The South Dakota Discovery Center is hosting its monthly Discovery On Tap! Program this evening (April 21, 2023) from 5:30-7:30pm at the St. Charles Lounge in Pierre.
Dr. Carrie Olson-Manning will talk about the evolving chemical battle between monarch butterflies and milkweed species. Then, complete your own analysis of milkweed chemicals with SDDC scientist Dr. Bree Oatman.
Olson-Manning is the founder and principal investigator at the Olson-Manning Lab at Augustana University. The lab studies the diversity of chemicals produced by milkweed and how it balances their relationship with the monarch butterfly, which feeds on the leaves of the plant exclusively as a caterpillar. Without milkweed, monarchs cannot survive!
Research being conducted by Olson-Manning currently focuses on two species of milkweeds that live in South Dakota: Asclepias syriaca (the common milkweed) and Asclepias speciosa (the showy milkweed). She studies how these two species respond to the dry western and humid eastern portions of the state, and by studying the chemical make-up she hopes to understand how these plants and butterflies interact as they impact each others chance of survival and hybridization.
Discovery On Tap! is an outreach and development project of the SDDC that works to build upon its professional development and citizen science programs. Through Discovery On Tap!, they make hands-on STEM opportunities available to those who might only have a couple hours every month to consider the world around them or to think about how different aspects of STEM impact their lives.
Comments