
WilsonLab
Aquatic Ecology – Water Quality – Drinking Water
Aquaculture – Harmful Algal Blooms – Limnology
Studying ecological factors influencing cyanobacterial bloom formation in recreational reservoirs, aquaculture ponds, and other systems along with studying factors leading to taste, odor, and toxicity issues in drinking water reservoirs.
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Current PhD & MS Students
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Past PhD & MS Students
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Current Undergrad Researchers
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Past Undergrad Researchers
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Lab Publications
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Historic Grant Funding (Millions)
Latest News
August 28, 2023
Ansley’s second MS chapter has been published and she just finished her MS degree in May 2023. Amazing!
July 28, 2023
Congratulations to Hannah Zinnert (on right) for completing her M.S.! First of my graduate students to get all of their chapters submitted to a journal before graduating! New high bar for the lab!

June 16, 2023
Alan had a wonderful time at ASLO in Spain. Beautiful place and excellent food. Plus I was able to see graduated (Edna!) and incoming (Gabriela!) students. The HABs session was excellent. Lots of great talks. I presented Saranya’s meta-analysis in front of a huge screen.

May 9, 2023
One of our remote high school researchers, Rebecca Chen, reported back that her algacide experiment project took home the 2nd place trophy in the Environmental category at the Connecticut STEM Science Fair. Good work, Rebecca.
May 6, 2023
Three of our super-star undergraduate researchers have graduated. We will miss you, Isabel, Rachel, and Evan.
April 11, 2023
Excited to report that my past PhD student, Dr. Edna Fernandez-Figueroa, just accepted a tenure track assistant professor position at the University of Tampa. She was also selected as the recipient for the COSAM Dean’s Research Award for a Postdoctoral Scientists in 2023! Congrats, Edna!

April 6, 2023
Saranya was awarded the Best Student Oral Presentation Award at the World Aquaculture Society meeting in New Orleans. This is an amazing achievement for a high school student giving her first presentation at an international scientific conference. Great job, Saranya!

We are looking for a postdoc!
Learn more about the position at the Auburn University HR portal.
We are also looking for new Ph.D. or M.S. students to join us in 2024!
Interested prospective students are encouraged to contact Alan at wilson@auburn.edu Learn more about these openings here!
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About the Lab
Our approach to research is multidimensional. First, we use large-scale observational studies and meta-analysis of existing data from the literature to discover patterns in nature. Then, we identify mechanisms mediating these patterns through laboratory and field-based experimentation.
As a community ecologist, I am generally interested in consumer-prey interactions and identifying the ecological and evolutionary consequences of intraspecific genetic and phenotypic variation on aquatic communities and ecosystems. My current research focuses on the ecology of cyanobacterial blooms with an emphasis on understanding how biotic and abiotic factors influence cyanobacterial bloom formation in a variety of systems including recreational reservoirs and aquaculture ponds. In tandem with our harmful algal bloom research, the lab is also studying the factors leading to taste, odor, and toxicity issues in drinking water reservoirs.
Want to Join the Lab?

I am always looking for hard-working, honest, and self-motivated graduate and undergraduate students to join our group. I encourage individual thinking, so it is not critical that we share identical research interests. But, it is important that you are fascinated by science and want to explore how the natural world works. Please email me your resume, transcripts, GRE scores (if applicable), research interests, and contact information for three references and we will try to find a spot for you in the lab.
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