Whitney Anthonysamy
Assistant Professor of Biology, St. Louis College of Pharmacy
Principal Investigator, St. LOuis Wildlife Project
Where does your interest in nature stem from?
“I grew up in a very rural area of central Illinois and, as long as I can remember, I've been interested in wildlife and being outside. I grew up playing in the woods; playing along the Kaskaskia River. I spent a lot of time looking for insects, catching minnows and tadpoles, and picking up mussel shells on the sandbars of the river. I can't remember this pivotal moment in my life where I thought, ‘Oh, I just love ecology and nature!’ That's just always how it's been for me. I was very fortunate to have parents that fostered that interest. They tolerated me bringing living things into the house. They bought me field guides and were really supportive when I chose to pursue a degree in zoology and biology in college. I think where I am today, ultimately stems from how and where I grew up.”
How has your scientific work changed due to the cultural landscape changes this summer?
“I work on the camera trapping project through the St. Louis Wildlife Project and we've been able to continue that. We've been very fortunate because we can do this outside and individually without coming into contact with people. The data that we collect from that, the images and photos, can be processed remotely. We've been super lucky to continue our work without too much interruption. Actually, it's provided an opportunity for us to ask additional questions. For example, we're looking at wildlife diversity in the St Louis area in several parks and natural areas and green spaces. We were able to get the cameras out at the beginning of the lockdown. We still have them out. Lockdown orders have been relaxed and things are not back to normal, but people are resuming normal activities. This is allowing us to ask some interesting questions about how wildlife might be responding to changes in human behavior, due to COVID.”
What's your favorite aspect of the research that you do with Tyson or the work you do with Tyson?
“I really love bringing undergrads, not just out to Tyson, but outside to do field work, introducing them to natural history and ecology, getting them excited about science and helping them make some connections. A lot of students don't have any idea what sort of wildlife are in St. Louis or they're really surprised to see so many animals showing up on these cameras when they're tagging photos. They say, ‘Wow, we have foxes!’ or ‘Wow, we have armadillos!’. It's just fun having a place to go out and get dirty and grab a net and play in the water. One of my favorite parts, too, is being part of a community.”
Whitney is a principal investigator for the St. Louis Wildlife Project and collaborates with Tyson staff scientists Beth Biro and Solny Adalsteinsson.