Melissa Grunst

I obtained my PhD In Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology from the University of California, Riverside, where I studied patterns of behavioral plasticity and stress physiology in song sparrows (Melospiza melodia). Subsequently, I have held a series of postdoctoral positions in Indiana, Belgium and France, through which I have developed a research program examining the effects of multiple natural and anthropogenic disturbance factors on animal behavior, stress physiology and senescence. I have used primarily avian study species, starting with passerines, and progressing to also include seabirds. My current research involves the combined effects of climate change and chemical contaminant exposure on the behavior and bioenergetics of a keystone Arctic seabird.