Shane Heschel
Assistant Professor of Biology

Plant Ecophysiologist

E-mail: shane.heschel@coloradocollege.edu 

Phone: (719) 389-6406
 

Address: 

The Colorado College
Biology Department
14 E. Cache La Poudre St.
Colorado Springs, CO 80903

 

 

Education

1991 BS University of Illinois, Urbana

1994 MS University of Illinois, Urbana

2000 PhD Brown University

Research Interests

Physiological ecology of plant populations, particularly in stressful environments; local adaptation and the evolution of physiological mechanisms; factors driving the local extinction of plant populations; population genetics and inbreeding depression theory.
 
Course Information

  • BY100 - Plants and People
  • BY105 - Biology of Plants
  • BY208 - Ecology
  • BY349 - Conservation/Population Genetics
  • BY362 - Plant Ecology
  • BY474 - Plant Environmental Physiology

Personal Interests

Hiking, blues guitar, baseball, and pie.

Publications

Heschel, M.S., C.M. Butler, D. Barua, G.C.K. Chiang, A. Wheeler, R.A. Sharrock, G.C. Whitelam, and K. Donohue. 2008. New roles of phytochromes during seed germination. International Journal of Plant Sciences 169:531-540.

Riginos, C., M.S. Heschel, and J. Schmitt. 2007. Maternal effects of drought stress and inbreeding in Impatiens capensis (Balsaminaceae). American Journal of Botany 94:1984-1991.

 

Heschel, M.S., J. Selby, C. Butler, G.C. Whitelam, R.A. Sharrock, and K. Donohue.  2007.  A new role for for phytochromes in temperature-dependent germination.  New Phytologist - 174:735-741.

Donohue, K., M.S. Heschel, G.C.K. Chiang, C.M. Butler, and D. Barua.  2007.  Phytochrome mediates germination responses to multiple seasonal cues.  Plant, Cell and Environment 30:202-212

Schmidt, P.S., A.B. Paaby, and M.S. Heschel.  2005.  Correlations of reproductive diapause and life history tradeoffs in Drosophila melanogaster.  Evolution 59:2616-2625.

Heschel, M.S., N.J. Hausmann, and J. Schmitt.  2005.  Testing for stress-dependent inbreeding depression in Impatiens capensis (Balsaminaceae).  American Journal of Botany 92:1322-1329.

Heschel, M.S. and C. Riginos.  2005.  Mechanisms of selection for drought stress tolerance and avoidance in Impatiens capensis.  American Journal of Botany 92:37-44.

Heschel, M.S., S.E. Sultan, S. Glover, and D. Sloan.  2004.  Population differentiation and plastic responses to drought stress in the generalist annual, Polygonum persicaria.  International Journal of Plant Sciences 165:817-824.

 Heschel, M.S., J.R. Stinchcombe, K.E. Holsinger, and J. Schmitt.  2004.  Natural selection on light response curve parameters in the herbaceous annual, Impatiens capensis.  Oecologia 139:487-494.

 Huber, H., N. Kane, M.S. Heschel, J. Banta, A. Leuck, and J. Schmitt.  2004.  Frequency and microenvironmental pattern of selection on plastic shade avoidance traits in a natural population of Impatiens capensis.  American Naturalist 163:548-563.

 Schmitt, J., J.R. Stinchcombe, M.S. Heschel, and H. Huber.  2003.  The adaptive evolution of plasticity: phytochrome-mediated shade avoidance responses.  Integrative and Comparative Biology 43:459-469.

Heschel, M.S., K. Donohue, N.J. Hausmann, and J. Schmitt.  2002.  Population differentiation and natural selection for water-use efficiency in Impatiens capensis (Balsaminaceae).  International Journal of Plant Sciences 163:907-912.

 Heschel, M.S. and N.J. Hausmann.  2001.  Population differentiation for abscisic acid responsiveness in Impatiens capensis (Balsaminaceae).  International Journal of Plant Sciences 162:1253-1260.

Donohue, K., E. Hammond Pyle, D. Messiqua, M.S. Heschel, and J. Schmitt.  2001.  Adaptive divergence in plasticity in natural populations of Impatiens capensis and its consequences for performance in novel habitats.  Evolution 55:692-702.

Donohue, K., D. Messiqua, E. Hammond Pyle, M.S. Heschel, and J. Schmitt.  2000.  Evidence of adaptive divergence in plasticity: density- and site- dependent selection on shade avoidance responses in Impatiens capensis.  Evolution 54:1956-1968.

Donohue, K., D. Messiqua, E. Hammond Pyle, M.S. Heschel, and J. Schmitt.  2000.  Density dependence and population differentiation of genetic architecture in Impatiens capensis in natural environments.  Evolution 54:1969-1981.

Paige, K. N. and M. S. Heschel.  1996.  Inbreeding depression in scarlet gilia: a reply to Ouborg and Van Groenendael.  Conservation Biology 10:1292-1294.

Heschel, M. S. and K. N. Paige.  1995.  Inbreeding depression, environmental stress and population size variation in scarlet gilia, Ipomopsis aggregata.  Conservation Biology 9:126-133.