The national honor recognizes their distinguished contributions to conservation and evolutionary science
Leslie Pick and William Bowerman have made significant advancements in their fields
William Bowerman and Leslie Pick of the University of Maryland’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources have been named 2021 Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
AAAS is the world’s largest general scientific society and publisher of the Science family of journals, which includes the globally prestigious journal Science. Election as an AAAS Fellow is an exceptional honor bestowed upon AAAS members by their peers for scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.
Both Bowerman and Pick have made significant contributions to their fields.
Bowerman is a professor and chair of the Department of Environmental Science and Technology
“It really is quite the honor,” Bowerman said, “This is a big one, and I was thrilled to learn that I had been elected to be a fellow of AAAS. Not only is it a prestigious membership, but the organization and its mission to advance science and scientific integrity is extremely important, especially today.”
Bowerman is being honored for his contributions in research and education to the conservation of eagle populations at the Great Lakes and for outstanding contributions to the global conservation of endangered avian species.
Bowerman studies how various stressors, especially human-generated toxins in the environment, affect wildlife. He is known internationally for his research on bald eagles which has been instrumental in successful efforts to restore the birds to the Great Lakes region. Bowerman’s work established the role of various chemicals as endocrine disruptors that interfere with reproduction and cause deformities in many bird species.
Bowerman came to UMD in May, 2011 as a professor and chair of the department after spending 12 years as a faculty member at Clemson University. Bowerman has authored or co-authored 98 peer-reviewed research papers, and served as an advisor on conservation issues to state and federal government agencies including the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. National Park Service and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. He is a Fellow of the Explorer’s Club and a member of the Cosmos Club. In 2020 the Boy Scouts of America presented Bowerman with their most significant honor: the William T. Hornaday Gold Medal.
Bowerman earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in biology from Western Michigan University and Northern Michigan University respectively. He earned his Ph.D. in Fisheries & Wildlife – Environmental Toxicology from Michigan State University.
Pick is a professor and chair of the Department of Entomology.
“I feel very honored to receive this recognition,” Pick said, “I am very much in awe of the generosity of one of my colleagues at a different university who reached out to me and said he would like to nominate me for this. That means a great deal to me.”
Pick is being honored for her contributions to the field of evolutionary development and insect biology, particularly her discoveries surrounding the role of a group of genes, Hox genes, that control embryonic development and diversification of organisms.
Pick and her team conducted laboratory experiments testing the hypothesis that Hox genes are tied to similar functions in animals as different as mice and flies. This work contributed to the understanding that Hox genes, first identified in the fruit fly, have been evolutionarily conserved as those animals evolved through hundreds of millions of years. This work provided a striking demonstration that fruit flies can be used as models for humans in many types of biological studies, because they share many of the same genes.
Pick and her trainees also discovered that one particular Hox gene violated the rules of conservation because it has changed dramatically over time. This finding led to current studies of how regulatory genes, which are critical for survival, can be gained and lost during evolution.
Pick came to UMD in 2003 and became chair of the Entomology department in 2013. She was awarded the Distinguished Scholar Teacher award in 2015 for her contributions to research and teaching in the field of genetics.
Pick has published numerous peer-reviewed research papers, including publications in high impact journals such as Science, Nature, Current Biology, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Her work has been funded by federal agencies and private foundations, including the National Science Foundation, the March of Dimes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the National Institutes of Health. Pick is a member of the Genetics Society of America and fellow of the Entomological Society of America. She earned a dual Bachelor’s degree in psychology and biology from Wesleyan University and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
New Fellows were featured in the AAAS News & Notes section of Science in January 2022. They will receive an official certificate and a gold and blue rosette pin to commemorate their election (representing science and engineering, respectively) and will be celebrated by AAAS later this year during an in-person gathering when it is feasible from a public health and safety perspective.
The College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Maryland embodies the University land-grant mission with a commitment to eliminate hunger and malnutrition, preserve our natural resources, improve quality of life, and empower the next generation through world-class education. For additional information, visit https://agnr.umd.edu/about/strategic-initiatives
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is the world’s largest general scientific society and publisher of the journal Science, as well as Science Translational Medicine; Science Signaling; a digital, open-access journal, Science Advances; Science Immunology; and Science Robotics. AAAS was founded in 1848 and includes more than 250 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. The nonprofit AAAS is open to all and fulfills its mission to “advance science and serve society” through initiatives in science policy, international programs, science education, public engagement, and more. For additional information about AAAS, visit www.aaas.org.
