People and Partners

Robert A. Lusardi, PhD, Assistant Professor in Wildlife, Fish, & Conservation Biology

Dr. Lusardi is a freshwater research ecologist and applied conservation biologist in the Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology at the University of California, Davis.   Rob is broadly interested in stream ecology and food web dynamics of rivers throughout California and their role in shaping aquatic species response. He uses a combination of field and manipulation experiments and modelling to address the mechanisms underpinning field observations. Specifically, his research examines interactions between water temperature and food availability on the growth and survival of juvenile salmon, how different habitat types influence the costs and benefits of juvenile salmonid rearing, the conservation implications of reintroduction strategies to historical habitats, and the status and conservation of salmonids throughout California. 

Contact information; Email: ralusardi@ucdavis.edu.  Office: Academic Surge, University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Department of Wildlife Fish, and Conservation Biology, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Sarah Howe, Junior Specialist, Freshwater Ecology Lab Manager and Field Lead

Sarah earned her bachelor’s degree in environmental science from the University of St. Thomas in 2020. During her time there, she collaborated with the Minnesota DNR to study how fish stocking and invasive species impact lake food webs using stable isotope and diet analyses. Post-graduation, Sarah has worked as an aquatic toxicology researcher with the Great Lakes division of the EPA and as a salmon biology field technician in Southeast Alaska. She is broadly interested in studying the impacts of anthropogenic stressors on freshwater food webs and fish lifecycles and is excited to contribute to research that informs native salmonid conservation efforts in California. Sarah joined the freshwater ecology lab in spring of 2023 and works on a variety of projects. When not in the lab or field, she enjoys camping, mushroom hunting, and film photography.

Contact information; Email: sehowe@ucdavis.edu   Lab space: the Bug Lab, Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave., University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Amber Lukk, Assistant Specialist

Amber Lukk is an Assistant Specialist and multidisciplinary field researcher. She earned a bachelor’s in Environmental Science and Management from UC Davis and has worked at the Center for Watershed since 2018. She specializes in hydrologic monitoring, aerial and geospatial surveys, and GIS and modelling analyses. Her main interests include high elevation meadows and coldwater spring systems, and their importance within the ecosystems of Northern California. She is especially focused on the balance of habitat restoration and conservation of aquatic species within working landscapes.

Contact information. Email: aklukk@ucdavis.edu  Location: Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Claire Inouye, Junior Specialist

Claire graduated from UC Davis with a bachelor's degree in Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology and a minor in Entomology in 2023. As an undergraduate, she worked as an intern with Cramer Fish Sciences during the summer of 2022, where she collected, sorted, and identified macroinvertebrates from the Yuba and Merced River systems. The summer prior, Claire worked with Mountain G. Enterprise (MGE) as a forestry intern, surveying the type, size, and health of the trees in Siskiyou County. She began working for the Freshwater Ecology Lab in December 2022, focusing primarily on aquatic invertebrates associated with Klamath dam removal. Now, as a Junior Specialist, she continues to work on invertebrate samples, along with otolith processing and various fieldwork throughout California. Claire is interested in conservation of freshwater ecosystems and wants to gain more experience and knowledge to help conserve California's biodiversity. 

Contact information; Email: cainouye@ucdavis.edu   Lab space: the Bug Lab, Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Brandi Goss, graduate student, Graduate Group in Ecology

Brandi is an aspiring scientist and educator who hopes to inspire the next generation of scientists while conducting research that facilitates balance between human needs and the conservation of threatened and endangered species. She has worked in Florida, Tennessee, and California at a variety of ecological scales and has experience in monitoring, academic research, and public policy. Brandi moved to California in the Fall of 2017 to work in the Watershed Stewards Program in Yreka and quickly developed a strong affinity for California’s rivers. She started her PhD in the Graduate Group in Ecology in the Fall of 2020 and has since been the recipient of several research scholarships (Muir Scholar, Wisecarver Memorial Scholarship, Bob Bittner Scholarship). Her dissertation research uses stable isotope analysis to understand the impacts of restoration techniques on aquatic communities. Specifically, she is partnering with the Scott River Watershed Council to understand how beaver dam analogs influence trophic pathways and return rates for coho salmon in the Scott Valley. She is also part of a collaborative project with Cal Poly Humboldt and the Karuk Tribe that aims to understand how the Klamath dam removal will impact aquatic food webs. 

Kelly Goedde-Matthews, graduate student, Graduate Group in Ecology

Kelly is a Master’s student in the Graduate Group in Ecology. Born and raised in Davis, Kelly developed an appreciation for aquatic ecology by exploring Putah Creek as a child. She earned her B.S. in Ecology and Evolution from UC Santa Cruz in 2020 and worked for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife before starting at UC Davis. She aims to conduct research with practical conservation implications that will help managers and policy makers better care for aquatic habitats and the species that depend upon them 

Contact information; Email: kgoeddem@ucdavis.edu Location: Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis.

Alex Johanson, graduate student, Graduate Group in Ecology

Alex is a MS student in the Graduate Group in Ecology. His research focuses on coho salmon migration and habitat use in Walker Creek, located in West Marin, CA. Having grown up in Marin County, Alex has wanted to work with salmon his entire life. He received his BS in Aquatic and Fishery Sciences from the University of Washington in 2017 and has spent the last 5 years working as a field biologist and water conservation specialist in and around the Bay Area. He spent two years with the Watershed Stewards Program, with Marin Water’s Fisheries Monitoring Program conducting life cycle monitoring of Coho Salmon and Steelhead Trout in Lagunitas Creek, and with the County of Santa Cruz and Central Coast Wetlands Group conducting riparian and wetland mapping and monitoring. Alex has been working with CalTrout and UC Davis since 2020 on a Passive-Integrative-Transponder Antenna study to determine when and where adult and juvenile coho are holding and moving through Walker Creek. 

Contact information; Email: ajohanson@ucdavis.edu Location: Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis.

Caroline Ristuccia, graduate student, Graduate Group in Ecology

Caroline is an MS student in the Graduate Group in Ecology. Her current research focuses on beaver habitat selection and interaction with semi-arid landscapes. Caroline is interersted in how these patterns may differ in areas that are groundwater dependent for large portions of the year. Using beaver as a vector of process- based restoration has become increasingly popular. Learning more about how they interact with different systems can inform wet meadow and headwater restoration using beaver as a process-based tool. 

Contact information; Email: caristuccia@ucdavis.edu Location: Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis.

Adrian Loera, graduate student, Graduate Group in Ecology

Adrian is a graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in the Graduate Group in Ecology. His research focuses on utilizing acoustic telemetry to measure juvenile Chinook salmon use of agricultural water pumps in the Sacramento River. Growing up as an angler in Southern California’s San Fernando Valley, Adrian’s passion for fisheries dates back to when he was old enough to cast a rod. He earned his Bachelor’s in Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology from the University of California, Davis in 2020 and has worked in the Sacramento Central Valley since. Adrian spent three years as a field and lab technician for California Trout working on the Fish Food on Floodplain Farm Fields project. He is hopeful that his research will provide a better understanding of how salmon utilize the Sacramento River during periods of high food abudance during the floodplain recession.

Contact information; Email: aeloera@ucdavis.edu Location: Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, Academic Surge 1331, University of California, Davis.

Dr. Francisco Bellido, Postdoctoral Researcher

Dr. Bellido is a civil & environmental engineer conducting his postdoctoral research on optimizing reservoir operations to maximize benefits to riverine food webs. He finished his undergraduate degree in civil & environmental engineering at the University of Granada (Spain), where he developed research on the impacts of climate change on hydrodynamics and food subsidies of Lake Tanganyika (Africa). He received his MSc in hydrology and water resources management at Imperial College London (UK) studying the impact of climate change on drought characteristics in the Midlands Area, earning the prestigious Letitia Chitty Award. Francisco then conducted his doctoral research at UC Davis under Drs. Jay Lund and Rob Lusardi, in which he developed valuation and management tools for the recovery of endangered Sacramento River winter-run Chinook salmon, focusing on the effectiveness of restoration strategies to inform and assist decision-making processes. He is passionate about exploring the impact of water system operations on downstream ecosystems and applying his modeling expertise to provide explicit valuations to such impacts to be included as additional objectives in water resources management optimization efforts.

Contact information; Email: fjbellidoleiva@ucdavis.edu Location: Center for Watershed Sciences and , University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Dr. Tyson Hallbert, Postdoctoral Researcher

Tyson is a fish and stream ecologist currently studying how the hydrologic conditions created by beaver dams and beaver dam analogs provide stability and promote diversity in riverine ecosystems. He received a PhD from Idaho State University in May of 2023. During his dissertation work, he performed experimental and observational studies to assess how instream habitat conditions influence the bioenergetics and foraging behavior of salmonids in streams. He has worked with tribal, state, and federal agencies conducting research on a variety of fish species across watersheds in the Western US. Tyson is broadly interested in studying factors that sustain and limit natural populations in freshwater ecosystems, and when not trying to get R to do his bidding, he enjoys rafting, fishing, climbing, and snorkeling.

Contact information; Email: thallbert@ucdavis.edu; Location: Center for Watershed Sciences and , University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Dr. Nicolas Corline, Postdoctoral Researcher

Nick is a postdoctoral researcher interested in ecosystem processes that range from community assembly to carbon cycling and the application of ecological principles to ecosystem restoration and management. Nick’s previous research areas include studies of carbon cycling and biogeochemical hotspots in wetlands, the functional role of animals in regulating ecosystem processes, and managing large-scale infrastructure for predictable ecosystem processes and outcomes. Currently, he is working with Dr. Lusardi and collaborators to explore how ecosystem processes within spring-fed streams select and promote salmonid life-history traits such as reproductive timing and growth.

Contact information; Email: njcorline@ucdavis.edu Location: Center for Watershed Sciences and , University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616. ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Nicholas-Corline. Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=sCmnKtIAAAAJ&hl=en

Kyle Elshoff, Undergraduate Research Student, University of California-Davis 

Kyle is from the Santa Clarita Valley, nestled among the Transverse Ranges in Southern California. He is currently a third year student at UC Davis studying Entomology and Ecology, Evolution, and Biodiversity. He began working in the Freshwater Ecology Lab in July of 2022 and primarily sorts and identifies aquatic invertebrates and zooplankton for various ecological projects, including monitoring of stream habitat quality. Kyle is broadly interested in the evolutionary, ecological, and environmental processes and systems that have shaped the regions we now call California and the American West. He hopes to one day conduct research that aids the preservation and restoration of California’s ecosystems. When not in the lab, you might find Kyle hiking a trail in the Point Reyes Peninsula, practicing calligraphy, or reading books by Ursula K. Le Guin.

Contact information; Email: kcelshoff@ucdavis.edu  Lab space: the Bug Lab, Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Kristin Rank , Undergraduate Research Student, University of California-Davis 

Kristen is a second year at UC Davis majoring in Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, and pursuing a minor in Geographic Information Systems. She grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and spent most of her time outdoors hiking, backpacking, surfing, and whitewater rafting which developed her interests in ecology. Kristen began working in the Freshwater Ecology Lab in the spring of 2024, where she assists with preparation of otoliths of adult chinook salmon from the Klamath River. She is specifically interested in what impact restoring a river to its natural flow regime will have on fish and macroinvertebrate populations. She is excited to be involved with the historic Klamath dam removal project and hopes to be able to raft more unimpaired river systems in the future. 

Contact information; Email: kzrank@ucdavis.edu  Lab space: the Bug Lab, Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616. 

Kiliana Kato , Undergraduate Research Student, University of California-Davis 

Kiliana is currently a second year student at UC Davis majoring in Marine and Coastal Sciences with an emphasis in marine ecology and organismal biology. She was born in Hungary, but spent most of her childhood growing up in Oregon where she cultivated a love for the outdoors. She began working in the Freshwater Ecology Lab in December of 2022, where she primarily assists in the processing of stream macroinvertebrate samples. Kiliana is interested in marine animal ecology and is aiming to narrow down whether she wants to focus on invertebrates or vertebrates for future research. She is specifically interested in the effects of pollution and climate change on streams and intertidal zones. 

Contact information; Email: kekato@ucdavis.edu  Lab space: the Bug Lab, Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis. Mailing address: Center for Watershed Sciences, One Shields Ave. , University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616.

Rachel Fichman, graduate student, Graduate Group in Ecology

Rachel received their masters in the Graduate Group in Ecology during spring 2023 through their research on  how different environmental conditions affect somatic and otolith (ear stone) growth in Delta Smelt, a critically endangered fish endemic to the SFE.  Rachel currently works at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Eric Holmes, graduate student, Graduate Group in Ecology

Eric received his masters degree in the Graduate Group in Ecology in 2022 through his research on the factors affecting the growth of juvenile Chinook salmon in a modified floodplain landscape.  Eric currentl works at the Department of Water Resources. 

Dr. Ethan Baruch, Postdoctoral Researcher

As a postdoc, Ethan is working on a collaborative project with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to relate components of the flow regime to trends in the abundance and distribution of California native fishes. Ethan is a Senior Enviornmental Scientist at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Adriana Alarcon, Junior Specialist

Adriana earned a bachelor's degree in Environmental Science from UC Davis in June 2020. She worked in the Freshwater Ecology lab between 2019-2023 assisting in a range of projects.

Priscilla Vasquez-Housley, Junior Specialist

Priscilla Vasquez-Housley earned her degree in Entomology in 2018 from UC Davis and is passionate about aquatic insects. She worked at the Center for Watershed Sciences from 2016-2020 and assisted in numerous fashions on several projects through California and the Pacific Northwest. 

Megan Cunnison , Undergrad Research Student, University of California-Davis 

Megan graduated during spring of 2023 and is currently working as a field technician for Orgeon State University.  Megan joined the lab during winter of 2022-2023 and assisted on numerous projects. 

Madeline Frey, Undergraduate Researcher

Madeline is from Roseville, CA and completed an undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences at UC Davis in 2021. She began working in the Freshwater Ecology Lab in May 2019, sorting aquatic invertebrate samples from California streams to monitor habitat quality. Upon graduation, Madeline accepted a field technician position at the Daugphin  Island Sea Laboratory under Dr. Kelly Dorgan.

Neil Singh, Undergraduate Researcher

Neil is a wildlife enthusiast from Pennsylvania with a background in agroecology and forestry. Neil began working for the Center for Watershed Sciences in 2018 and assisted in aquatic insect identification and field work on numerous projects throughout California.  Neil graduated from UC Davis in the spring of 2019.