Celebrating Excellence in Science: Dr. Hale Receives Prestigious NSF Scholarship

We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Kayla Hale, Postdoctoral Fellow here at the Centre for Ecosystem Management, is a recipient of one of this year’s prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Biology for her proposal that promises to advance our understanding of ecological dynamics. This fellowship is intended to “encourage independence at an early stage of the research career to permit Fellows to pursue their research and training goals in the most appropriate research locations in collaboration with sponsoring scientists” and is one of only 60 that are awarded each year.

Dr. Kayla Hale, 2024 NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship recipient.

Dr. Hale’s proposal, which focuses on exploring the intricate relationship between organismal body size, metabolic traits, and ecological dynamics, stood out for its innovative approach and far-reaching implications. By investigating the 'pace of life' variation among diverse organisms, Dr. Hale aims to uncover fundamental principles that govern ecosystem functions across spatial and biological scales.

The project's objectives are ambitious yet impactful. Through meticulous analysis of metabolic data and telemetry information, Dr. Hale will focus on the intricacies of bioenergetic and behavioral traits, shedding light on how these traits shape ecological strategies and drive consumer-resource interactions. Furthermore, her research will extend to examining the cascading effects of these dynamics on ecosystem functions, such as productivity and temporal stability. The results have the potential to improve the predictive ability of population and food web models, including those currently used to
manage commercial, recreational, and Indigenous fisheries.

“This will allow me to work with the CEM for 3 years starting in September 2024 (two more years than my original contract!) and will fund primary research projects and the development of predictive models for both aquatic and terrestrial food webs”, Dr. Hale explains.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Hale for this well-deserved recognition of her ongoing work here at the Centre for Ecosystem Management (University of Guelph).

Further information on the Fellowship can be accessed here.