Meghan Duffy, Assistant Professor
Ph.D.; Zoology and Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior; Michigan State University and W.K. Kellogg Biological Station
Phone: 404-894-8426
Fax: 404-894-0519
Office: (CE) A124
Research Interests
Evolutionary ecology; community ecology; aquatic ecology; disease ecology; host-parasite interactions; rapid evolution and its effects on ecological dynamics; Daphnia
Overview
Why do parasite epidemics begin? Why do they end? And what are their effects on host populations and food webs? I use a combination of experimental, observational, and theoretical approaches to study the causes and consequences of parasitism in nature. In particular, my research has focused on 1) the effects of selective predation on host-parasite interactions, 2) the effects of parasites on host populations and food webs, and 3) feedbacks between ecological and evolutionary processes in disease dynamics.
For more information on current research in the Duffy Lab, please follow the link to the Duffy Lab webpage.
Recent Publications
[Complete list of publications]
Duffy, M.A. 2007. Selective predation, parasitism, and trophic cascades in a bluegill-Daphnia-parasite system. Oecologia, in press.
Hall, S.R., L. Sivars-Becker, C. Becker, M.A. Duffy, A.J. Tessier and C.E. Cáceres. 2007. Eating yourself sick: transmission of disease as a function of feeding biology of hosts. Ecology Letters 10(3):207-218.
Duffy, M.A. and L. Sivars-Becker. 2007. Rapid evolution and ecological host-parasite dynamics. Ecology Letters 10(1):44-53.
Hall, S.R., A.J. Tessier, M.A. Duffy, M. Huebner and C.E. Cáceres. 2006. Warmer does not have to mean sicker: Temperature and predators can jointly drive timing of epidemics. Ecology 87(7):1684-1695.
Cáceres, C.E., S.R. Hall, M.A. Duffy, A.J. Tessier, C. Helmle and S. MacIntyre. 2006. Physical structure of lakes constrains epidemics in Daphnia populations. Ecology 87(6):1438-1444.