I am interested in fish behavior as well as how contaminants can influence and impact the behavior of fish as well as entire aquatic ecosystems. My current research is focused on how the presence of biological stressors, such as predatory or alarm cues, can increase the sensitivity of an animal to a contaminant. There have been many studies to date on how contaminants change behavior, but very few to indicate how the presence of naturally occuring stressors can inherently make an organism more sensitive to a contaminant.

This study is performed in the lab using acute toxicological tests on fathead minnows, Pimephales promelas, or the invertebrate, Daphnia pulex , which incorporate pheromones from predators and/or alarm cue kairomones as biological stressors. Most current toxicological tests are performed using a single, laboratory-raised species and either a single chemical or a mixture of chemicals in laboratory created water. There is currently no protocol that requires biological stressors be added to tests, thus, the results of my research could eventually indicate a need to further assess the true impact of contaminants on organisms in receiving aquatic ecosystems.