Dorothy Aldridge

M.S. Student - Wildlife and Fisheries Biology
Graduate Research Assistant
Forestry and Environmental Conservation Department, Baruch Institute of Coastal Ecology and Forest Science

Office: G12I
Phone: 650-690-0952

Email: dorotha@clemson.edu

Educational Background

B.A. Environmental Studies
University of California, Santa Cruz 2021

B.S. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of California, Santa Cruz 2021

Profile

Dorothy Aldridge is a M.S. student co-advised by Dr. Stefanie Whitmire and Dr. Thomas Rainwater with a deep passion for wetland ecosystems. Her research will focus on modeling climate influence on the discharge and distribution of PFAS and microplastics into coastal wetlands. She will work closely with doctoral student Miriam Boucher, utilizing contaminant data from alligator stomach and tissue samples. Her project will spatially integrate contaminant data with climate variables including sea level rise, precipitation, and flood risk to identify wetland systems most at risk.

Before starting at Clemson University, Dorothy received her B.S. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and her B.A. in Environmental Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz. While at UCSC, she undertook several herpetology-focused projects, including evaluating the use of anurans in freshwater toxicology assessments and modeling climate extinction risk for two paedomorphic salamander species. Following her undergraduate studies, she worked as a biologist in environmental consulting, conducting tidal salt marsh restoration in the San Francisco Bay Estuary. During her time in consulting, Dorothy conducted invasive plant and endangered marsh bird surveys for the California Coastal Conservancy’s Invasive Spartina Project. She managed the photo point monitoring program, led field crews, mentored seasonal biologists, and cemented her interest in protecting sensitive wetland habitat. She is interested in adaptive restoration strategies and working with coastal plain communities adjacent to wetlands.

Dorothy recently moved to South Carolina with her elderly rabbit, Ziggy, and is excited to explore the Southeast. She has a love for herpetology and for most activities requiring waders or headlamps. When she is not waist deep in mud, Dorothy enjoys crochet, backpacking, trail running, ecological poetry, open water swimming, and mint chip ice cream.