Melissa Youngquist, Ph.D.

As a member of Shedd’s freshwater research team, Melissa Youngquist strives to understand how human-made changes to habitats ripple through wetlands and shape the survival of wildlife. Youngquist studies the connections between climate, restoration of terrestrial and aquatic habitats, and the animals that depend on wetland habitats to thrive.

Youngquist’s projects focus on how amphibians, reptiles and/or insects respond to habitat restoration across the greater Chicago area. One of her ongoing projects examines ecological impacts of removing buckthorn, an aggressively invasive woody plant, from forested wetlands. Her other long-term project tracks how frogs and salamanders respond to climate change and extreme weather events.

By tracking how wetland communities respond to restoration efforts and weather patterns, Youngquist’s work helps guide smarter, more effective habitat management across the Chicago region. Youngquist is a key collaborator with Shedd’s Action Days and the Forest Preserves of Cook County, working hands-on to restore wetlands and improve habitat for local amphibian populations. She also works closely with the Chicago Park District and other local organizations that restore wetland habitats.

Youngquist previously was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Minnesota, where she partnered with the U.S. Forest Service to study how the invasive emerald ash borer could alter amphibian communities in black ash wetlands.

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