College of Arts and Sciences - Spring 2021 - University of Miami

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NATURE'S WAY: UM students visit the Three Jays Tortoise Sanctuary where Dr. Galetti is performing experiments on seed dispersal by Galapagos tortoises. Rewilding the Caribbean UM biologist and conservationist leads collaborative initiative to restore ecosystem diversity Thousands of years ago, the Caribbean islands were replete with giant tortoises, macaws, monkeys, iguanas, and fruiting trees. Between overdevelopment, climate change, sea level rise, and other environmental insults, today’s Caribbean bears a pale resemblance to its lush primeval past. While the clock cannot be turned back, a biologist with the College of Arts and Sciences is taking steps toward restoring these rich island ecosystems through “Rewilding the Caribbean,” a collaborative initiative with long-term implications for the entire Western Hemisphere. “High rates of animal extinctions have massively disturbed the Caribbean islands,” says Mauro Galetti, associate professor of biology and director of the John C. Gifford Arboretum. “These extinctions have far-reaching consequences for the survival of plant populations. 14 SPRING 2021
“They may ultimately lead to a collapse of important ecosystem functions such as carbon storage, which mediates the impact of greenhouse gases.” Over the past 7,000 years, at least ten species of giant tortoises, four species of primates, several species of macaws, and ten species of giant sloths have become extinct due to human poaching and habitat loss. “The loss of the giant tortoises is particularly devastating, because they are frugivores, eating fruits and distributing the seeds throughout their habitats,” says Galetti. TURNING THE TIDE To bring back some of the Caribbean’s lost biological diversity, Galetti has launched a pilot project studying the role of giant tortoises in the germination of Caribbean plants. “The Caribbean is ideal for rewilding,” he notes, “because there are so ARTS | SCIENCES 15
Page 1 and 2: FROST INSTITUTE TAKES SHAPE | EXPLO
Page 3 and 4: FROM THE DEAN UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI S
Page 5 and 6: SWEET CAMPUS VIBES Students wait th
Page 7 and 8: umbrella, whose office in the Ashe
Page 9 and 10: Mighty— But Not Always Malevolent
Page 11 and 12: Photos courtesy of Léo Holder and
Page 13 and 14: Liberal Studies Latin American Stud
Page 15: MAJORINFATUATION Discovering how hu
Page 19 and 20: “When the animals become extinct,
Page 21 and 22: Galapagos tortoise feeding on Theop
Page 23 and 24: STUDENTDIGEST Laws in Space Univers
Page 25 and 26: PHILANTHROPY Supporting insights th
Page 27 and 28: One of the lesser-known dwellings o
Page 29 and 30: The body’s will to thrive SUSAN L
Page 31 and 32: 60s Peter A. Wish, B.A. ’67, wrot
Page 33 and 34: Jessika Contreras, B.A.’06, is a
Page 35 and 36: INSPIRE & ENGAGE FUTURE GENERATIONS

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