Elizabeth Friday
Undergraduate Researcher (2022)
Project Title: Berryteuthis magister (commander squid) demographics in SE Alaska.
I grew up in the northern suburbs of Chicago, but I am an exchange student originally studying at Iowa State University with a major in Environmental Science and a minor in Animal Ecology. For as long as I can remember, I've always had a soft spot for insects and other arthropods, and I worked with Haldre Rogers in her entomology lab studying arthropods and their diets from the University of Guam. I then moved to working with Brian Wilsey in his EEOB (evolution, ecology, and organismal biology) lab researching the effects of pollinator exclusion on prairie plants. I also ended up taking an entomology class and gained a love for stick insects and Madagascar hissing cockroaches.
Unsurprisingly, I came to UAS and discovered that it did not have an entomology department, but I quickly realized marine arthropods, cephalopods, and any other invertebrate in the ocean were just as cool as terrestrial insects. So, I'm super excited to work with Dr. Navarro to promote building a sustainable fishery for squid while promoting food security and helping us adapt to climate change in our own way.
