Nathalie R. Sommer

From individuals to ecosystems

Nathalie Sommer

Nathalie Sommer

PhD Candidate

Yale School of the Environment

About Me

My research applies ecological stoichiometry to scale the consequences of evolution directly from individuals to ecosystems. I work on topics ranging from intraspecific variation and plasticity, to the role of predators in ecosystems. Driven by my dual interests in individual variation and ecosystem holism, I also write about ethical frameworks for conservation.

Download my cv.

Interests
  • Evolutionary ecology
  • Ecological stoichiometry
  • Ecosystem function
  • Conservation ethics
Education

  • PhD in Ecology, 2019-present

    Yale School of the Environment

  • MPhil, 2021

    Yale School of the Environment

  • MESc, 2019

    Yale School of the Environment

  • BS in Biology, Environmental Science, 2017

    College of William & Mary

Recent publications

If you get caught behind a paywall, please email me and I would be happy to send a copy of the pdf. Thanks for your interest in reading my work!

Prey metabolic responses to predators depend on predator hunting mode and prey antipredator defenses
We used metabolism as a unified, scalable response variable to assess the interaction between predator hunting mode and prey antipredator defenses.
Nathalie Sommer, Yara Alshwairikh, Andis Arietta, David Skelly, Robert Buchkowski
Cite DOI
Prey metabolic responses to predators depend on predator hunting mode and prey antipredator defenses
Challenges facing cross-disciplinary collaboration in conservation ethics
Drawing explicit attention to challenges facing conservation ethics, in order to better facilitate productive communication and collaboration among practitioners and philosophers
Kristy Ferraro, Anthony Ferraro, Nathalie Sommer
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Differences in prey personality mediate trophic cascades
We show how consistent individual differences in behavior map to spatial habitat domains, and how those individual differences can mediate trophic cascades.
Nathalie Sommer, Oswald Schmitz
Cite DOI
Differences in prey personality mediate trophic cascades
Woodlice change the habitat use of spiders in a different food chain
We paired behavioral experiments and theoretical models to evaluate spider and grasshopper habitat domains under woodlouse presence and warming.
Stefanie Guiliano, Cerina Karr, Nathalie Sommer, Robert Buchkowski
Cite DOI
Woodlice change the habitat use of spiders in a different food chain
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Research

Major themes

Animal behavior in ecological communities

Animal behavior in ecological communities

Intraspecific variation and ecological stoichiometry

Intraspecific variation and ecological stoichiometry

Phenotypic plasticity and ecosystem function

Phenotypic plasticity and ecosystem function

Teaching

Guest lectures, tutorials, and workshops

Introduction to SQL and Databases
SPRY workshop series
Dec 2, 2022
Introduction to SQL and Databases
Data viz with GitHub workflow
Tutorial
Apr 12, 2021
Data viz with GitHub workflow
See all

Recent Posts

News and blog posts

How to support nursing parents in graduate school
Breastfeeding basics, and suggestions for advisors and administrators
Nathalie Sommer
Nov 30, 2022 7 min read Blog post
How to support nursing parents in graduate school
Interview with WCAX Channel 3 News
Vermont-based WCAX Channel 3 interviewed me about our NSF-funded project on climate variability, phenotypic plasticity, and ecosystem function. Watch it here.
Nathalie Sommer
Jan 25, 2022 1 min read News
Interview with WCAX Channel 3 News
See all posts