Lab News

May 4, 2026

The lab is thrilled to start a busy and productive summer 2026. We have added some new undergraduate team members, Hannah Jones, Emma Bierbauer, Anna Claire Wright, and Ben Stewart (Davidson College), to help keep the machine running.

May 3, 2026

Congratulations to our recent graduate students in Fisheries who completed their degrees, including our lab’s very own Dr. Matt Gladfelter (below) and Jenifer Howell!

April 29, 2026

Pierce was recently honored with the Comer Medal for Excellence in Biological Sciences, which is one of the highest honors to an undergrad at Auburn University, before heading to the University of Alabama at Birmingham to start his PhD in microbiology. Congrats, Pierce!

More exciting news. Our paper describing counter-intuitive effects of alkalinity of copper sulfate toxicity in phytoplankton has been accepted for publication. These data highlight the importance of not overdosing copper to control algal blooms.

Mollica, A. C., M. T. Wesche, M. F. Gladfelter, M. B. McDonald, A. V. Hennessey, P. P. Johnson, K. L. Merrill, and A. E. Wilson. 2026. Higher alkalinity increases copper toxicity in phytoplankton: the importance of pH flux when treating algal blooms. Harmful Algae 156:103123.

April 20, 2026

Big news! Matt (PhD), Jenifer (MS), and Pierce (BS) are graduating this semester! Congratulations to you all.

March 9, 2026

Another pond experiment done. The WilsonLab did a great job harvesting fish. None of this would have been possible without our collaboration with Ben Beck and his awesome crew.