MSA Student and Postdoc Section

Where did you grow up?

Arlington, Virginia

Where are you currently doing research?

Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (Beltsville, MD)

Who are you working with?

Dr. Megan Romberg in USDA APHIS National Identification Services

Describe your research project.

I’m currently working with the USDA in Agricultural Research Services through an internship program under the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. Since January, I’ve been shadowing national identifiers in diagnosing plant samples intercepted at US borders as well as documenting specimens of the US National Fungus Collections using Mycoportal. I’ve also pursued a research investigation study on the potential synonymy between Uredo calotropidis and Uromyces asclepiadis, both heteroecious rust fungal pathogens found in Apocynaceae hosts. I even presented my work at the Mid-Atlantic States Mycology Conference held at Duke University!

Which awards would you like to brag about?

This past September, I was awarded the Sequanota Foray Scholarship which allowed me to attend the annual Sequanota foray hosted by the Mycological Association of DC! I met a lot of wonderful people there, including my current internship advisor, Megan. I’ve also recently received an award from MSA’s photo contest for my image of a Pholiota terrestris, acceptance into the SPORES program which will allow me to attend this year’s MSA conference, and the Plants Grant award from the Botanical Society of America which will allow me to attend the Botany 2024 conference.

What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?

This summer I will be working at Mt. Rainier National Park as a biology assistant documenting sensitive plant species within the park. I’m very excited for this position through Environment for the Americas in collaboration with the National Park Service, and hope to bring some of my mycology knowledge to the botany work I’ll be doing!

Who is your mycology role model?

Dr. Megan Romberg, who’s determination to keep learning new things impacts me everyday. I also look up to Dr. Bitty Roy and Heather Dawson, who were wonderful educators during my first internship, allowing me to ask questions and grow an interest in academia.

What is your favorite fungus and why?

I’m a big fan of entomopathogenic fungi, I find their evolution and function to be both neat and terrifying. I’d like to see (or even carry out) more research on anamorphic entomopathogenic fungi beyond their application to biopesticides, like their distribution patterns and evolutionary characteristics. At Sequanota, we found an Akanthomyces and I was encapsulated by the idea that something could consume an entire organism in such an interesting and spiky way. Learning about entomopathogenic fungi such as Beauveria, Pandora, or Cordyceps, is such a treat, let alone the thrill of finding one. It always reminds me of how ruthless fungi can be.

Any great stories from field work (funny/interesting/something that stuck out to you)?

Seeing Rye, the truffle hunting retriever, in action was definitely the highlight of my internship last summer. Watching him sniff around the forest and digging up truffles was so cute, and funny as Heather tried to keep him from eating the new-found treasure. That’s a good boy if I’ve ever seen one!

What do you like to do in your free time? What are your hobbies?

Photography tends to take up most of my time (certainly most of my bank account), especially during mushroom season. In August I bought a macro lens for my Canon Rebel T5 and I’ve been passionate about photography ever since. I enjoy using my Asahi Pentax film camera as well, which also has a macro lens that gives me cool macro-film shots! Outside of macro I like to use my Fujifilm XT-20 to capture moments of everyday life, which typically includes friends, family, and my environment.