E Schlatter of the Buston Lab received the 2024 Alistair Economakis Award in Marine Science. This award provides support for graduate students conducting research in marine science with a focus on research related to ecology, evolution, or behavior.

In their study, E uses a variety of theoretical and empirical approaches to address questions about the evolution of marine larval dispersal. Their current projects include: using quantitative genetics to ask about the evolutionary potential of dispersal-related traits in the clownfish Amphiprion percula; using a theoretical model to illustrate the roles of opposing components of selection in shaping dispersal patterns; and using genetic simulations and seascape information to create a quantitative link between empirical measures of dispersal and the resulting spatial genetic structure in the neon goby Elacatinus lori

As a whole, this work contributes to our understanding of how and why organisms have evolved to disperse through the ocean as they do.

Congratulations, E!