My research addresses knowledge gaps that limit our understanding of cultured clams and natural or restored oyster reefs in Florida’s coastal and estuarine ecosystems. I examines the effects of water quality on shellfish productivity, the physiological mechanisms that underlie those effects, the provision of ecosystem services by shellfish, and the development of models to predict impacts of water quality parameters on shellfish productivity and provision of ecosystem services. I provide leadership and support to the shellfish industry, agriculture industry, and citizens of Florida in the areas of aquaculture and molluscan invasions and engage with county and statewide faculty to identify emerging industry needs, collaboratively conduct appropriate research, and deliver sustainable solutions to stakeholders.

I recieved an MS from the University of Oregon where I was advised by Drs. Bob and Nora Terwilliger. I earned a PhD from the College of William and Mary, Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences where I worked with Dr. roger Mann. I was a postdoc at Macalester College, in St. Paul Minnesota, as well as at SUNY Stony Brook. I have been at the University of Florida for over 20 years.

I have broad interests in the organismal biology of aquatic invertebrates. Our work has focused especially on the evolution and development of regeneration and asexual reproduction and on the biology of freshwater annelids. Our work spans levels of inquiry, from molecular and cell biology, to physiology, to ecology and evolution.

I received my PhD in Ecology and Evolution from Stony Brook University and was a postdoc in Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California at Berkeley. I am currently and Associate Professor at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Most of my research investigates how fluid flow in the environment – whether in air or in water – impacts organisms, but I am also interested in the effects of other stressors, such as thermal stress, predation risk, and disturbance, on organisms. My PhD work investigated (1) the mechanical and physiological adaptations that allow kelp to survive in wave-swept habitats and (2) the ecological and mechanical interactions between kelp and the destructive herbivores living and feeding on the kelp. Now as a postdoc, I am investigating (1) the flight and behavioral strategies that bees use to traverse moving, wind-blown vegetation and (2) the effects of wing design on the physiology and flight performance of bees in wind.

I received a BS from the University of South Carolina where I worked with Drs. David Wethey, Brian Helmuth, and Fernando Lima. I then received a PhD from the University of California - Berkeley where I was advised by Dr. Mimi Koehl. I am now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California - Davis where I am advised by Dr. Stacey Combes.