleton to internal structures like the nervous system.

Why This Tech Matters for Biodiversity Research

By streamlining the process of scanning smaller specimens and making the 3D models publicly available, the Antscan initiative has opened the door for researchers to study morphology at a scale previously only possible for genetic data, helping morphological research catch up with its molecular counterpart.

It has also helped document the presence of characteristics previously thought to occur in only a single species.

“A few years ago, we discovered that fungus-farming ants—a group of ants that grow fungus for food and are the subject of Sosa-Calvo’s research at UCF—have biomineralized armor that protects them like the shell of marine crustaceans and mollusks,” he says. “With the scans performed in this project, we now know that other species, within fungus-farming ants also have this armor, which appears to be a unique feature among ants.”

Applications in Art and Media

Scientists aren’t the only group that benefits from this extensive library. Since the files are open to the public, Sosa-Calvo says artists are using them to better understand and animate natural ant movement and is a valuable tool for education by engaging students.

He adds that this proven method of collecting morphological data could encourage researchers to generate similar databases, including other Hymenopteran groups, such as wasps andbees, as well as other insect groups like beetles, and other invertebrates.

Sosa-Calvo’s work contributed expertise on insect diversity, particularly within the order Hymenoptera, which includes ants, bees, and wasps. His research focuses on fungus-farming ants, a group known for their highly organized, cooperative colonies and unique agricultural behavior, or fungiculture.

This research was supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation (DEB-1927161).

Researchers and students in the Department of Biology within UCF’s College of Sciences, including the Sosa-Calvo Ant Lab, have contributed to the Antscan initiative.

Now, a new study published in the American Ornithological Society’s Ornithological Applications journal details how researchers from UCF’s and colleagues analyzed the genetic variability, population structure and viable conservation strategies for Florida’s American flamingo.

“As a native Floridian who grew up in Tallahassee, Florida, I was fascinated and a little surprised to see the flamingo as a prominent state icon, yet I had never seen one in the wild,” says Jessica Folsom ’23MS, who led the study while earning her master’s degree in biology at UCF.

The Flamingo’s Lost History

Flamingos were nearly extirpated in Florida due to hunting and habitat loss. While later sightings suggested possible natural recolonization, many of the birds were thought to be escapees from zoos or other captive populations rather than signs of a true restoration.

Eric Hoffman, professor and chair ɫ����’s Department of Biology and a co-author of the study, says the project revealed the depth of what was lost.

“Before this project, I wasn’t aware of the historical distribution or how common these birds were in Florida 100 to 150 years ago,” Hoffman says.

An Unlikely Founding Population

Although flamingo populations remain large in regions near Florida, including The Bahamas, Cuba and Mexico, Florida’s first wave of birds originated in an unconventional setting.

“In the 1920s, the owner of a horse racetrack in Hialeah released roughly 20 flamingos, likely sourced from The Bahamas, as a marketing strategy to boost attendance and betting,” Hoffman says. “The birds thrived in the wetland habitat at the track’s center, forming the founding population for many Florida zoo-held flocks, including Zoo Miami’s.”

Signs Florida Can Still Support Flamingos

In recent years, researchers say that flamingos generally fly into Florida from neighboring regions or arrive after hurricanes. Some flocks remain for months — evidence that Florida’s wetlands can support them — however, establishing a long-term breeding population remains a primary challenge.

“These returning flocks have given us an opportunity to collect contemporary and historical samples to address questions about their genetics and population structure — a central focus of my lab,” Hoffman says.

What the Genetics Reveal

Folsom, who conducted the research in Hoffman’s lab as a graduate student and now works as a biologist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, says populations that undergo extirpation or steep decline often face consequences such as reduced genetic variability, loss of unique local adaptations or alleles, and, in severe cases, a greater risk of inbreeding.

“In Florida, hunting for feathers could have created those conditions,” Folsom says. “However, in our study, we found insignificant levels of inbreeding, little loss of genetic variability and minimal differentiation between Florida birds, the birds in Florida zoos, and other populations in the Caribbean and parts of South America.”

The study included 188 flamingos spanning seven contemporary wild populations — from Cuba, The Bahamas, Bonaire, the Yucatán Peninsula, Mississippi, the Galápagos Islands and Florida — as well as managed flocks, or ex-situ, housed in Zoo Miami and Hialeah Park. It also included five historical populations from Cuba, The Bahamas, Mexico, Florida and the Galápagos Islands.

Because wild Florida specimens are limited, the team used other Caribbean wild populations as genetic proxies. Using whole genome sequencing across more than two million loci — the fixed positions of genes on a chromosome — the team analyzed data using bioinformatics software on UCF’s high-performance computing cluster, Stokes.

“One of our most surprising findings was that modern flamingos showed significant genetic variability compared to historical populations,” Folsom says. “Captive populations showed the greatest genetic variability and minimal inbreeding, meaning they could be strong candidates for reintroduction. Genetic similarities also indicate flamingos from other regions could adapt well to Florida, with limited risk of outbreeding depression.”

Researchers emphasize that reintroduction must be paired with policy change.

“For more than a century, there were almost no conservation measures for flamingos in the U.S.,” says Steven Whitfield, director of Terrestrial and Wetlands Conservation at the Audubon Nature Institute and a co-author of the study. “That’s partly because flamingos were long considered a non-native species to Florida. With our work, we want to show they have always belonged here and there’s a scientific basis to support their recovery.”

Why Policy Matters as Much as Habitat

A petition to classify the birds as threatened was filed with the state, Whitfield says, but the proposal did not advance, stating that flamingos don’t warrant inclusion on the threatened species list. Some officials have cited existing protections, such as Everglades National Park, as sufficient. Researchers disagree, saying habitat protections alone cannot ensure the species’ survival or population restoration.

“This study provides the evidence needed to prove that birds raised by zoos are a viable genetic match, opening the opportunity for reintroduction from zoo populations,” Whitfield says.

Meanwhile, public momentum is strengthening legislative interest.

“There is sustained statewide support for naming the flamingo Florida’s official state bird, and bills are now under review in both the Florida House and Senate,” Folsom says. “They’re often the first image that comes to mind when you think of Florida, and that recognition drives ecotourism and public enthusiasm, which also supports broader wetland conservation efforts.”

Successful recovery efforts in other regions point to promising intervention strategies.

“Artificial nest mounds can encourage breeding, and decoy flamingos have been used to signal an established flock, helping attract passing birds,” Folsom says. “Both tactics have shown success in human care and select wild settings.”

A Path Forward for Restoration

While the long-term outlook for flamingos is good, the small numbers in Florida are not enough for the species to recover. Moreover, habitat destruction, pollution and warming temperatures add to the challenges they face.

“Natural recovery of the flamingo is unlikely in Florida without intervention,” Whitfield says. “But our study shifts that conversation. We can now confidently say ex-situ flamingos are genetically compatible with wild populations, which opens possibilities for a future release program, even though logistical hurdles remain.”

For the researchers, the study has not only demonstrated how genetics can inform conservation but also provided an opportunity to raise awareness about an iconic species that has always been native to Florida.

“Growing up in Florida, it’s impossible not to appreciate its biodiversity,” Folsom says. “Working on this project with passionate colleagues like Eric and Steven has been incredibly rewarding, helping clarify the flamingos’ history in Florida and the value of protecting and reintroducing them.”

In a recent study published in Royal Society Open Science, researchers found that warmer migratory temperatures may be disrupting their reproductive development, reducing overall fitness and increasing mortality.

Led by UCF Professor of Biology Ken Fedorka and colleagues, the study warns that if warming weather trends continue, the monarch’s migratory phenotype could be lost in North America.

“Eastern and western monarch populations migrate thousands of miles to overwintering sites in Mexico and California, entering reproductive diapause, or a dormancy stage, to conserve energy and survive the journey and winter,” Fedorka says. “But warming temperatures are activating their reproductive development earlier and causing them to drop out of migration, even in the absence of native milkweed, the crucial plant they rely on for breeding success.”

Since the 1990s, the eastern monarch populations overwintering in Mexico have declined by 70 %, a drop tied to habitat loss, deforestation, tropical milkweed and Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE) parasite, with warming temperatures now emerging as newly identified risk in this study.

Each August, a new generation of monarchs emerges in reproductive diapause, storing fat to fuel the roughly two-month southward migration to the mountains of Mexico, just west of Mexico City. There, they cluster in trees and survive on stored fat until early spring, when they begin investing in reproductive tissues and mating.

“Only the south-migrating generation lives up to eight months,” Fedorka says. “Once they start reproducing, they live around four to five weeks, leaving the next generation to continue the cycle. Typically, four to five generations migrate north and south every year.”

To conduct the study, researchers simulated warm and cold migratory temperatures with monarchs to measure survival, body condition, reproductive development and parasite load.

“We found that during the migration phase, warm temperatures increased male mortality and reduced fitness, while females ended diapause early, developed eggs and even laid them in the absence of milkweed,” Fedorka says. “Both sexes also mated more under warm conditions.”

This pattern can create issues for survival of the offspring. During the overwintering phase, Fedorka and his team found that monarchs exposed to warm migration conditions faced higher mortality, with females reproducing early and parasite-heavy butterflies most likely to die. More notably, their study points at the effect of warming temperatures in shifting the delicate cycle of monarch’s reproductive process.

“Normally, monarchs begin reproduction in spring after surviving winter diapause when native milkweed re-emerges,” Fedorka says. “Monarchs rely on milkweed for reproduction, with females laying eggs on the plant and caterpillars feeding exclusively on its leaves. However, if warmer temperatures cause monarchs to drop out of migration earlier and begin mating and laying eggs before milkweed is available, their offspring will not have a food source, leading to reproductive failure.”

Milkweed is central to the conservation debate. Monarchs rely on milkweed for reproduction, but non-native tropical milkweed,  a widely sold ornamental flower in the U.S. , may be complicating efforts.

“In the conservation world, tropical milkweed is controversial,” Ferdorka says. “Some argue it could support monarchs as a warming climate force more winter breeding. Others warn it can lure monarchs out of migration and harbor high levels of OE, a parasite that weakens their fitness.”

The study’s authors caution planting tropical milkweed widely but note it could play a role in conservation if carefully managed.

“To date, planting native milkweed and minimizing tropical milkweed seems reasonable,” Fedorka says. “However, my data and David James’ observations during the 2020 California monarch crash, suggest that unusually warm migratory temperatures may present the biggest risk, triggering migratory failure.”

In the fall of 2020, California’s western monarch population collapsed, with fewer than 2,000 migrant butterflies recorded at overwintering sites compared to the millions that once migrated there. Record heat likely disrupted diapause, though that same December, people documented a record high number of breeding adults, eggs and larvae on milkweeds, suggesting a winter breeding switch. The following year, the overwintering population rebounded, with about 240,000 monarchs believed to have been descendants from the winter breeders.

“One of the current puzzles surrounding monarchs is how such low overwintering populations can give rise to such robust summer breeding populations,” Fedorka says. “Our data show that monarchs failing to reach overwintering sites may not be dying, as generally expected. Instead, they may become reproductive, and if successful, their offspring could re-migrate northward to sustain strong summer populations. That’s something we need to consider when developing conservation strategies.”

Fedorka added that if the climate continues to warm, more monarchs may drop out migration and attempt reproduction sooner and if tropical milkweed is banned, they would face reproductive failure.

“If we adapt conservation efforts and plant tropical milkweed along the southern range of the migration route, it could help retain migration dropouts and support the next generation,” Fedorka says.

While this study highlights warming climate as a major driver of the monarch overwintering population decline, Fedorka emphasized the need for more data.

“We need to be cautious with our conservation efforts and focus on gathering more data about our changing environment,” he says. “This will be crucial moving forward to conserve this iconic species.”

Citizen scientists remain a critical part of that effort.

“Thousands of people across the U.S. track monarchs and milkweed from their backyards or travels, providing data no single research team could gather alone,” Fedorka says. “These passionate citizen scientists are crucial to monarch conservation.”

Looking ahead, Fedorka and his team are building on this research to study how temperature alone may drive diapause disruptions.

“I’ve always been fascinated by the quirks of nature and asking questions,” he says. “I see it as a giant puzzle to be solved, and the real joy comes from chipping away at the mystery and monarch migration is one of them.”

Led by UCF Professor of Biology and developed by undergraduate students, the new game blends research with interactive learning.

“My work on parasitic wasps and their symbiotic viruses forms the foundation for the game and other outreach efforts designed to engage the public with biology in a fun and accessible way,” Sharanowski says.

The game was created by computer science senior students as part of their capstone project under the supervision of Associate Lecturer of Computer Science Matthew Gerber, with Sharanowski providing the concept. It represents the second phase of development, with an earlier senior group of students building the original concept and the second group advancing it into a fully playable desktop version.

“The students coded, designed and refined the game, which was initially envisioned as a virtual reality experience but shifted to a desktop game  due to delays from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Sharanowski says.

In the game, players take on the role of scientists tasked with protecting a national park by designing custom wasps to control invasive pests.

“The goal as a scientist is to save the park by releasing specially designed wasps with beneficial features like paralytic venom, long ovipositors or even mind control, that make them more effective at targeting host species such as caterpillars, beetles and aphids,” she says.

Along the way, players encounter educational blurbs that explain these traits and reinforce the idea that not all wasps sting and many are actually beneficial to humans and ecosystems.

“These wasps can be endoparasitic, developing inside their host, or ectoparasitic, developing outside the host,” Sharanowski says. “You can find them all around the world, including in our backyards, and they serve an important role in nature as natural agents of pest control, thereby reducing the need for pesticides.”

The project was funded through the U.S. National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Rules of Life Initiative, which brings together multiple NSF divisions to address the fundamental questions about how living systems function and evolve.

According to Sharanowski, parasitic wasps are one of the most varied lineages on Earth, with more species than all vertebrates combined.

“For every insect that’s out there, there’s likely one or more parasitic wasps that attack it,” she says.

Her research explores the unique symbiosis between wasps and viruses.

“Over time, some viruses have become integrated into the genomes of certain parasitic wasps, effectively making the virus and wasp a single organism,” Sharanowski says. “The virus no longer replicates independently — its reproduction is tied to the wasp’s. When a female wasp lays an egg inside a host, the virions enter the host and activate viral genes that manipulate the host’s immune system and behavior, benefiting the developing wasp.”

This wasp-virus relationship has evolved multiple times and remains a central focus of her research.

As a first-generation college graduate, Sharanowski says this project has been a way to share her passion for entomology and science, as well as to provide educational opportunities for people to learn about wasps in a fun way.

“One of my core values as an educator is to make science engaging,” she says. “I enjoy doing campus and community outreach to show how fascinating these insects are, and I believe this game does that.”

She also highlighted UCF’s Collection of Arthropods, commonly known as the , as a public resource preserving and showcasing the biodiversity of insects in Central Florida.

Looking ahead, Sharanowski says a third group of students is currently working on a mobile version of the game, expected to launch later this year.

“There is so much beauty out there, and I want people to see how fascinating bugs are and the important role they play in ecosystems,” she says.

The move raised concerns about harmful mutations and genetic swamping — or loss of unique traits. However, a recent study co-authored by UCF Assistant Professor of Biology and Genomics and Bioinformatics faculty cluster member Robert Fitak, found that since the introduction, genetic variation has significantly improved; unique traits have been retained; and harmful mutations, while still present, are largely masked by the restored genetic variation.

Findings from the study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and led by UCLA researcher Diana Aguilar-Gómez with colleagues, suggest that this rescue model could guide future conservation efforts for other endangered species facing similar threats.

In the 1990s, fewer than 30 Florida panthers remained in the wild. Habitat loss, isolation and unregulated hunting drove the species to their record-low numbers. The steep decline led to inbreeding, causing developmental, reproductive and immunological impairments that spelled a devastating future for the species.

“If the panthers had continued inbreeding, the population would have been driven to extinction,” Fitak says. “The only way to recover them was to restore the genetic variation they had lost. ”

While the introduction helped the population rebound to between 120 to 230 individuals, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, researchers wanted to know if the species’ genetic health improved and if their genetic ancestry was being replaced.

“My colleagues sequenced the entire genome of 29 post-rescue Florida panthers and combined it with genomes generated from my group and others to create a larger genomic analysis,” Fitak says.

The study found mixed Florida-Texas ancestry, with 24% to 61% Texas ancestry, indicating increased genetic variation measured by heterozygosity — a marker of how much genetic variation individuals carry.

It also found no evidence of genetic swamping — when genes from one population, such as Texas pumas, overwhelm and dilute the genetic makeup of another, such as Florida panthers. The panthers with mixed ancestry retained on average 59% to 80% Florida ancestry. Over time, Florida ancestry even increased, alleviating fears that the Texas genes would dominate the population’s unique traits.

“One of the risks of introducing Texas pumas was the loss of traits that make Florida panthers unique, but that was not the case,” Fitak says. “Their DNA was still intact and had spread to the individuals we studied. Post-rescue generations were genetically, physiologically and morphologically the same as pre-rescue Florida panthers.”

Moreover, post-rescue panthers carried fewer harmful mutations or deleterious variants, which were not removed but largely masked by the additional genetic variation from Texas pumas.

“Another fear was the possibility of introducing more harmful mutations that would worsen an already vulnerable population, but the opposite happened,” Fitak says. “Bringing in Texas pumas helped offset negative mutations and improved the population’s overall health.”

While the findings have been largely positive, researchers remain cautiously optimistic about the long-term results.

“It’s clear that without the genetic rescue 30 years ago, we probably wouldn’t have a Florida panther today,” Fitak says. “That’s why ongoing monitoring is critical. If their numbers drop and inbreeding rises again, we need to act quickly before facing the same problem.”

He adds that the study underscores the importance of building on research data collected over time.

“The project was a major collaboration led by several scientists and relied heavily on data gathered by multiple groups in previous studies,” Fitak says. “Making such data publicly available is crucial for advancing future research.”

On the broader significance, he says that understanding what worked for Florida panthers could help improve outcomes for other species facing similar declines.

“This kind of intervention will likely become more common as more iconic megafauna in the country and around the world decline,” Fitak says. “Studying its effects in Florida panthers helps us refine the approach and make it more effective for future conservation efforts.”

Aside from the genetic challenges, the Florida panther is also facing another major threat: habitat loss and degradation.

“Continued development in Florida is eating away at the spaces panthers need for survival.” Fitak says. “Development also indirectly impacts water quality and displaces the prey they rely on for food.”

While genetic restoration may have given Florida panthers a second chance, Fitak stresses that monitoring and habitat protection remain critical for their survival. Beyond safeguarding a single species, the effort has ripple effects across an entire ecosystem and holds significance for Floridians who view the panther as the state’s icon.

“Florida panthers are a symbol of the state’s wild heritage,” Fitak says. “Protecting this top predator isn’t just about saving one animal — it’s about preserving the health of an entire ecosystem for future generations.”

Florida panther samples were collected using funding from the Florida Panther Research and Management Trust Fund.

Researcher Credentials:
Fitak is an assistant professor in UCF’s Department of Biology in the College of Sciences. He received his doctorate in genetics from the University of Arizona and his bachelor’s in molecular genetics from The Ohio State University. Before joining UCF in 2019, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Population Genetics in Vienna, Austria, and at Duke University. He is a member ɫ����’s Genomics and Bioinformatics research cluster.

Name: Carla Perscky
Major: Master’s in biology

Why are you interested in this research?
When I learned that seagrass provides ecosystem services like mitigating shoreline erosion, improving water quality, cycling nutrients, sequestering carbon dioxide, and providing nursery and habitat for commercially and recreationally important species I realized that I wanted to contribute to the long-term conservation of these ecosystems for future generations.

Are you a faculty member or student conducting research at UCF? We want to hear from you! 

How did you get started in research at UCF?
My research journey began under the mentorship of Dr. Linda Walters at the Coastal and Estuarine Ecology Lab through a former U.S. National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) scholarship. This program was pivotal in launching my career as an early scientist. Without the REU it would have been incredibly difficult to break into STEM or pursue graduate school, especially as a U.S. Navy veteran who took a nontraditional path to higher education. Dr. Walters continues to serve as my mentor throughout my master’s degree in biology.

Who inspires you and how?
I am inspired by Claudia Sheinbaum, the newly elected president of Mexico. As a scientist, and now national leader, she represents the kind of intersection I strive for, where science informs public policy, and leadership is rooted in evidence and sustainability. Her journey gives me hope that [researchers] with strong STEM backgrounds can make lasting impact not only in the labs and classrooms, but in the world stage.

How does UCF empower you to do your research?
UCF has given me access to an amazing network of scientists and field opportunities.

Why is this research important?
Seagrasses are essential to healthy ecosystems and livelihoods. However, these coastal plants are experiencing global declines, especially under anthropogenic stressors like eutrophication, which occurs when nutrients that can lead to excessive plant growth and pollution. My research is about future-proofing our conservation approach to help these critical ecosystems and the people who depend on them thrive in a changing environment.