Education:
University of Iowa Postdoc. appt. 1977
University of Iowa Ph.D. 1976 Ecology
Washington State University M.S. 1972 Zoology (minor-statistics)
Arizona State University B.S. 1970 Zoology
Research:
My research tests ecological theories on the conservation of both freshwater and marine communities, mostly concerning invertebrates. I originally studied life history evolution in mid-western, freshwater snails. Since coming to Louisiana, I have worked on both predator-prey interactions involving oysters and on the conservation of freshwater mussels. Our work showed that southern oyster drills are serious predators of oysters, and we tested optimal foraging theory using oyster drills. We are currently working to deter predation on oysters by black drum (a fish) with Sea
Grant funding, and are also beginning to look at the effects of blue crabs on oyster reefs. Our work with freshwater mussels indicates endangered species in small streams are meta-populations with recruitment only at some sites. Larger rivers in Louisiana have more diverse mussel assemblages, and we are currently interested in how landscape level factors affect their distribution. This research has been published in Ecology, Oecologia, Limnology and Oceanography, Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, Marine Ecological Progress Series, among others and the lab has had funding from NSF, USFS, USFWS and Sea Grant. My past students (see below) have taken positions as professors, and at both national and state conservation agencies.
Photos of predation on hooked mussels at an estuarine site (15 ppt) on the left and a more marine site (22 ppt) on the right. Preliminary cage experiments looking at predation pressure with salinity gradient show that predators, mainly blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus) not physiological constraints influence the distribution of hooked mussels (Ischadium recurvum) along the Louisiana Coast. This is an area of futher research in my lab.
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