{"685166":{"#nid":"685166","#data":{"type":"news","title":"James Stroud Receives Maxwell\/Hanrahan Award in Field Biology","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech\u2019s\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/sites.gatech.edu\/stroudlab\/\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EJames Stroud\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E has been awarded a 2025\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.maxwell-hanrahan.org\/programs\/field-biology\u0022\u003EMaxwell\/Hanrahan Award in Field Biology\u003C\/a\u003E. Presented by the Maxwell\/Hanrahan Foundation, the award recognizes outstanding scientists conducting field research that both explores the natural world and leverages collaboration.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EAn assistant professor in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/people\/james-stroud\u0022\u003ESchool of Biological Sciences\u003C\/a\u003E, Stroud is one of just five scientists selected to receive this year\u2019s honor, which includes $100,000 of funding to support his work.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cI\u2019m honored to receive this award,\u201d he says. \u201cThis support affirms the value of field-based research, and underscores the importance of collaborative, long-term field studies.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EFrom ecology to empowerment\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EAn evolutionary biologist, Stroud uses lizards to explore how ecological and evolutionary processes at the micro scale may underlie broader patterns of biological diversity at a larger scale \u2014 research that involves both computational analysis and long-term field studies.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cMy lab\u2019s research focuses on studying lizards in their natural habitats, allowing us to directly investigate how species adapt and evolve in real time,\u201d he shares. \u201cThis helps us understand how these ecological and evolutionary processes shape life on Earth.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EIn South Florida, Stroud\u2019s fieldwork focuses on \u2018Lizard Island\u2019 \u2014 a football field-sized island with a 1,000-lizard population. Operating for a decade, it is one of the world\u2019s longest-running active evolutionary studies of its kind. This year, Stroud published research\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cos.gatech.edu\/news\/when-two-lizards-meet-first-time-scientists-witness-evolution-action\u0022\u003Edocumenting evolution in action\u003C\/a\u003E on the island when two species met for the first time, providing some of the clearest evidence to date of evolution in real-time.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EOutside of field research, Stroud recently led a\u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003ENature\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003Ereview paper providing the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cos.gatech.edu\/news\/natures-time-machine-how-long-term-studies-unlock-evolutions-secrets\u0022\u003Efirst-ever comprehensive analysis of long-term evolutionary studies\u003C\/a\u003E, underscoring the critical need for these types of studies.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EStroud has also developed a community science project called \u201cLizards on the Loose.\u201d A collaboration with Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, the program engages middle school students from more than 100 schools across South Florida through the iNaturalist online platform and mobile app. Together, they have recorded thousands of lizard observations in their school grounds, local parks, and back yards.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe award recognizes outstanding scientists conducting field research that both explores the natural world and leverages collaboration.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The award recognizes outstanding scientists conducting field research that both explores the natural world and leverages collaboration. "}],"uid":"35599","created_gmt":"2025-09-22 20:24:06","changed_gmt":"2025-09-23 14:17:11","author":"sperrin6","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2025-09-22T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2025-09-22T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"678098":{"id":"678098","type":"image","title":"James Stroud examines a lizard in the field. (Credit: Day\u2019s Edge Productions)","body":"\u003Cp\u003EJames Stroud examines a lizard in the field. (Credit: Day\u2019s Edge Productions)\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1758636184","gmt_created":"2025-09-23 14:03:04","changed":"1760547417","gmt_changed":"2025-10-15 16:56:57","alt":"James Stroud examines a lizard in the field. (Credit: Day\u2019s Edge Productions)","file":{"fid":"262081","name":"brighter_StroudResearchMiami_003_DaysEdgeProds.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/09\/23\/brighter_StroudResearchMiami_003_DaysEdgeProds.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/09\/23\/brighter_StroudResearchMiami_003_DaysEdgeProds.png","mime":"image\/png","size":2817190,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2025\/09\/23\/brighter_StroudResearchMiami_003_DaysEdgeProds.png?itok=8uLh4VRQ"}},"678099":{"id":"678099","type":"image","title":"James Stroud catching lizards in the field. (Day\u2019s Edge Productions)","body":"\u003Cp\u003EJames Stroud catching lizards in the field. (Day\u2019s Edge Productions)\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1758636184","gmt_created":"2025-09-23 14:03:04","changed":"1758636184","gmt_changed":"2025-09-23 14:03:04","alt":"James Stroud catching lizards in the field. (Day\u2019s Edge Productions)","file":{"fid":"262082","name":"brighter_StroudResearchMiami_009_DaysEdgeProds.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/09\/23\/brighter_StroudResearchMiami_009_DaysEdgeProds.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/09\/23\/brighter_StroudResearchMiami_009_DaysEdgeProds.png","mime":"image\/png","size":3789044,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2025\/09\/23\/brighter_StroudResearchMiami_009_DaysEdgeProds.png?itok=UOTTbz4_"}}},"media_ids":["678098","678099"],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"1275","name":"School of Biological Sciences"}],"categories":[{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"192249","name":"cos-community"},{"id":"187423","name":"go-bio"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EWritten by \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:sperrin6@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESelena Langner\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}