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Postdoctoral Researcher

kathryn.grabenstein [at] colorado.edu

Human-modified environments, such as cities, are altering species interactions and increasingly leading to human-driven hybridization (Grabenstein and Taylor 2018). This hybridization in human-altered environments highlights the power of habitat disturbances to break well-established species barriers. However, few studies have experimentally assessed how disturbancesÌýdriveÌýhybridization.ÌýCombining genomics and field studies,ÌýI investigate how disturbance modifies interactions between chickadees to promote hybridization.ÌýMy work focuses on establishing a long-term study, the Boulder Chickadee Study, as an experimental framework. I construct hundreds of nest boxes alongside numerous undergraduates and lab mates, affix these boxes to Ponderosas, Spruces, Firs & Aspen throughout Boulder backyards, and then monitor the chickadee families that move in. I enjoy connecting folks to birds in their own backyards by incorporating my chickadee research into as many outreach and mentorship opportunities throughout Boulder County as possible. In that vein, I am dedicated to increasing diversity and inclusion within STEM fields more broadly, as well as within the ornithology community, by actively mentoring fledgling female ornithologists, as well as folks from underrepresented groups.

Kathryn is currently aÌýRose Postdoctoral Fellow at Cornell.

Select publications:

Grabenstein KC, Burg T, Otter K, Taylor SA.ÌýHybridization between closely related songbirds is related to human habitat disturbance.ÌýGlobal Change Biology. 29:955-968.Ìýhttps://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16476

Theodosopoulos AN,ÌýGrabenstein KC, Larrieu M, Arnold V, Taylor SA.ÌýAccepted. Similar parasite communities but dissimilar infection patterns in two closely related chickadee species.ÌýOrnithology.

Grabenstein KC, Burg T, Otter K, Taylor SA. Sympatry leads to reduced body condition in chickadees that occasionally hybridize.ÌýEcology and Evolution. Accepted.Ìý

Theodosopoulos AN, Grabenstein KC, Bensch S, Taylor SA. A highly invasive malaria parasite has expanded its range to non-migratory birds in North America.ÌýBiology Letters.Ìý17: 20210271.Ìý

Feldmann KB, Grabenstein KC, Taylor SA.ÌýAchromatic plumage variation between and within hybridizing black-capped and mountain chickadees.ÌýJournal of Field Ornithology.ÌýÌý92:184–202.ÌýDOI: 10.1111/jofo.12368

Grabenstein KC, Taylor SA. 2018. Breaking Barriers: Causes, Consequences, and Experimental Utility of Human-Mediated Hybridization. Trends in Ecology and Evolution,Ìý33(3), 198–212.

Schroeter, I., Forrester, C., Brigham, L., Fried, E., Grabenstein, K., Karban, C., & McDermott, M. (2019). Diverging from the Dogma: A Call to Train Creative Thinkers in Science.ÌýBulletin of the Ecological Society of America,Ìý100(1), 1-7.