Southeastern fishes
The southeastern USA is known to harbor the greatest aquatic diversity in North America and most of freshwater fishes are so-called non-game species, which are not sought after by anglers. Fish assemblages are a good indicator of environmental quality and are suitable to investigate questions in population and community ecology. Also, many of endangered and threatened species are non-game species.
I am studying reproductive and population biology of stream fishes in the Clemson University’s Experimental Forest by following individuals over time using passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags.
Front range and plains fishes in Colorado
Colorado may be known for mountains and trout, but there is a lot more! The state is home to many species of minnows, darters, suckers and catfishes, and they make up fish assemblages in the front range and plains streams. However, these fishes have declined due to urban and agricultural development. I study conservation biology of non-game fishes in Colorado, which is strongly linked to water management in the arid state.