Biodiversity Blog
Discovering New Groundwater Invertebrates in Central Texas
by Freshman Research Initiative students: Nicholas Hartman, Faith Miles, Antonio Rodriguez
amphipod, Stygobromus sp. (Photo: Tom Devitt)
New species of animals evolve through speciation, a process whereby a lineage diverges into a new species. When these new species are first discovered, they are undescribed, meaning they have not be... A Rodeo of Insects
By Jen Schlauch, Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Senior
Freshman Research Initiative students
A large steel barn lay hidden from the February cold, framed in a banner of painted bluebonnets and the words, “Texas Wildlife Expo.” Within, javelinas, porcupines, and longhorn cattle shuffled in front of curious children and their ... Sprinting for Dung Beetles
Photo by Alex Wild.
February 2nd was an unusually warm Saturday for winter, even in Central Texas. Many took the opportunity to work in the yard, exercise, lounge in the sun, but in Welsh Hall on campus, about 20 UT undergraduates were instead hovering over 3000 dung beetles.
This was for an event called “Science Sprints,” one-day intensives tha... New Lab Space Promotes Freshmen Research in Biodiversity
Students in Biodiversity Discovery stream.
With construction completed in 1933, Painter Hall has been around long enough to see plenty of renovations. One of the most recent is the addition of a brand-new lab space currently in use by students in the Biodiversity Discovery and Bugs in Bugs FRI (Freshmen Research Initiative) Stream... Biodiversity Center Sponsors Freshman Research Initiative Course
Biodiversity Discovery FRI Students Christiana Peek, Evan Samsky, Hannah Gilbreath, Thomas Johnston and Ari Nehrbass prepare to sample vegetation at BFL (Photo: Alejandro Santillana)
By Nicole Elmer and Dr. Susan Devitt
The Freshman Research Initiative is a pioneering program allowing first-year students chances for hands-on resea... 
