Division of Biological Sciences
226 Tucker Hall
University of Missouri
Columbia, MO  65211

e-mail: afhvdc<at>mail.mizzou.edu

Research Interests

After spending two years working towards a degree in Chemistry, Amanda Hunt decided to switch her path to Biology and pursue her life-long dream of working towards the conservation of endangered species. Originally from Maryland, she hoped to return to the East coast and work for the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. As of now, Amanda would like to combine her background in Chemistry with her love of nature and plans to work as a product developer for an ecologically responsible cosmetic company.

Amanda is very excited to be starting her first year in the Eggert lab, and her work is part of a collaborative study between Dr. Eggert and the Wildlife Conservation Society. She is studying mitochondrial DNA in order to detect maternal lineages of populations of Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus) in Cambodia and Lao PDR, based on the non-invasive sampling of dung samples.  By comparing matrilines within groups, she seeks to detect movements between isolated populations, which could have significant implications for long-term conservation.