Madeleine Lopez, 2022

Thesis:

Investigating seed maturation and mortality: a mechanism for post-fire regeneration in non-serotinous conifers

I graduated from Cal Poly Humboldt in 2019, with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, anda minor in Botany. An early interest in natural science provided me with a deep appreciation forplant communities and their ecology, of which led to my involvement in two research labs. Priorto graduate studies, I worked to describe an unknown permineralized plant specimen of theDevonian period, in the Tomescu Paleobotanical Lab. Additionally, I completed multiple firerelated research projects in the Wildland Fire lab. My passion to preserve the integrity of nativeplant life and forest ecosystems fueled me to pursue a higher education. My research interestsrevolve around determining the relative impacts of fire on plant persistence and regeneration. Mycurrent research investigates the potential role of fire in the germination of Lassics lupine(Lupinus constancei), an endangered California native lupine (CNPS rank: 1B.1). In addition, Iwill identify the time required by different woody plant species to reach reproductive maturityand contribute to future generations. Furthermore, I am working to characterize a regenerativemechanism utilized by non-serotinous conifers post-fire, by determining the timing of seedmaturation for five different tree species.