Dr. Leah S. Dudley's Research Lab
East Central University
Current Research
Plant ecophysiology, mating systems and ecology
Frosted Elfin Butterfly
searching Oklahooma for populations
The Frosted Elfin Butterfly (Callophrys irus) is declining throughout the United States. We're on a quest to document populations throughout Oklahoma on the edge of its Western Range. This begins by a hunt for its host plant yellow wild indigo (Baptisia sphaerocarpa) and then looking under and over for adults and larvae.
Three Sisters
April 12, 2025
The Three Sisters (corn, bean and squash) are an iconic group of crop plants that are being increasingly celebrated and used to cross cultural bridges between Native American peoples and nonnatives. The Three Sisters are a group of plants that have been grown together for millennia. Many tribes have their own varieties, indicating a long cultivation history. Their long cultivation history and cultural significance give special importance to understanding the relationships between corn, squash and bean cultivars. We are investigating the facilitative nature of historically polycultured varieties.
Oklahoma native plant-pollinator networks
April 12, 2025
The function of any ecosystem is highly dependent on plants within the system as primary producers and ecosystem engineers. In Oklahoma, flowering plants dominate and most of these are pollinator dependent. Understanding the plant-pollinator relationships is a first step in conservation and management. Our lab is building our knowledge of bees and prairie plants in particular.
Pollen
April 12, 2025
Pollen is a plant's microgametophyte in which the sperm resides. It is highly variable in appearance and often species specific. Our lab is collecting light and electron microscope images to be used as a reference collection in future work.
Native Oklahoman bees
April 12, 2025
Working with Mr. Jose Montalva, our lab is identifying local native bees. This fills a gap in our knowledge as both Kansas and Texas have reasonable species records whereas, Oklahoma is relatively unexplored.
Petal gas exchange
April 12, 2025
While leaf gas exchange has been studied extensively, flower gas exchange is less well understood. Our lab has begun to explore flower gas exchange and its affect on fitness.
PI
Dr. Leah S. Dudley
Dr. Dudley has spent a significant amount of time in montane environments from the Colorado Rockies, to the Sierra Nevadas, to the Chilean Andes. She has also worked with a range of plant species, including Salix glauca, Clarkia spp., Kageneckia angustifolia, Laretia acaulis, and Rhodolorium montanum. Her work has mainly focused on how plants deal with water stress and Oklahoma prairie plants are ideal to continue with this work.
