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
Parasites affect food web structure primarily through increased diversity and complexity
Biodiversity and disease: a synthesis of ecological perspectives on Lyme disease transmission.
Predicting what helminth parasites a fish species should have using Parasite Co-occurrence Modeler (PaCo)
Host range, host ecology, and distribution of more than 11800 fish parasite species
Parasites in marine food webs
High prevalence of cestodes in Artemia spp. throughout the annual cycle: relationship with abundance of avian final hosts
A multi-decade time series of kelp forest community structure at San Nicolas Island, California
Managing bay and estuarine ecosystems for multiple services
Optimal temperature for malaria transmission is dramaticallylower than previously predicted
Novel foraging in the swash zone on Pacific sand crabs (Emerita analoga, Hippidae) by mallards
Comparing mechanisms of host manipulation across host and parasite taxa
Variable intertidal temperature explains why disease endangers black abalone
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 230
Parasites affect food web structure primarily through increased diversity and complexity
Comparative research on food web structure has revealed generalities in trophic organization, produced simple models, and allowed assessment of robustness to species loss. These studies have mostly focused on free-living species. Recent research has suggested that inclusion of parasites alters structure. We assess whether such changes in network structure result from unique roles and traits of parAuthorsJennifer A. Dunne, Kevin D. Lafferty, Andrew P. Dobson, Ryan F. Hechinger, Armand M. Kuris, Neo D. Martinez, John P. McLaughlin, Kim N. Mouritsen, Robert Poulin, Karsten Reise, Daniel B. Stouffer, David W. Thieltges, Richard J. Williams, Claus Dieter ZanderBiodiversity and disease: a synthesis of ecological perspectives on Lyme disease transmission.
Recent reviews have argued that disease control is among the ecosystem services yielded by biodiversity. Lyme disease (LD) is commonly cited as the best example of the ‘diluting’ effect of biodiversity on disease transmission, but many studies document the opposite relationship, showing that human LD risk can increase with forestation. Here, we unify these divergent perspectives and find strong evAuthorsChelsea L. Wood, Kevin D. LaffertyPredicting what helminth parasites a fish species should have using Parasite Co-occurrence Modeler (PaCo)
Fish pathologists are often interested in which parasites would likely be present in a particular host. Parasite Co-occurrence Modeler (PaCo) is a tool for identifying a list of parasites known from fish species that are similar ecologically, phylogenetically, and geographically to the host of interest. PaCo uses data from FishBase (maximum length, growth rate, life span, age at maturity, trophicAuthorsGiovanni Strona, Kevin D. LaffertyHost range, host ecology, and distribution of more than 11800 fish parasite species
Our data set includes 38 008 fish parasite records (for Acanthocephala, Cestoda, Monogenea, Nematoda, Trematoda) compiled from the scientific literature, Internet databases, and museum collections paired to the corresponding host ecological, biogeographical, and phylogenetic traits (maximum length, growth rate, life span, age at maturity, trophic level, habitat preference, geographical range size,AuthorsGiovanni Strona, Maria Lourdes D. Palomares, Nicholas Bailly, Paolo Galli, Kevin D. LaffertyParasites in marine food webs
Most species interactions probably involve parasites. This review considers the extent to which marine ecologists should consider parasites to fully understand marine communities. Parasites are influential parts of food webs in estuaries, temperate reefs, and coral reefs, but their ecological importance is seldom recognized. Though difficult to observe, parasites can have substantial biomass, andAuthorsKevin D. LaffertyHigh prevalence of cestodes in Artemia spp. throughout the annual cycle: relationship with abundance of avian final hosts
Brine shrimp, Artemia spp., act as intermediate hosts for a range of cestode species that use waterbirds as their final hosts. These parasites can have marked influences on shrimp behavior and fecundity, generating the potential for cascading effects in hypersaline food webs. We present the first comprehensive study of the temporal dynamics of cestode parasites in natural populations of brine shriAuthorsMarta I. Sánchez, Pavel N. Nikolov, Darina D. GEorgieva, Boyko B. Georgiev, Gergana P. Vasileva, Plamen Pankov, Mariano Paracuellos, Kevin D. Lafferty, Andy J. GreenA multi-decade time series of kelp forest community structure at San Nicolas Island, California
San Nicolas Island is surrounded by broad areas of shallow subtidal habitat, characterized by dynamic kelp forest communities that undergo dramatic and abrupt shifts in community composition. Although these reefs are fished, the physical isolation of the island means that they receive less impact from human activities than most reefs in Southern California, making San Nicolas an ideal place to evaAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, Michael C. Kenner, James A. Estes, M. Tim Tinker, James L. Bodkin, Robert K. Cowen, Christopher Harrold, Mark Novak, Andrew Rassweiler, Daniel C. ReedManaging bay and estuarine ecosystems for multiple services
Managers are moving from a model of managing individual sectors, human activities, or ecosystem services to an ecosystem-based management (EBM) approach which attempts to balance the range of services provided by ecosystems. Applying EBM is often difficult due to inherent tradeoffs in managing for different services. This challenge particularly holds for estuarine systems, which have been heavilyAuthorsLisa A. Needles, Sarah E. Lester, Richard Ambrose, Anders Andren, Marc Beyeler, Michael S. Connor, James E. Eckman, Barry A. Costa-Pierce, Steven D. Gaines, Kevin D. Lafferty, Junter S. Lenihan, Julia Parrish, Mark S. Peterson, Amy E. Scaroni, Judith S. Weis, Dean E. WendtOptimal temperature for malaria transmission is dramaticallylower than previously predicted
The ecology of mosquito vectors and malaria parasites affect the incidence, seasonal transmission and geographical range of malaria. Most malaria models to date assume constant or linear responses of mosquito and parasite life-history traits to temperature, predicting optimal transmission at 31 °C. These models are at odds with field observations of transmission dating back nearly a century. We buAuthorsEerin A. Mordecai, Krijin P. Paaijmans, Leah R. Johnson, Christian Balzer, Tal Ben-Horin, Emily de Moor, Amy McNally, Samraat Pawar, Sadie J. Ryan, Thomas C. Smith, Kevin D. LaffertyNovel foraging in the swash zone on Pacific sand crabs (Emerita analoga, Hippidae) by mallards
Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) have been observed foraging on intertidal Pacific sand crabs (Hippidae, Emerita analoga) in the swash zone of sandy beaches around Coal Oil Point Reserve, California, and several other beaches on the west coast since at least November 2010. Unlike foraging shorebirds, Mallards do not avoid incoming swashes. Instead, the incoming swash lifts and deposits them down theAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, John P. McLaughlin, Jenifer E. DuganComparing mechanisms of host manipulation across host and parasite taxa
Parasites affect host behavior in several ways. They can alter activity, microhabitats or both. For trophically transmitted parasites (the focus of our study), decreased activity might impair the ability of hosts to respond to final-host predators, and increased activity and altered microhabitat choice might increase contact rates between hosts and final-host predators. In an analysis of trophicalAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, Jenny C. ShawVariable intertidal temperature explains why disease endangers black abalone
Epidemiological theory suggests that pathogens will not cause host extinctions because agents of disease should fade out when the host population is driven below a threshold density. Nevertheless, infectious diseases have threatened species with extinction on local scales by maintaining high incidence and the ability to spread efficiently even as host populations decline. Intertidal black abaloneAuthorsTal Ben-Horin, Hunter S. Lenihan, Kevin 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