WilsonLab at Auburn University

 

 
 
Cyanobacterial bloom - Auburn University
 

 

Welcome to the WilsonLab at Auburn University!

My approach to research is multidimensional.  First, I use large-scale observational studies and meta-analysis of existing data from the literature to discover patterns in nature.  Then, I identify mechanisms mediating these patterns through laboratory and field-based experimentation.

As an ecologist, I am interested in aquatic plant-herbivore interactions and identifying the ecological and evolutionary consequences of intraspecific genetic and phenotypic variation on aquatic communities and ecosystems.  My current research, in part, focuses on the ecology of cyanobacterial blooms with an emphasis on understanding how biotic and abiotic factors influence cyanobacterial bloom formation. 

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News

January 2012

  • I just completed another successful trip to Purdue to hangout with Tomas Höök and his students to discuss our Lake Michigan river plume project. 

  • I was able to return to a local daycare to teach the kids about aquatic foodwebs and aquatic-terrestrial linkages.  I wish I had the kids' energy and the teachers' patience.

alan at daycare   alan at daycare

  • The lab finally got a new grad student.  Welcome to Auburn, Jo-Marie!

December 2011

  • Katie LeMay, one of our 2011 REU superstars, just learned that her Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research proposal was selected for funding.  You continue to rock, Katie!  Good job.

November 2011

  • I just returned from another fun-filled trip teaching limnology in Can Tho, Viet Nam, at Can Tho University.  This year's class of 20 students was jam-packed with field experiments and limnological sampling.

teaching limnology in can tho vietnam  teaching limnology in can tho vietnam

October 2011

  • More traveling.  I visited my buddy, Nate Dorn, during a visit to Florida Atlantic University.  Cash (little speck in middle of cows) and I got to check out the MacArthur Agro-Ecology Research Center to discuss future research projects.  I love cows!

nate dorn - field site  cash at MAERC

September 2011

  • I just got back from Natal, Brazil, where I gave a talk at the XIII Brazilian Meeting of Limnology.  Spectacular beaches and better people.  What an experience!

natal,brazil - beaches natal, brazil - mike vanni, lars-anders hansson, caralina

  • We just hired a bunch of undergrads to help out in the lab, including Sydney Stewart, Enrique Doster, Catherine Priester, and Micaela Sandoval.  Welcome to the WilsonLab.

 

August 2011

  • Sydney, Del, Michael, and I visited the Montgomery Zoo to sample their animal moats with Dr. Jack Kottwitz.  They had some beautifully green moats.  I especially enjoyed our sampling vessel (behind the sampling team in the photo below).

sydney stewart, del anderson, michael chislock, and jack kottwitz sampling montgomery zoo. montgomery zoo - giraffe enclosure moat

  • Michael and I are headed to Austin for ESA.  It is bound to be a good time.

  • Our new USGS project is open for business.  We are currently looking for collaborators at state and federal agencies and colleges and universities interested in collecting data aimed at forecasting blooms of cyanobacteria in freshwater sites throughout the Southeast.  If this opportunity interest you, please contact Alan.  Please spread the word about this project.

 

July 2011

  • Rusty Wright, Kevin Schrader, and I just heard that our USGS - National Institutes for Water Resources proposal was funded.  This project will aid in establishing a large network of academics and agency scientists aimed at forecasting algal blooms throughout the Southeast.  Thank you, USGS!

  • Sam Logan's meta-analysis on child motor skill development just got accepted for publication.  Great job, Sam.  Logan, S. W., L. E. Robinson, A. E. Wilson, and W. A. Lucas  2011.  Getting the fundamentals of movement: A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of motor skill interventions in young children as assessed by the test of gross motor development.  Child: Care, Health & Development. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2214.2011.01307.x (PDF)

 

June 2011

  • Michael just got the call about his EPA STAR graduate research fellowship proposal.  EPA will be supporting Michael with gobs of money for the next three years to continue studying Daphnia-cyanobacteria interactions.  You rock on, Michael!!

  • Peter Essick from National Geographic magazine visited our lab to capture pictures for a story on the effects of excess nitrogen fertilization.

Peter Essick from National Geographic with Michael Chislock, Vernon Anderson, and Katie LeMay  Peter Essick from National Geographic with Vernon Anderson and Katie LeMay

 

May 2011

  • The 2011 NSF REU Site in Warm-water aquatic ecology is finally open for business.  Welcome to Auburn!

2011 REU students

  • Our paper describing huge intraspecific variation in grazing vulnerability for a bunch of Microcystis aeruginosa clones is headed for print - White, J. D., R. B. Kaul, L. B. Knoll, A. E. Wilson, and O. Sarnelle. 2011. Large variation in vulnerability to grazing within a population of the colonial phytoplankter, Microcystis aeruginosaLimnology and Oceanography 56(5):1714-1724 (PDF)

  • Using the outreach skills I learned working with Dr. Nalini Nadkarni, I recently gave an aquatic ecology talk to kids at a local daycare.  Sadly, I learned that earthworms are much cooler than Daphnia.

daycare talk - babies  daycare talk - 2 year olds

 daycare talk - 2 year olds  daycare talk - 2 year olds

 

April 2011

  • One of our undergrads, Del Anderson, has been awarded an AU undergraduate research fellowship.  This $6,000 award will support Del's research for the next school year.  Way to go, Del!

  • I just got back from Olympia, Washington, where I hung out with Dr. Nalini Nadkarni and her students to learn how to share my lab's research with diverse groups including children (see below), moviegoers, and prisoners through Nalini's NSF-funded Research Ambassador Program

outreach training wth nalini nadkarni at daycare  outreach training wth nalini nadkarni at daycare

  • Lauren Jernigan has been accepted into AU vet school for the 2011-2012 school year.  Congratulations, Lauren!

  • Michael Chislock has been honored as an AU Outstanding Master's Student for 2010-2011 by the AU Graduate School.  This is awesome news, Michael.  Congratulations!

 

March 2011

  • Our data from Lago de Patzcuaro just got accepted for publication - Berry, J. P., E. Lee, K. Walton, A. E. Wilson, and F. Bernal-Brooks. 2011. Microcystin production by a persistent cyanobacterial bloom in Lago de Patzcuaro (Michoacan, Mexico), and apparent bioaccumulation of the toxin in small commercial catches of fish. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 30(7):1621-1628. (PDF)

  • Auburn University showcased our lab through its new Take 5 outreach campaign.  Check out the story and photos!

  • Michael Chislock has been awarded another grant, this time for $500, from Auburn University to attend ASLO's 2011 winter meeting in Puerto Rico.  More great news!

 

February 2011

  • Michael Chislock has been awarded a $250 from the AU College of Sciences and Mathematics to attend ASLO's 2011 winter meeting in Puerto Rico.  Awesome!

  • During the ASLO meeting, Michael Chislock and I had the opportunity to sample some Puerto Rican reservoirs and wetlands with our friends, Drs. Stefanie Whitmire, Gustavo Martinez, and David Sotomayor. 

sampling with Gustavo Martinez, David Sotomayor, Alan Wilson, and Michael Chislock sampling with Stefanie Whitmire and Michael Chislock

 

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Recent papers

  • Logan, S. W., L. E. Robinson, A. E. Wilson, and W. A. Lucas  2011.  Getting the fundamentals of movement: A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of motor skill interventions in young children as assessed by the test of gross motor development.  Child: Care, Health & Development. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2214.2011.01307.x (PDF) 

  • White, J. D., R. B. Kaul, L. B. Knoll, A. E. Wilson, and O. Sarnelle. 2011. Large variation in vulnerability to grazing within a population of the colonial phytoplankter, Microcystis aeruginosaLimnology and Oceanography 56(5):1714-1724 (PDF)

  • Berry, J. P., E. Lee, K. Walton, A. E. Wilson, and F. Bernal-Brooks. 2011. Microcystin production by a persistent cyanobacterial bloom in Lago de Patzcuaro (Michoacan, Mexico), and apparent bioaccumulation of the toxin in small commercial catches of fish. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 30(7):1621-1628. (PDF)

  • Wilson, A. E., R. B. Kaul, and O. Sarnelle. 2010. Growth rate consequences of coloniality in a harmful phytoplankter. PLoS ONE 5(1):e8679. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0008679 (PDF)

  • Sarnelle, O. and A. E. Wilson. 2008 Type III functional response in Daphnia. Ecology 89(6):1723-1732. (PDF)

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Links

 

Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures, 203 Swingle Hall, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849

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