Dr. Aramee Diethelm is an ecologist and postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Davis in the Department of Evolution and Ecology. Her work spans plant and insect ecology, field survey design, large-scale data management and analysis, and cross-institutional collaboration.
She earned her PhD from the Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology department at the University of Nevada, Reno in Dr. Elizabeth Pringle’s lab. Her PhD research (NSF Graduate Research Fellow) examined how drought and herbivory reshape milkweed chemistry across environmental gradients—and what those shifts mean for monarchs and the communities around them.
Aramee is broadly interested in plant-insect-predator dynamics, with a focus on chemical ecology, and how that knowledge can inform conservation and land management decisions
MY LATEST RESEARCH
I currently lead a multi-institutional project with academic, federal, and NGO partners to study western monarch (Danaus plexippus) breeding phenology and habitat use across Department of Defense lands and nearby wildlife refuges. My research examines how seasonal and spatial variation in breeding activity, milkweed availability, and vegetation structure shape patterns of habitat use, with the goal of helping land managers prioritize conservation efforts while balancing other land-use demands.
Previously, during my PhD at the University of Nevada, Reno, I investigated the phytochemical landscape of milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) in the Great Basin and how variation in plant chemistry and traits influenced monarch oviposition behavior, larval development, and interactions with predators. This work included large-scale field surveys, common garden experiments, and manipulative studies to understand how plant traits respond to environmental stressors such as drought and herbivory.