KU Biology

On Sunday, June 6, 2026, IRES-Colombia discovered El Dorado! Or at least the lake that inspired it. We spent the morning hiking at Parque Laguna de Guatavita, a culturally important mountain with multiple biomes, including a cloud forest and Paramo! It was lightly raining all day, which puts us perfectly in the rainforest mood.
Students spotted a bumble bee nest and observed numerous species of flora and fauna while we traveled through the park.

We ate traditional Colombia fare for lunch in Nemocón and learned local history while touring the Salt Mines, which was visited by the legendary German explorer Alexander von Humbodlt in 1801.

Thrilled to see our amazing graduate, Xavier at Prairie Park!!!

Meet the newest member of the Prairie Park Nature Center team: Xavier Murray!

As our new Nature Programmer, Xavier is excited to help connect our community with the natural world. A Lawrence native, he earned his bachelors degree in Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology from the University of Kansas.

Here's a little more about Xavier:

🔴 Favorite color: Red
📚 Hobbies: Reading, tango dancing, video games, and going to the gym
🐱 Pets: Two cats
🐦 Favorite Prairie Park Nature Center animal: Lenore the Crow

We're thrilled to have Xavier on board and can't wait for visitors to get to know him. If you see him around the Nature Center, be sure to stop by and say hello!

Please join us in welcoming Xavier to the Prairie Park Nature Center team! 🎉

On Friday, 5 2026, NSF-IRES Colombia traveled to the host university, Universidad Militar Nueva Granada, to meet the Beas Umng and the local student partners. During the visit, local students gave a tour of the Entomology Labs as well as the facilities where native bumble bees are reared and studied. Students also tried out a local berry that indigenous peoples and current day companies still use dye in makeup.

-IRES U.S. National Science Foundation KU Study Abroad KU | The University of Kansas Victor Hugo Gonzalez Betancourt

Meet the student researchers taking part in the 2026 NSF-IRES: Tropical Plant-Pollinator Interactions in a Changing World! Keep an eye on your feed over through June and July for an exciting new videos / photo series focusing on focusing on Field Research in Colombia!

🎙️Can you spell Immunocytochemistry?🎧

Today we are joined by students from Spring 2026 Cell Biology Lab, who completed independent experiments looking at changes to human cancer cells after exposure to various treatments. Toby Brown, Ariana Siddique, Gus Peters, Graduate Teaching Assistant, Evan Schulz, discuss their research and findings, and give insight into what its like doing REAL SCIENCE at the Undergraduate level.

Listen at: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1AYDCmVWQ2eoSqNqScRNnA?si=ZR1IOr14SU2ixGMIUL0G2g

🔎Check out the Monarch caterpillars at the south entrance of Haworth! spotted these critters in the butterfly gardens in front of Haworth Hall!

Vote for Smaug - Best of Lawrence Office Pet!
https://www2.ljworld.com/bestoflawrence/ #/gallery?group=547989

Kansas science teachers to take part in immersive program at KU Field Station Ten secondary school science teachers from Kansas will converge at the University of Kansas Field Station, just north of Lawrence. They’ll take part in the Ecosystems of Kansas Summer Institute, an annual immersive program that gives secondary educators the chance to work with KU scientists to exp...