Alexis Garretson

The Jackson Laboratory

Advancements in molecular genetics have revealed that hybridization may be common among plants, animals, and fungi, playing a role in evolutionary dynamics and speciation. While hybridization has been well-documented in pathogenic fungi, the effects of these processes on speciation in fungal lineages with different life histories and ecological nic...

Genetic analyses of mammalian gametogenesis and fertility have the potential to inform about two important and interrelated clinical areas: infertility and contraception. Here, we address the genetics and genomics underlying gamete formation, productivity and function in the context of reproductive success in mammalian systems, primarily mouse and...

House mice (Mus musculus) are a key biomedical research model and important vectors for disease transmission. In the wild, house mice are also an ecologically disruptive invasive species, and their activity is associated with significant economic and agricultural damage and cost. Despite the importance of house mice across these different contexts,...

Transcription factors (TFs) play a central role in regulating gene expression, a process fundamental to cellular function. Characterizing transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs) is essential for understanding TF functions and identifying TF target genes, but many predicted TFBSs lack clear biological significance. We generated an atlas of TFBSs...

The house mouse species complex ( Mus musculus ) is comprised of three primary subspecies. A large number of secondary subspecies have also been suggested on the basis of divergent morphology and molecular variation at limited numbers of markers. While the phylogenetic relationships among the primary M. musculus subspecies are well-defined, relatio...

Background: Exposure to arsenic (As) in well water is a well-documented public health issue for Maine and New Hampshire, as well as for other states in the United States and abroad. Arsenic contamination of well water in these locations is primarily attributed to metasedimentary bedrock that leaches As into groundwater. However, As can also enter...

Coastal ecosystems are facing increasing threats from human activities and environmental changes. Climate change, in particular, presents challenges for policymaking as it is causing significant changes to the oceans and coastlines, with social, economic, and environmental impacts on coastal communities. However, there is often a lack of data at th...

Although variation in effect sizes and predicted values among studies of similar phenomena is inevitable, such variation far exceeds what might be produced by sampling error alone. One possible explanation for variation among results is differences among researchers in the decisions they make regarding statistical analyses. A growing array of studi...

Regional populations of geographically widespread species may respond to different environmental factors across the species' range, generating divergent effects of climate change on life-history phenology. Using thousands of citizen science observations extracted from iNaturalist and associated with corresponding temperature, precipitation, elevati...

Reproductive tactics can profoundly influence population reproductive success, but paradoxically, breeding strategy and female reproductive care often vary across a population. The causes and fitness impacts of this variation are not well understood. Using breeding records from the Collaborative Cross mouse population, we evaluate the effects of br...

Invasive plants in the riparian zone can negatively affect the characteristics and quality of a watershed. To support the development of a watershed management plan and foster public appreciation of the value of the riparian zone, Mohonk Preserve established a volunteer monitoring program surveying sites for invasive species. Between 2017 and 2019,...

As anthropogenic climate change alters species’ phenology, phenological shifts may cascade to disrupt species interactions to impact ecosystem functioning. We present a 108-year phenology dataset of 8,840 event dates for 251 phenophases for seven amphibian species, 58 birds, 14 insects, and 163 plant species, including 52 species introduced to New...

House mice (Mus musculus) are comprised of three primary subspecies. A large number of secondary subspecies have also been suggested on the basis of divergent morphology and molecular variation at limited numbers of markers. While the phylogenetic relationships among the primary M. musculus subspecies are well-defined, the relationships among the s...

House mice ( Mus musculus ) are comprised of three primary subspecies. A large number of secondary subspecies have also been suggested on the basis of divergent morphology and molecular variation at limited numbers of markers. While the phylogenetic relationships among the primary M. musculus subspecies are well-defined, the relationships among the...

Guided by the six elements of Translational Ecology (TE; i.e., decision-framing, collaboration, engagement, commitment, process, and communication), we showcase the first explicit example of a Translational Science Education (TSE) effort in the coastal redwood ecosystem of Humboldt County, CA. Using iNaturalist, a flexible and free citizen science/...

In evolution classrooms, introducing and reinforcing the idea of genetic drift and random selection can be challenging, as can be reinforcing appropriate mental models of evolution. Agent-based models offer students the opportunity to conduct a model-based inquiry into the impacts of different features on the outcomes in evolutionary systems, helpi...

Recent studies suggest climate-related delays in the timing of leaf coloration and abscission in maple trees but lack baseline data prior to the late 20th century. To better understand how autumn foliar phenology and late-season damage risks have changed for this genus over the past century, we evaluated 2,972 digitized herbaria specimens of red an...

Applying citizen science protocols to imaged museum specimens can help lessen the digitization burden on research staff members and address research gaps in existing citizen science datasets while providing meaningful visitor engagement opportunities. Citizen science is still a relatively young field, but because museum collections are often substa...

Public policy decisions regarding institutional frameworks that govern the stewardship of biodiversity data at public and private institutions are an area of increasing importance. Museums, government agencies, and academic institutions across the United States maintain collections of biological specimens and information critical to scientific disc...

Insect biodiversity reveals much about ecosystem health and function; however, field studies of insect community composition and diversity are often unintentionally biased by the sampling methods deployed in the study area. Pan traps, particularly yellow pan traps, are a common method for passive community assessment across a variety of taxonomic l...

For 88 years (1931-present), the Mohonk Preserve's Daniel Smiley Research Center has been collecting data on occupancy and reproductive success of amphibian species, as well as associated water quality of 11 vernal pools each spring (February to May). Though sampling effort has varied over the dataset range, the size of the dataset is unprecedented...

Ongoing stewardship is required to keep data collections and archives in existence. Scientific data collections may face a range of risk factors that could hinder, constrain, or limit current or future data use. Identifying such risk factors to data use is a key step in preventing or minimizing data loss. This paper presents an analysis of data ris...

This is a preprint draft of the paper. -- Abstract: Ongoing stewardship is required to keep data collections and archives in existence. Scientific data collections may face a range of risk factors that could hinder, constrain, or limit current or future data use. Identifying such risk factors to data use is a key step in preventing or minimizing da...

The Mohonk Preserve's Daniel Smiley Research Center has been monitoring species occupancy, reproductive success, and water quality of 11 vernal pools (Ski Loop, Bonticou, Terrace, Long Woodland Pool, Long Woodland Swamp, Oakwood, Sleepy Hollow, Hermits, North Mud Pond, Canaan, and Talus) on the Preserve each spring from April 1931 to May 2019 (pres...

The Mohonk Preserve's Daniel Smiley Research Center has been monitoring species occupancy, reproductive success, and water quality of 11 vernal pools (Ski Loop, Bonticou, Terrace, Long Woodland Pool, Long Woodland Swamp, Oakwood, Sleepy Hollow, Hermits, North Mud Pond, Canaan, and Talus) on the Preserve each spring from April 1931 to May 2019 (pres...