Author: Craig Osenberg

Dam salmon: Greg’s paper on Chinook salmon life-history and recovery was just published in CJFAS

(pdf)  Abstract.  Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in the Columbia River basin are threatened by anthropogenic changes to migratory corridors, estuaries, and natal habitats. Streams provide spatially heterogeneous natal habitats essential for salmon spawning and rearing life stages. We fit a statistical state-space model to salmon populations in Idaho’s Middle Fork Salmon River (MFSR) to assess Read More …

Paula’s paper on meta-analysis quality is available in PLoS ONE!

[pdf] Abstract.  Quantitatively summarizing results from a collection of primary studies with meta-analysis can help answer ecological questions and identify knowledge gaps. The accuracy of the answers depends on the quality of the meta-analysis. We reviewed the literature assessing the quality of ecological meta-analyses to evaluate current practices and highlight areas that need improvement. From Read More …

Welcome Gbenga to our lab

We are delighted to welcome Gbenga Dehemin to our lab.  Gbenga did his undergraduate work at the University of Lagos (Marine Sciences; 2018) and then worked as a biology teacher, science tutor, and graphic designer.   Gbenga will arrive in the US in July and head out to Sapelo Island to do an internship with Read More …

Dr. Rebecca Atkins!

Rebecca defended and filed her dissertation last month: “Intraspecific variation in the distribution, physiology, population traits, and consumer effects of the salt marsh periwinkle, Littoraria irrorata, across its geographic range”.  She snailed it (as we always knew she would)!  She is finishing up her Knauss Fellowship at NOAA in DC and then on to other Read More …

Dr. Amy Briggs!

Amy defended and filed her dissertation last month.  Way to go Amy!  She is now off to a Smithsonian post-doc with Val Paul (after she gets back from her honeymoon — it’s been a busy summer).  We’re going to miss her, but she’ll be back for graduation in December.

Dan’s paper on Patiria trophic ecology is out in MEPS!

[pdf] Abstract.  Microbes influence ecological processes, including the dynamics and health of macro-organisms and their interactions with other species. In coral reefs, microbes mediate negative effects of algae on corals when corals are in contact with algae. However, it is unknown whether these effects extend to larger spatial scales, such as at sites with high Read More …

Welcome Kelsey to our lab

We are delighted to welcome Kelsey Vaughn to our lab.  Kelsey did her BS at the University of Arkansas (2019) and then completed her MS at the University of the Virgin Islands (2021).  Kelsey is currently doing her first field season in Moorea with Dan and Alex and will be moving to Athens in August.  Read More …

Rebecca’s paper on Littoraria thermal traits (with Kat and Will) was just published in Biological Bulletin

(pdf)  Abstract.  Physiological processes influence how individuals perform in various environmental contexts. The basis of such processes, metabolism, scales allometrically with body mass and nonlinearly with temperature, as described by a thermal performance curve. Past studies of thermal performance curves tend to focus on effects of temperature on a single body size or population, rather Read More …

Amy and Anya’s study of the spatial scale of algal effects on coral microbiomes is out in RSOS!

[pdf] Abstract.  Microbes influence ecological processes, including the dynamics and health of macro-organisms and their interactions with other species. In coral reefs, microbes mediate negative effects of algae on corals when corals are in contact with algae. However, it is unknown whether these effects extend to larger spatial scales, such as at sites with high Read More …

Greg’s paper on spatiotemporal distribution of chinook salmon redds is in TAFS!

(link)  Abstract. Pacific salmon spawning and rearing habitats result from dynamic interactions among geomorphic processes, natural disturbances, and hydro‐climatological factors acting across a range of spatial and temporal scales. We used a 21‐year record of redd locations in a wilderness river network in central Idaho, USA, to examine which covariates best predict the spawning occurrence Read More …

Presenting Dr. Jacobs (and what did the fish say when it bumped into a wall?)…

Greg Jacobs successfully defended his dissertation this week in the Odum School of Ecology at UGa (Population-level consequences of environmental variation for migratory fishes).  Greg’s research examined migratory dynamics in two systems: sturgeon in the Niagara river and Chinook in the Middle Fork Salmon River.  Greg’s studies in both studies relied on sophisticated modeling approaches Read More …

Anya’s paper on extended phenotypes! Early view in Ecology…

(pdf)  Abstract: Phenotypic variation can lead to variation in the strength and outcome of species interactions. Variation in phenotypic traits can arise due to plastic responses to environmental stimuli, underlying genetic variation, or both, and may reflect differences in the focal organism or aspects of the extended phenotype (e.g., associated microbes). We used a reciprocal Read More …

Chao’s paper on non-independence in meta-analysis is out in Ecology!

(pdf)  Abstract. In ecological meta-analyses, nonindependence among observed effect sizes from the same source paper is common. If not accounted for, nonindependence can seriously undermine inferences. We compared the performance of four meta-analysis methods that attempt to address such nonindependence and the standard random-effect model that ignores nonindependence.  We simulated data with various types of Read More …

Paula’s paper on meta-analysis methods is out in MEE!

(pdf)  Abstract 1. Despite the wide application of meta-analysis in ecology, some of the traditional methods used for meta-analysis may not perform well given the type of data characteristic of ecological meta-analyses. 2. We reviewed published meta-analyses on the ecological impacts of global climate change, evaluating the number of replicates used in the primary studies Read More …