program overview
Thank you for your interest in the REU Site: Warm-water aquatic ecology at Auburn University. We have already selected our 2012 REU students (see list below). Students interested in participating in the program during the summer of 2013 should consider following our progress here and via Facebook. We will begin recruiting again this Fall for summer 2013.
2012 REU students
Evelyn Boardman - Univ of Vermont
Enrique Doster - Auburn Univ
Kaitlin Driscoll - Eastern Washington Univ
Kellie Fredette - Stetson Univ
Ryan Jiorle - William and Mary
Kevin Koenders - Univ of Rochester
Shirley Liao - Duke Univ
Alex Neal - Univ of Dayton
Trevor Starks - Kansas State Univ
Rachel Zitomer - Humboldt State Univ
Program Description
Having access to safe and abundant potable water is quickly becoming one of the most important global environmental issues. Some models predict that 40% of the world's population will suffer water shortages by 2025 due to several mechanisms, such as climate change, species invasions, and eutrophication. These issues have been especially challenging in the southeastern U.S. given the on-going explosive population growth and prolonged drought throughout the region. Unfortunately, less emphasis has been placed on the study of warm-water ecology (in contrast to ecological research in cooler, more temperate regions), thus creating a significant need for broadly-trained scientists capable of exploring complex, context-dependent natural and anthropogenic processes threatening water resources in warm regions of the world.
This REU Site is a novel, collaborative effort involving Auburn University faculty mentors specializing in diverse but complementary disciplines, including community ecology, fisheries management, aquaculture, evolution, limnology, molecular biology, microbiology, invasive species, fish behavior, outreach, physiology, parasitology, and conservation. Together these disciplines provide the education basis for undergraduate students to learn about techniques and tools to study aquatic communities, specifically warm-water systems such as reservoirs, farm ponds, streams, and brackish estuaries. The primary objectives of this project include exposing participants to different scientific hypotheses, research techniques, and ecological habitats and conditions in an engaging, interdisciplinary atmosphere that fosters a strong interest in aquatic sciences by the next generation of water experts.
2011 REU students
Vernon Anderson - Auburn University
Katie LeMay - Univ of West Alabama
Aiden Simpson - Clarion Univ
Michael Moore - Univ of Missouri - Columbia
Michael Andrews - Univ of South Carolina
Courtney Ellison - Univ of Georgia
Harlan Gough - Western Washington Univ
Kristen Carlisle - Jacksonville State Univ
Kate Kohlenberg - Univ of Alabama - Birmingham
Anthony Burger - Denison Univ
Andrew Stump - Eastern Kentucky Univ
Please help us advertise and please post flyers for the REU Site around your institution (download flyer here).
