Have you ever wondered about the mushrooms you see popping up on logs in the forest? Ever pondered, what are they doing among the plants and insects, coming out of hiding for a few days and then seemingly disappearing? Ever considered the threats faced by fungi, or how we can best protect them on a changing planet?
Nora Dunkirk will take us on a tour through the fabulous world of fungi!
Fungal conservation is a small, yet growing, field. Many scientists and researchers are still early stages of assessing biodiversity globally, while simultaneously trying to assess threats to fungi, such as land use change and habitat degradation.
Join us for an evening with PhD student and mushroom enthusiast Nora Dunkirk as she discusses the role of fungi in our splendid world! She investigates how diverse fungi respond and adapt to nitrogen pollution, a pervasive threat of climate change.
Nora is a PhD candidate in the Pringle Lab at the UW-Madison Botany Department. Before moving to Madison, she spent years at Stanford University as the research technician of another fungal lab, where she researched dung fungi. She received her Bachelors in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Tennessee, where she worked on decomposition research. In her free time—when she's not hunting for mushrooms—Nora loves to play with and train her dogs and share meals with her friends.
This event was held online on Tuesday, February 15, 7:00 PM Central.
TO JOIN IN, YOU HAVE TWO OPTIONS:
Register to attend in the “Zoom Room” so you can interact with Nora and your questions get first priority. Registration is now closed; those who have registered should check their email for information on how to join the event via Zoom.
Watch the live-stream on Facebook. To tune in at the event time, go to Madison Audubon’s Facebook page.
Cover image: Pale Volvopluteus mushrooms of the same species at eight different stages of life. (Photos courtesy of Nora Dunkirk)
