Investigating the Role of Phenotypic Plasticity in an Invasively Asexually-Reproducing Snail

As an undergraduate student at Washington State University, working with Dr. Mark Dybdahl, I investigated the effect an environment can have on the phenotypic expression of the clonal but highly invasive New Zealand freshwater snail. I observed that dimensions of shell shape variation were not consistent across populations, suggesting that phenotypic plasticity may play a role in morphological variation between populations of this clonal snail species. I then analyzed snail movement in water with a collaboratively designed "snail race" experiment to understand the potential invasion consequences of this shell shape variation across populations.

My study was the first to consider morphological variation across multiple populations of the New Zealand freshwater snail across its invasive range. I presented this full research project as my thesis in 2019 and received the highest honors from the Honors College. I was awarded the Biology Outstanding Senior Award at my graduation.