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Current and Future Projects
Current and Future Projects
As I begin my first semester at Northwest Missouri State University, I am excited to be able to expand my research to a new part of the country. I look forward to being able to broaden my research interests, to include microplastic presence in fishes from local bodies of water. Additionally, I hope to be able to continue my research on Western Mosquitofish, especially given that they are in the process of invading further north into Missouri.
I am interested in collaborating with both undergraduate students and professions in the field of Ichthyology, wildlife conservation, and other closely related fields. Please feel free to reach out to me to discuss research projects and undergraduate research opportunities. rblanchard@nwmissouri.edu
Dissertation Research
Dissertation Research
My dissertation research was focused on the influence of predation pressure on the morphology of small species of freshwater fishes. Species that reside in environments with predators present have the ability to adapt to survive in these environments. My research aims to investigate how these predator-induced morphological changes can impact fish survival, and swimming ability. My intention is to investigate the influence of morphology not only on burst swimming speed, which is used to evade predators, but also its influence on steady swimming ability, which is utilized for dispersal. Additionally, my dissertation focused on sexual dimorphism in western mosquitofish, as well as using mark-recpature methodology to track, and predict current, and future invasions of the western mosquitofish
Additionally, I am researching snail shell morphology in environments with different predation types, including shell-entering predators and shell-crushing predators. This research aims to investigate if snails have differing shell morphology (rotund or elongated) in environments differing in predation strategy.
While at Texas A&M University, I was part of multiple collaboration studies. A current project is in review, looking at a species of endangered mosquitofish. More on this when the publication is out!
I am currently designing a mesocosm study to investigate the influence of stocking density on movement of female and male western mosquitofish.
I've recently been working on a multi-university study to investigate adaptations to seasonality along the native range of the western mosquitofish
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