News

UC Davis undergraduate intern and McNair scholar Jemmie Herrmann did a wonderful job presenting her project at the 2026 Undergraduate Research Conference! Jemmie's project involves investigating differences in parental attentiveness toward pups between animals who have experienced transportation stress and those that have not. Her work has the potential to help researchers understand the long term impacts of a commonly necessary colony practice and the implications for research subject recruitment! 

The Bales Lab is looking to hire a junior specialist to assist with research activities. This role is primarily based at the California National Primate Research Center but will also involve work with our vole colony. The priority application deadline is 2/24/26, but applications will be accepted until 3/31/26 if the position is not yet filled. Learn more about the position and apply here!

Dr. Bales will be teaching Introduction to Biological Psychology during the summer of 2026 in Strasbourg, France. Interested undergrads can find out more about the program here.

We are thrilled to celebrate our former undergraduate researcher and McNair Scholar Daniel Egziabher, who recently published his work in the McNair national journal! His project, "Unraveling the Biological Impact of Social Isolation: Insights from Vasopressin Receptor Density in Prairie Vole Brain Tissues" explored how social isolation, compared to cohabiting with a partner, induces changes in the brain. He carried out this project with the mentorship of Sabrina Seaborn-Mederos, a graduate student and former McNair scholar herself.

Rubyana Garcia, an undergrad intern and McNair Scholar on the titi side of the Bales Lab, has recently published her first research article in the 2025 edition of the McNair National Research Journal! With support from Dr. Meg Sosnowski and Dr. Bales, Ruby examined how synchrony during speed dates was related to pair compatibility. We are very proud of all the work Ruby has put into this project and are excited to see what she takes on next!

Huge congratulations to Izzy on successfully passing her qualifying exam! Our lab is proud to celebrate this important milestone and we all look forward to seeing her continued growth and contributions in the years ahead! Celebrations were held by wearing our new matching t-shirts!

This past weekend, Bales lab members took a field trip to the Micke Grove Zoo in Lodi, CA, to visit a pair of titi monkeys that were sent to the zoo from the CNPRC colony last year. The monkeys - Rocket and Augusta - were tail twining and enjoying the shade in their lush new habitat, and we're thrilled to see them living their best lives under the care of Micke Grove Zoo staff.

Jace Kuske, a PhD candidate in Psychology, gave an exceptional exit seminar on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. Their work focuses on aggression in female California mice (Peromyscus californicus), and they are a firm advocate for the inherent value in studying female animals. We're so proud of all the work Jace has done and we can't wait to see how they go on to change the world!

Sophia Rogers officially passed her qualifying exam in December and is now a PhD candidate in Psychology! We are very proud of the all work she's put in with the prairie voles to get here. Go Sophia!