New faculty member brings expertise, research opportunities in life-history evolution

The W.K. Kellogg Biological Station community is excited to welcome Dr. Anne M. Bronikowski to Michigan State University. Bronikowski is an evolutionary biologist who has joined MSU’s Department of Integrative Biology as a professor and resident faculty at KBS.

Bronikowski’s research focuses on life-history evolution: the way life-history strategies (Live fast and adventurously? Or more slow-and-steady?) affect outcomes in areas like lifespan, reproductive senescence, and aging.

“Within species, she says, “I study contrasting life-history strategies and how they evolve and what the ecological determinants are, and genetic and physiological underpinnings.

“Among species, I focus on specific traits, such as rate of aging, asking questions like ‘have cold-blooded tetrapods evolved slower aging than warm-blooded’?”

“Anne’s arrival expands the reach of KBS research into critical new areas by integrating physiology and genetics to understand how wild animals evolve in response to environmental stresses,” says former interim director of KBS and fellow faculty member, Jeff Conner.

Anne M. Bronikowski

As a puzzle lover growing up in a household with backgrounds in agriculture and engineering, a science career in biology was a natural fit for Bronikowski. She earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and mathematical biology from Marquette University, then went on to earn a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Chicago.

At KBS, Bronikowski shared, ” I am looking forward to working with pre-college and college students in a field setting as all of my research is on wild populations of animals.”

Join us in welcoming Dr. Bronikowski to KBS!