VARUN SWAMY Ph.D. Candidate Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences Duke University Box 90328 Durham NC 27708 Tel: 919-218-8935 E-mail: vs12@duke.edu
	I. CURRENT RESEARCH INTERESTS Tropical rainforest ecology, plant-animal interactions, seed dispersal, tree recruitment processes, effects of hunting-induced animal extinctions on plant regeneration. II. EDUCATION 2001-2007(expected) Ph.D., Nicholas School of Environment and Earth Sciences Duke University, Durham, North Carolina USA. Dissertation Advisor: Dr. John Terborgh. 2005 Ecology of Amazonian Ecosystems, Peru* (5 weeks) 2004 Tropical Plant Systematics, Costa Rica* (7 weeks) 1997-2001 B.A., Environmental Studies, magna cum laude Connecticut College, New London, Connecticut USA. * field-based intensive courses taught by the Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS).
	III. PUBLICATIONS Terborgh, J., G. Nuñez-Ituri, N. Pitman, F.H. Cornejo Valverde, P. Alvarez, V. Swamy, B. Pringle, C. E.T. Paine (in review 2007). Tree recruitment in an empty forest. Ecology. Swamy, V., P.E. Fell, M. Body, M.B. Keaney, M.K. Nyaku, E.C. McIlvain, A.L. Keen. 2002. Macroinvertebrates and fish populations in a restored impounded salt marsh 21 years after the re-establishment of tidal flooding. Environmental Management 29(4): 516-530. Warren, R. S., P. E. Fell, R. Rozsa, A. H. Brawley, A. C. Orsted, E. T. Olson, V. Swamy, W. A. Niering. 2002. Salt marsh restoration in Connecticut: 20 years of science and management. Restoration Ecology 10(3): 497-513.
	IV. RESEARCH GRANTS 2007 Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research, American Philosophical Society 2006, 2005 Amazon Conservation Association (ACA) Graduate Research Grant 2006 Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research Award 2004 Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS) Graduate Research Fellowship 2006, 2003-04 Duke University Graduate School Research Travel Grant 2006, 2002-04 Mellon Research Travel Grant, Duke University Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies 1999 Mellon Science Foundation Grant for Undergraduate Research
	V. HONORS AND AWARDS 2000 Rankin Award for Best Undergraduate Student Presentation, New England Estuarine Research Society (NEERS) conference, Portland, Maine. VI. RESEARCH EXPERIENCE 2003-present Role of biotic factors in spatial organization and maintenance of diversity in lowland neotropical rainforest tree communities. · Research includes a conservation emphasis that explores the effects of absence of key mammals on the regeneration of the plant community, through the comparison of pristine vs. hunted field sites. · Research sites include Estación Biológica Cocha Cashu (EBCC) in Manu National Park and Los Amigos Biological Station, both in Madre de Dios, Peru.
	2002 Pollination ecology in a fragmented ecosystem · Examined the direct and indirect impacts of habitat fragmentation on plant-pollinator interactions in Bolivar State, Venezuela with a focus on plant reproductive success, inferred though data collected on pollination frequency, fruit set and seed set. 1999-2001 Salt Marsh Restoration · Examined restoration of invertebrate and fish populations on formerly impounded salt marshes in Barn Island Wildlife Management Area, Stonington, CT, USA.
	VII. TEACHING EXPERIENCE 2007 Course Instructor, ENV 298.77: Topics in Tropical Forest Ecology and Conservation, Spring 2007, Duke University. 2002-06 Teaching Assistant, ENV 217: Tropical Ecology (course taught by Dr. John Terborgh), Duke University (4 semesters).
	VIII. RELATED EXPERIENCE 2000 Research Intern, Center for Science and Environment, New Delhi, India. · Conducted fieldwork in the Himalayan foothills of Uttaranchal State, northern India. · Submitted a detailed report for publication: "Ecological and socio-economic implications of the decline in traditional agroecosystems and agricultural biodiversity in Uttaranchal State, northern India".
	IX. PRESENTATIONS AT SCIENTIFIC MEETINGS Swamy, V. 2007. Pervasive distance effects (and not conspecific density per se) control early-stage tree recruitment in an Amazonian rainforest. Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America (ESA), San Jose, California. (Oral presentation) Swamy, V. and J. Terborgh. 2007. Community-level distance effects are pervasive through multiple stages of tree recruitment in an Amazonian rainforest. Annual Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) conference, Morelia, Mexico. (Oral presentation) Swamy, V. and J. Terborgh. 2005. From fruit to sapling: constructing an integrated picture of tropical tree recruitment. Annual Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) conference, Uberlandia, Brazil. (Oral presentation) Swamy, V. and P.E. Fell. 2000. Macroinvertebrates and fish populations in a restored impounded salt marsh 21 years after the re-establishment of tidal flooding. New England Estuarine Research Society (NEERS) Spring Conference, Portland, Maine. (Oral presentation)
	X. INVITED TALKS AND SEMINARS May 9, 2006. Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA. Invited by Dr. Justin Brashares. May 11, 2006. Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, CA. Invited by Dr. Rodolfo Dirzo. November 1, 2006. Working Group on the Environment in Latin America and the Pan-Amazon, Duke University–University of North Carolina Program in Latin American Studies.
	XI. SOFTWARE APPLICATIONS ESRI ArcGIS 9.1, S-Plus 7.0, PC-Ord 4.1, WinClada, HemiView 2.1, R 2.4.1 XII. LANGUAGES English (native), Spanish (fluent in reading, writing, conversation), Portuguese (basic), Hindi (basic), Tamil (native).
			All images taken by Varun Swamy, copyright protected.