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Fields of Interest: Plankton
ecology,
Phytoplankton growth and physiology, Zooplankton grazing, Harmful
algae,
Dinoflagellate blooms, Physical/biological interactions,
Nutrient/microbial
pollution of coastal waters, Sea-ice algae
Phytoplankton - single-celled,
planktonic
algae - are the base of marine food webs. Nearly all other marine
organisms are
directly or indirectly dependent upon phytoplankton for nutrition.
Although
individually small, phytoplankton are so numerous in the ocean that
their
cycles of growth and decay influence global geochemical processes and
the
earth's climate. On local scales, excessive phytoplankton growth, or
accumulations of certain phytoplankton species, can be harmful to other
organisms, including humans. For these reasons, I am interested in how
environmental factors influence phytoplankton growth and physiology,
and the
interactions between phytoplankton and other planktonic organisms. From
a less
utilitarian perspective, planktonic organisms are remarkable, and often
beautiful creatures. Observing and studying them can be inspiring and
amusing.
Because plankton experience a world so different from our own, they
provide us
with fascinating examples of how unusual life forms can be.
Nevertheless, they
share many similarities with other creatures and thereby provide us
with
insight into the general rules of life.
I use a hypothesis-driven
approach to
address specific questions related to the general fields of interest
listed
above. I typically combine field sampling with controlled laboratory
experiments and analyses.
Current projects include:
·
Hydrography, water quality, and microbial
food webs in
the lower Hudson River (with Greg O’Mullan, O. R. Anderson, R.
Sambotto, and W.
McGillis of LDEO)
our data on Hudson River water quality
and
hydrography are available for public viewing at www.riverkeeper.org
·
Predation-deterring substances produced by
toxic
dinoflagellates of the genus Alexandrium
(with P. J. S. Franks of Scripps Institution of Oceanography and C.
Martins of
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
·
Development of a PCR-based method to
measure copepod
grazing rates on specific phytoplankton prey species (with S. Dyhrman
of Woods
Hole Oceanographic Institution)
·
The effect of shear forces on cellular
integrity of the
toxic dinoflagellate, Karenia brevis
·
Attachment and detachment mechanisms of
algae to/from
sea ice (with C. Krembs of University of Washington, Applied Physics
Lab).
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