image: Mexican free-tailed bat. view more
Credit: Photo by Kristin Dyer
Daniel Becker, Ph.D., an assistant professor of Biology in the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences, has received an Oak Ridge Associated Universities Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award for his continued research on bat migration in western Oklahoma.
“We’re studying migratory Mexican free-tailed bats and the pathogens they might carry that are possible threats to human or wildlife health,” Becker said. “This award allows us to purchase the microchips we implant in the bats and a receiver for the cave that helps us monitor which bats are coming and going as when they migrate.”
Recipients of this award are faculty members who are in the first two years of their tenure track and work in one of five science and technology disciplines. Each winner receives a total of $10,000 in seed funding to enhance their research and professional growth during the 2023/2024 academic year.
“There is a lot of an interest right now in what bats are doing and how wildlife health impacts human health,” Becker said. “It's really great to have this kind of work recognized by a competitive pool and know that your research trajectory is going on a good path.”
Learn more about Becker’s research or see the full list of Junior Faculty Enhancement Award recipients at orau.org.