Education

• B.A. Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY

• M.S. University of Wisconsin-Madison

Research Statement

Many people are aware that turbid water limits the growth of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV).  However, personal observations and published papers both have noted greater water clarity within a dense bed of SAV compared to areas with little or no vegetation present, even in the same lake or estuary.  This raises two questions for me:  1) What is causing the difference, and 2) Can we use what is causing the difference to enhance water quality management and SAV restoration?  My hypothesis, based on published papers and personal observations, is that the SAV is acting as habitat, attracting much larger numbers of filter feeding animals than in unvegetated areas, and that these filter feeders are removing and feeding on the particles that would otherwise attenuate light and make the water unsuitable for SAV growth and survival.  Further, these animals get rid of their waste in pellets that sink to the bottom, which may fertilize the rooted plants. 

In freshwater systems, researchers have found greater numbers of planktonic animals in vegetated areas, and in estuaries studies have shown larger numbers of benthic animals present. Studies have been done with artificial SAV beds in estuaries showing that a large number of animals are attracted to these areas, further supporting the hypothesis that the SAV acts as habitat for these animals. But I have not found any studies that have looked at planktonic animals in SAV in estuaries, measured the total effect all planktonic and benthic filter feeding animals have on water clarity and nutrients, or tried to replicate the effect for management and restoration. Since restoring SAV is a major goal of the Chesapeake Bay Program, but restoration often does not succeed, a method to improve SAV restoration success would be highly beneficial.

Specifically I am proposing a 3-step process: 1) quantify the total numbers of filter feeding animals present, including zooplankton and benthos, in SAV in an estuary, 2) develop a computer model to determine how much of an effect these animals may have on water clarity and nutrients at different animal densities, and 3) use these results to construct an artificial SAV bed to see if the effect on water clarity can be replicated and manipulated to enhance restoration success. If my hypothesis is correct - that we can attract large numbers of filter feeding animals through replicating the SAV habitat, thereby improving local water clarity - the results could have a highly beneficial effect on Bay-wide restoration efforts, saving a lot of money, time, and frustration on failed restoration projects.

Teaching Experience

TA, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Introductory Zoology

Field Experience

Wetland consultant, 15 years

Awards

Virginia Environmental Endowment 1-year grant for the 2006 calendar year.

Biological Sciences / VIMS
P.O. Box 1346, Gloucester Pt., VA 23062-1346, USA
Telephone: 804-684-7344; FAX: 804-684-7293