Records of historical climate change and landscape evolution are readily available in many forms, including tree rings, ice cores, rock fossils, and sedimentary layers. I study the remains of diatoms, which are a major class of algae, stored in lake and marsh sediments. These organisms live in water, and when they die, they settle to the bottom of the water body and form sequential sediment layers. Diatoms have cell walls made from silica and are very slow to compose. It is possible to extract and identify species of diatoms from thousands of years ago. Also, many species of diatoms are fastidious (i.e., “picky”) and require certain water conditions for living.
As the environment changes, the water conditions of the lakes and marshes also change. Along with these water condition changes, certain species may have increased growth whereas other species may have decreased growth. Therefore, it is possible to retrieve core samples of diatoms from the bottoms of lakes and marshes, identify the proportions of species, reference their environmental preferences, and make conclusions about climate patterns and landscape changes through time. Currently, I am particularly interested in understanding the historical environment and development of coastal Georgia and the southeastern United States.
I also maintain active collaboration on a largemouth bass foraging project that originated over 30 years ago. It started out when I was a young lad assisting, sometimes begrudgingly, my father in the field. Then, it became a passion and major portion of my academic and research training in the fields of biology and aquatic ecology. We have analyzed what largemouth bass have eaten over a 30 year period and elucidated patterns of foraging behavior, niche ecology, and food web dynamics.
I was very fortunate to have been offered research experiences while I was a child and young student. It has become a central passion of mine to offer my own students meaningful research experiences to continue the legacy and tradition of curiosity and exploration.
If any of this research interests you, please contact me about possible opportunities.