EEB at UTK

Get 2 hours of course credit by registering for EEB 490 - Undergraduate Seminar - this Fall semester. CRN 46095.

Researchers in EEB teamed up with the Department of Materials Science and Engineering to study the magnetism of bees.

UT Professors Collaborate to Study Magnetism of Bees - Materials Science and Engineering MSE Associate Professor Dustin Gilbert has helped with a project that has measured magnetism in more than 120 different species of bees.

Calling all EEB undergraduates!
Last year, EEB created an Undergrad Advisory Board to help us better understand undergrad student needs and experiences. We were thrilled to work with Tamara Smith, Owen Singleton, Eli Renner, Brody Moran, Josh Kreis, and Sean O’Gorman over the last year to set up an EEB GroupMe, suggest changes to the website, recruit new students, and consider programming to help students next year. All were amazing advocates for EEB students and made the board a real success.

Tamara, Owen, and Eli just graduated (congratulations!!!), so we are now seeking 2-3 nominees to serve on the 2026-2027 board. Students can nominate themselves or be nominated, must be declared EEB concentration students, and will be expected to meet with the EEB Head, Associate Head, and chair of Undergrad Affairs as a group 2-3 times a semester.

Who can be on the board:
Current Biology students with an EEB concentration, in any year
Earliest graduation date must be May 2027

Why should you serve on this board:
Contribute to improving the undergrad experience in EEB
Leadership experience for your CV/Resume

What will the board do?
Talk to others in the concentration to learn what is working/needs not being met
Meet with Dept. Head and Undergrad Affairs regularly throughout the year
Communicate needs/ideas
Report to other undergrads what is happening in EEB
Represent EEB in campus recruiting events

Please nominate yourself or others for this role by filling out the simple form at this link https://tinyurl.com/3y5uvvey with your name, verify you will be in the EEB concentration all of next year, and 2-3 sentences about why you would like to serve in this role.
We look forward to hearing from you!

The Suissa lab and friends held their Spring 2026 Botany Retreat in Central Alabama. Included in the group were graduate students Susana Vega Betancur and Dusty Prater, lab manager Justyn Koenig, current and former undergraduates Ava Sabatini, Faith Kestner, and Cruz Gouveia, and Colgate botany professor Dr. Eddie Watkins. They were graciously hosted by Dr. Brian Keener at the Cahaba Biodiversity Center. While it may not seem like it, Alabama is a hotspot of biodiversity - it is the most biodiverse state east of the Mississippi!

The group spent most of their time on the Ketona Glades, which is a unique ecosystem composed of exposed magnesium-enriched Dolomite. It is a fire-adapted ecosystem, meaning it requires frequent fires for plants to survive and thrive. This site was formally documented in 1992, where eight species new to science were discovered. The Ketona Glades are perhaps the most significant botanical discovery in the U.S. during the 20th century. It is incredible to think that new species can be found in areas that have been explored for so long.

The Suissa lab saw several of the narrowly endemic species that grow on the glades. Some highlights include Dalea cahaba, a bean relative and Spigelia alabamensis, a gentian relative. They also saw the spectacular Cahaba Lillies (Hymenocallis coronaria) and some fascinating ferns such as the tropical disjunct lineage of Hymenophyllum tayloriae.

EEB featured course for Fall '26 - Plant Structure and Function!

EEB wants to congratulate incoming graduate student Emily Walker on receiving a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship! The fellowship will support Emily's project focusing on the genomic detection of urban stress and adaptation in a native solitary bee.

“Being awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship is both a tremendous honor and a pivotal moment in my academic career, providing the support I need to begin my graduate studies this fall. In a time of widespread uncertainty, it will enable me to move forward with confidence and excitement,” Walker said.

We're congratulating another National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship recipient in EEB - Ella Halbert of the Hemingway lab! The fellowship will support Ella's research on the cultural evolution of novel foraging behaviors in neotropical bats at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama.

“Being able to put my years of research training and language practice into action is an amazing feeling, and I hope to continue building relationships with scientists around the globe as I grow my scientific knowledge,” Halbert said.

Congratulations to EEB alum Colton Adams for being awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship! Colton graduated from UT in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in honors ecology and evolutionary biology and a minor in neurology. The fellowship will support his pursuit of an advanced degree in organismal biology.

We had a great time celebrating the end of another semester at the beautiful UT Gardens last week! Congratulations to all of our graduates, award-winners, and cricketers!

EEB's Simberloff lecture is today!