My dissertation work focuses on various aspects of Paddlefish conservation and management. By evaluating multiple parameters regarding their physiology and behavior in relation to the stressors they face. 

-My first project focuses on exercise and recovery and thermal tolerance aspects of Paddlefish. For my first study, I worked with Jake Wolf Memorial Fish Hatchery, where fish were acclimated to various temperatures. Fish were then put through an exercise event meant to mimic the fish being angled. These fish were then allowed to recover and sampled at different time points to provide insight into the recovery profiles of Paddlefish after exercise. A subset of fish were put through a critical thermal maxima test where the water was heated until the fish lose equilibrium, which provides insights into the maximum temperatures these fish can tolerate. Read more HERE!

-My second project focuses on the post-release behavior of commercially collected Paddlefish after release. Fish are currently being collected at various temperatures to determine the role of temperature on post-release behavior of these fish.

-My third project evaluates size-based variation of egg characteristics of female paddlefish across their range. For this project, I collaborated with paddlefish managers, hatchery managers, and anglers to obtain paddlefish eggs from three hatcheries (LA, MO, SD) and four regions (OK, MO, IL, MT).

-My fourth and final project aims to evaluate thermal tolerance and performance of paddlefish across temperatures and their latitudinal range. To do this, we have partnered with paddlefish hatcheries to acclimate juvenile paddlefish spawned from wild-caught broodstock in a southern region (OK/LA) and a northern region (SD) to three different temperatures. Then we will assess thermal tolerance, thermal preferences, and metabolic and swim performance. These data will provide insights into paddlefish's adaptive capacity with climate change. 

Largemouth Bass are one of the most targeted fish for competitive angling tournaments. Holding in livewells during the tournament is  common and anglers often add ice or other additives in an attempt to improve livewell holding. However, this can create thermal challenges in addition to the stressor of the fish being caught and may inhibit recovery. Undergraduate Joelle Busby (pictured) led a project quantifying the physiological impacts of livewell cooling on Largemouth Bass metabolism, and assessing thermal preference after exercise.

Cull tags are common devices used in competitive fishing tournaments. Cull tags allow anglers to temporarily mark fish and allow for quick unique identification of fish, which allows the angler to 'trade-up' by releasing the smaller fish in favor for a larger fish. We assessed potential injuries, impacts to reflexes and potential latent mortality from livewell holding with cull tags in Largemouth Bass. Read more HERE!

My Master's thesis project involved evaluation of a marsh restoration project using marsh terraces south of Bayou L'Ours and east of Golden Meadow, Louisiana. I evaluated finfish and crustacean assemblages across three habitats to determine the influence of marsh terraces on finfish and crustacean assemblages through time.

Project with Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program in Louisiana performing a census of a non-native bird known as the Limpkin. This project sough to determine the overlap in Limpkin presence and their main prey item the invasive Apple Snail in the Barataria-Terrebonne national estuary.

Project with Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to determine invasive carp spawning locations in Louisiana. This project ran five years collecting ichthyoplankton samples across the state of Louisiana, these samples were then sorted and larval fish were identified to family in order to identify invasive carp larvae. 

I worked with swordtail fishes (Xiphophorus spp.) in the Morris Fish Lab and was part of projects that assessed behaviors of these fishes and related behaviors to possible evolutionary paths of swordtail fishes. Read more HERE!