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School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences

The School of Marine and Atmospheric SciencesPeopleSoMAS PeopleSharon Pochron

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Office: Melville Library E2360

Phone: 631-632-5363



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Sharon Pochron

Assistant Professor

Faculty Director, SUS

Education:

Ph.D.1999

- University of New Mexico, Albuquerque

Research Topics:

ecotoxicology, soil ecology

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  • Bio/Research

    Bio/Research

    Sharon Pochron runs the Sustainability Studies Earthworm Ecotoxicology Lab where she and her students investigate the role of environmental toxins, like acid rain, Roundup, and fertilizer on earthworm biomass and survivorship. Based in the Life Sciences Greenhouse, this research involves undergraduates at every level: from planning, to data collection and analysis, cumulating in publication.

    Her ecotoxicology students take part in the EarthStock Keynote events and URECA. Many of her students have papers in review in scientific journals. Pochron congratulates winners of the annual Earthworm Ecotoxicology Laboratory Award for their high-quality and dedicated research. Anna Flores won this award in 2013, and Kerri Mahoney won it in 2014. Pochron also congratulates her student Joy Pawirosetiko, who was named URECA Researcher of the month in May 2014.

    Pochron received her Bachelors from Franklin and Marshall College in both anthropology and biology. She received her Doctorate from University of New Mexico in anthropology and biology. She specialized in baboon foraging behavior and statistics.

    As a post-doc for Patricia Wright, Pochron published more than 20 peer-reviewed papers involving the behavioral ecology of lemurs, tarsiers and baboons. She also studied the levels of heavy metal concentrations in local sea life with Jeffrey Levinton. In her increasingly rare spare time, Pochron writes about science and animals for Highlights, Student Science, and Muse Magazine.

    Pochron teaches courses involving biology and anthropology, including conservation genetics, demography, epidemiology and ecology.

  • Publications

    Publications

    Pochron S, Choudhury M, Gomez R, Hussaini S, Illuzzi K, Mann M, Mezic M, Nikakis J, Tucker C. (In review. ID: APSOIL_2018_818) Temperature and body size drive earthworm (Eisenia fetida) sensitivity to a popular glyphosate-based herbicide.  Applied Soil Ecology.

    Pochron S, Nikakis J, Illuzzi K, Baatz A, Demirciyan L, Dhillon A, Gaylor T, Manganaro A, Maritato N, Moawad M, Singh R, Tucker C, Vaughan D. (2018). Exposure to aged crumb rubber reduces survival time during a stress test in earthworms (Eisenia fetida). Environmental Science and Pollution Research. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-1433-4

    Pochron S, Fiorenza A, Sperl C, Tucker C, Bredda B, Tucker C, Ho L. Panico C. (2017) The response of earthworms (Eisenia fetida) and soil microbes to the crumb rubber material used in artificial turf fields. Chemosphere 173: 557-562.

    Donohue M, Fahmy M, Pochron S. (In submission, ID: EMAS-D-17-02946) Pervasive contradictions in the field of ecotoxicology: Eisenia fetida weight loss in response to laboratory handling. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment.

    Levinton JS, Pochron ST. (2008) Changes in mercury content in seven species of fish over a 30-year period in the New York Finger Lakes. Environmental Science and Technology 40: 7596-7601.

    Levinton JS, Pochron ST, Kane MW. (2006) Superfund dredging restoration results in widespread regional reduction in cadmium in blue crabs. Environmental Science and Technology 27:1691-1697.

    King SJ, Arrigo-Nelson SJ, Pochron ST, Semprebon GM, Godfrey LR, Wright PC, Jernvall J. (2005) Dental senescence in a long-lived primate links infant survival to rainfall. Proceedings of the National Academies of Science 102:16579-16583.

    Pochron ST, Morelli TL, Terranova P, Scirbona J, Wright PC. (2005) Sex differences in scent marking in Propithecus edwardsi of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. American Journal of Primatology. 66:97-110.

    Wright PC, Razafindratsita T, Pochron ST, Jernvall J. (2005) The key to Madagascar frugivores. In: Tropical Fruits and Frugivores: The Search for Strong Interactors, (Dew JL, Boubli H. eds.). New York, NY, Springer.

    Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2005) Dance of the sexes: a lemur needs some unusual traits to survive in Madagascar’s unpredictable environment. Natural History. 6:34-39.

    Pochron ST, Morelli TL, Terranova P, Scirbona J, Cohen J, Rakotonirina G, Ratsimbazafy R, Rakotosoa R, Wright PC. (2005) Patterns of male scent marking in Propithecus edwardsi of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. American Journal of Primatology. 65:103-115.

    Pochron ST. (2005) Does relative economic value of food elicit purposeful encounter in the yellow baboons (Papio hamadryas cynocephalus) of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania? Primates. 46:71-74.

    Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2005) Testes size and body weight in the Milne-Edwards’ sifaka of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar, relative to other strepsirhine primates. Folia Primatologica. 76:37-41.

    Pochron ST, Tucker WT, Wright PC. (2004) Demography, life history and social structure in Propithecus diadema edwardsi from 1986 to 2000 of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 125:61-72.

    Pochron ST, Fitzgerald J, Gilbert CC, Lawrence DM, Grgas M, Rakotonirina G, Ratsimbazafy R, Rakotosoa R, Wright PC. (2003) Patterns of female dominance in (Propithecus diadema edwardsi) of Ranomafana National Park. American Journal of Primatology. 61:173-185.

    Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2003) Variability in adult group compositions of a prosimian primate Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. 54:285-293.

    Wright PC, Pochron ST, Haring D, Simons E. (2003) Can we predict seasonal behavior and social organization from sexual dimorphism and testes measurements? In: The Tarsiers: Past, Present and Future, (Wright PC, Simons EL, Gursky S. eds.) Rutgers NJ, Rutgers University Press. pp. 260-275.

    Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2002) Dynamics of testes size compensates for variation in male body-size. Evolutionary Ecology Research. 4:1-9.

    Pochron ST, Wright PC, Schaentzler E, Ippolito M, Rakotonirina G, Ratsimbazafy R, Rakotosoa R. (2002) Effect of season and age on the gonadosomatic index of Milne-Edward’s sifakas (Propithecus diadema edwardsi) in Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. International Journal of Primatology. 23(2):355-364.

    Pochron ST. (2001) Can concurrent speed and directness of travel indicate locational knowledge in the free-ranging yellow baboons (Papio h. cynocephalus) of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania? International Journal of Primatology. 22(5):773-785.

    Pochron ST. (2000) Sun avoidance behavior in yellow baboons of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania: variations with season, behavior and weather. International Journal of Biometeorology. 44(3):141-147.

    Pochron ST. (2000) The core dry-season diet of yellow baboons (Papio cynocephalus cynocephalus) in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Folia Primatologica. 71(5):346-349.

    Pochron ST. (1999) Tests of Food Selection Models—Yellow Baboons (Papio cynocephalus cynocephalus), Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Ph.D. Dissertation from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.
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