I joined PERL in the fall of 2008 and am studying the relationships between reproductive hormones, immune response, and tick parasitism on western fence lizards (Sceloporus occidentalis). A small portion may include work with Southern alligator lizards (Elgaria multicarinata) as well. My research has five components:
1. Observing if questing ticks show a preference for a particular host (e.g., male and female hosts, and hosts of different species).
2. Examining immunosuppressive effects of vitellogenesis on tick parasitism of female lizards.
3. Examining immunosuppressive effects of testosterone on tick parasitism of male lizards.
4. Examining if temperature has an effect on tick attachment and feeding time on the lizard host.
5. Examining if ticks feed any less frequently or successfully on anemic lizards compared to normal, healthy lizards.
The goals of these studies are to determine if ticks have a preferred host to feed on, if there are particular factors influencing tick feeding, and what roles reproductive hormones play in the suppression of the immune system of the lizards, including whether they make them any more susceptible to tick parasitism.