Kevin Lafferty
Dr. Keving Lafferty is a Senior Ecologist with the Western Ecological Research Center.
His main interest lies in how parasites affect ecosystems and, in turn, how ecosystems affect parasites. He is also involved in research on the conservation of marine resources, investigating strategies for protecting endangered shorebirds, fish and abalone. He has also assessed the effects of marine reserves.
Dr. Lafferty received his Ph. D. in Ecological Parasitology in 1991 at University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) and took a post doc with the National Marine Sanctuary and a research position at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is presently a Marine Ecologist for the USGS at the Channel Islands Field Station. As a UCSB adjunct faculty member, the university's Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology generously provides for Dr. Lafferty's office and laboratory space in the Marine Lab. He advises graduate students in Marine Ecology, but has no formal teaching assignments.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- Conservation biology
- Invasive species ecology
- Nearshore marine ecology
- Parasite ecology
- Wetland ecology
Professional Experience
Marine Ecologist, USGS, Western Ecological Science Center, Jul 1998-Present
Assistant Adj. Prof., UCSB, Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, Jul 1998-Present
Assist. Research Biologist, UCSB Marine Science Institute, Jun 1996-Jul 1998
Assist. Research Biologist, UCLA, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Jun 1994-Jul 1998
Assist. Research Biologist, UCSB, Marine Science Institute, Jan 1993-May 1994
Post Doctoral Researcher, National Marine Sanctuaries Program, Jan 1992-Dec 1992
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Ecology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 1991
M.A., Zoology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 1988
B.A., Aquatic Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 1985
Affiliations and Memberships*
Amercian Society of Parasitologists
American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists
California Botanical Society
Ecological Society of America
Ecological Society of America
Natural Areas Association
Western Society of Naturalists
Science and Products
The inverse niche model for food webs with parasites
Ecology of the brain trematode Euhaplorchis californiensis and its host, the California Killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis)
Decadal trends in marine reserves reveal differential rates of change in direct and indirect effects
Stomach nematodes (Mastophorus Muris) in rats (Rattus rattus) are associated with coconut (Cocos nucifera) Habitat at palmyra atoll
Fishing out marine parasites? Impacts of fishing on rates of parasitism in the ocean
Stochastic ecological network occupancy (SENO) models: a new tool for modeling ecological networks across spatial scales
Parasitic castration: the evolution and ecology of body snatchers
Parasites reduce food web robustness because they are sensitive to secondary extinction as illustrated by an invasive estuarine snail
The ecology of climate change and infectious diseases
Food web topology and parasites in the pelagic zone of a subarctic lake
Parasite manipulation of brain monoamines in California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis) by the trematode Euhaplorchis californiensis
Calling for an ecological approach to studying climate change and infectious diseases
Science and Products
- Science
- Data
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- Publications
Filter Total Items: 229
The inverse niche model for food webs with parasites
Although parasites represent an important component of ecosystems, few field and theoretical studies have addressed the structure of parasites in food webs. We evaluate the structure of parasitic links in an extensive salt marsh food web, with a new model distinguishing parasitic links from non-parasitic links among free-living species. The proposed model is an extension of the niche model for fooAuthorsChristopher P. Warren, Mercedes Pascual, Kevin D. Lafferty, Armand M. KurisEcology of the brain trematode Euhaplorchis californiensis and its host, the California Killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis)
We describe the distribution and abundance of the brain-encysting trematode Euhaplorchis californiensis and its second intermediate host, the California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis), in 3 estuaries in southern California and Baja California. We quantified the density of fish and metacercariae at 13–14 sites per estuary and dissected 375 killifish. Density (numbers and biomass) was examined atAuthorsJ.C. Shaw, R.F. Hechinger, Kevin D. Lafferty, Armand M. KurisDecadal trends in marine reserves reveal differential rates of change in direct and indirect effects
Decadal-scale observations of marine reserves suggest that indirect effects on taxa that occur through cascading trophic interactions take longer to develop than direct effects on target species. Combining and analyzing a unique set of long-term time series of ecologic data in and out of fisheries closures from disparate regions, we found that the time to initial detection of direct effects on tarAuthorsR.C. Babcock, N.T. Shears, A.C. Alcala, N.S. Barrett, G.J. Edgar, K. D. Lafferty, T.R. McClanahan, G.R. RussStomach nematodes (Mastophorus Muris) in rats (Rattus rattus) are associated with coconut (Cocos nucifera) Habitat at palmyra atoll
Black rats (Rattus rattus) and their stomach nematodes (Mastophorus muris) were historically introduced to islets at Palmyra Atoll in the central Pacific Line Islands. To investigate patterns of parasitism, we trapped rats and quantified nematodes on 13 islets of various sizes and habitat types. Most rats were parasitized (59) with an average of 12 worms per infected rat. Islet size did not greatlAuthorsK. D. Lafferty, S.A. Hathaway, A.S. Wegmann, F.S. Shipley, A.R. Backlin, J. Helm, Robert N. FisherFishing out marine parasites? Impacts of fishing on rates of parasitism in the ocean
Among anthropogenic effects on the ocean, fishing is one of the most pervasive and extends deepest into the past. Because fishing reduces the density of fish (reducing transmission efficiency of directly transmitted parasites), selectively removes large fish (which tend to carry more parasites than small fish), and reduces food web complexity (reducing transmission efficiency of trophically transmAuthorsChelsea L. Wood, Kevin D. Lafferty, Fiorenza MicheliStochastic ecological network occupancy (SENO) models: a new tool for modeling ecological networks across spatial scales
Stochastic ecological network occupancy (SENO) models predict the probability that species will occur in a sample of an ecological network. In this review, we introduce SENO models as a means to fill a gap in the theoretical toolkit of ecologists. As input, SENO models use a topological interaction network and rates of colonization and extinction (including consumer effects) for each species. A SEAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, Jennifer A. DunneParasitic castration: the evolution and ecology of body snatchers
Castration is a response to the tradeoff between consumption and longevity faced by parasites. Common parasitic castrators include larval trematodes in snails, and isopod and barnacle parasites of crustaceans. The infected host (with its many unique properties) is the extended phenotype of the parasitic castrator. Because an individual parasitic castrator can usurp all the reproductive energy fromAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, Armand M. KurisParasites reduce food web robustness because they are sensitive to secondary extinction as illustrated by an invasive estuarine snail
A robust food web is one in which few secondary extinctions occur after removing species. We investigated how parasites affected the robustness of the Carpinteria Salt Marsh food web by conducting random species removals and a hypothetical, but plausible, species invasion. Parasites were much more likely than free-living species to suffer secondary extinctions following the removal of a free-livinAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, Armand M. KurisThe ecology of climate change and infectious diseases
The projected global increase in the distribution and prevalence of infectious diseases with climate change suggests a pending societal crisis. The subject is increasingly attracting the attention of health professionals and climate-change scientists, particularly with respect to malaria and other vector-transmitted human diseases. The result has been the emergence of a crisis discipline, reminiscAuthorsKevin D. LaffertyFood web topology and parasites in the pelagic zone of a subarctic lake
Parasites permeate trophic webs with their often complex life cycles, but few studies have included parasitism in food web analyses. Here we provide a highly resolved food web from the pelagic zone of a subarctic lake and explore how the incorporation of parasites alters the topology of the web. 2. Parasites used hosts at all trophic levels and increased both food-chain lengths and the total numbeAuthorsPer-Arne Amundsen, K. D. Lafferty, R. Knudsen, R. Primicerio, A. Klemetsen, A. M. KurisParasite manipulation of brain monoamines in California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis) by the trematode Euhaplorchis californiensis
California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis) infected with the brain-encysting trematode Euhaplorchis californiensis display conspicuous swimming behaviours rendering them more susceptible to predation by avian final hosts. Heavily infected killifish grow and reproduce normally, despite having thousands of cysts inside their braincases. This suggests that E. californiensis affects only specific locAuthorsJ.C. Shaw, W.J. Korzan, R.E. Carpenter, A. M. Kuris, K. D. Lafferty, C.H. Summers, O. OverliCalling for an ecological approach to studying climate change and infectious diseases
My Concepts and Synthesis paper (Lafferty 2009),which inspired this Forum, echoed the premise that earlyreviews about climate change exaggerated claims thatinfectious diseases will increase in the future (Randolph2009). The paper sparked five well-reasoned commen-taries from ecologists with considerable expertise ininfectious diseases (Dobson 2009, Harvell et al. 2009,Ostfeld 2009, Pascual and BoumAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty - News
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government