CIFEES - Other Information

Fish and
Wildlife Resources
University of Idaho
Moscow, ID 83844-1136

Office Phone:
(208) 885-5171
Office Fax:
(208) 885-9080
E-mail:
kennedy@uidaho.edu

Welcome

Through interdisciplinary research, productive collaborations and innovative approaches, our Lab for Integrative Fish Ecology and Ecosystem Studies seeks a better understanding of ecological processes within the fields of fish and aquatic sciences. All of the projects with which we are currently involved attempt to understand mechanisms that control the population dynamics of fish and how these factors driving population dynamics are ultimately related to the creation and maintenance of biodiversity of species and life history strategies in aquatic systems. The mechanistic processes that interest us run the range of spatial, temporal and ecological scales. Research in our lab addresses the causes and consequences of geomorphic variability and hydrologic alteration on salmonid migratory decisions; the relative effects of interspecific interactions, food web structure and habitat availability on the growth, energetics and survival of fish; and the impacts that metals in the environment have on the fish physiology and population dynamics. Lastly, we have a fundamental interest in the ways in which human behaviors, policies and decisions influence natural processes in aquatic systems.

Brian Kennedy

Ph.D. (2000)
Ecology and
Evolutionary Biology,
Dartmouth College,
Hanover, NH

B.S. (1991)
Biological Sciences,
Colgate University,
Hamilton, NY

Brian P. Kennedy, Ph.D.

I am an associate professor of fisheries and aquatic sciences in the College of Natural Resources. I received my undergraduate degree in biological sciences from Colgate University and a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology from Dartmouth College. After finishing my dissertation work on the foraging ecology and bioenergetics of Atlantic salmon, I worked as a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Michigan, where I developed approaches for reconstructing the behavior, migration and environmental history of fish using the geochemical information stored in fish otoliths. I joined the faculty at the University of Idaho in 2005. My research and scientific interests incorporate many aspects of aquatic and fish ecology. I ask questions about food web and community interactions in streams, the relationship between habitat availability and fish performance, and the consequences of life history variability for population structure. My work on the microchemistry of fish otoliths has resulted in international interest and collaboration. We are working on a number of projects that use otolith chemistry to reconstruct life history, assess hydrologic impacts on migration and distinguish populations.