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
Trematodes indicate animal biodiversity in the chilean intertidal and Lake Tanganyika
Endangered light-footed clapper rail affects parasite community structure in coastal wetlands
An experimental evaluation of host specificity: The role of encounter and compatibility filters for a rhizocephalan parasite of crabs
Temperature and diet effects on omnivorous fish performance: Implications for the latitudinal diversity gradient in herbivorous fishes
Evidence for the role of infectious disease in species extinction and endangerment
Food webs and parasites in a salt marsh ecosystem
Restoration of breeding by snowy plovers following protection from disturbance
Is a healthy ecosystem one that is rich in parasites?
An efficient strategy to estimate intensity and prevalence: Sampling metacercariae in fishes
Trematodes associated with mangrove habitat in Puerto Rican salt marshes
The introduced ribbed mussel (Geukensia demissa) in Estero de Punta Banda, Mexico: Interactions with the native cord grass, Spartina foliosa
Exposing extinction risk analysis to pathogens: Is disease just another form of density dependence?
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 230
Trematodes indicate animal biodiversity in the chilean intertidal and Lake Tanganyika
Trematode communities in populations of estuarine snails can reflect surrounding animal diversity, abundance, and trophic interactions. We know less about the potential for trematodes to serve as bioindicators in other habitats. Here, we reanalyze data from 2 published studies concerning trematodes, 1 in the Chilean rocky intertidal zone and the other from the East African rift lake, Lake TanganyiAuthorsR. F. Hechinger, K. D. Lafferty, A. M. KurisEndangered light-footed clapper rail affects parasite community structure in coastal wetlands
An extinction necessarily affects community members that have obligate relationships with the extinct species. Indirect or cascading effects can lead to even broader changes at the community or ecosystem level. However, it is not clear whether generalist parasites should be affected by the extinction of one of their hosts. We tested the prediction that loss of a host species could affect the strucAuthorsKathleen L. Whitney, Ryan F. Hechinger, Armand M. Kuris, Kevin D. LaffertyAn experimental evaluation of host specificity: The role of encounter and compatibility filters for a rhizocephalan parasite of crabs
The encounter/compatibility paradigm of host specificity provides three qualitative pathways to the success or failure of a potential host-parasite interaction. It is usually impossible to distinguish between two of these (encounter and compatibility filters closed versus encounter filter open and compatibility filter closed) because unsuccessful infection attempts are difficult to observe in natuAuthorsArmand M. Kuris, Jeffrey H. R. Goddard, Mark E. Torchin, Nicole Murphy, Robert Gurney, Kevin D. LaffertyTemperature and diet effects on omnivorous fish performance: Implications for the latitudinal diversity gradient in herbivorous fishes
Herbivorous fishes show a clear latitudinal diversity gradient, making up a larger proportion of the fish species in a community in tropical waters than in temperate waters. One proposed mechanism that could drive this gradient is a physiological constraint due to temperature. One prediction based on this mechanism is that if herbivorous fishes could shift their diet to animal material, they wouldAuthorsM.D. Behrens, K. D. LaffertyEvidence for the role of infectious disease in species extinction and endangerment
Infectious disease is listed among the top five causes of global species extinctions. However, the majority of available data supporting this contention is largely anecdotal. We used the IUCN Red List of Threatened and Endangered Species and literature indexed in the ISI Web of Science to assess the role of infectious disease in global species loss. Infectious disease was listed as a contributingAuthorsKatherine F. Smith, Dov F. Sax, Kevin D. LaffertyFood webs and parasites in a salt marsh ecosystem
No abstract available at this timeAuthorsK. D. Lafferty, R. F. Hechinger, J.C. Shaw, K.L. Whitney, A. M. KurisRestoration of breeding by snowy plovers following protection from disturbance
Promoting recreation and preserving wildlife are often dual missions for land managers, yet recreation may impact wildlife. Because individual disturbances are seemingly inconsequential, it is difficult to convince the public that there is a conservation value to restricting recreation to reduce disturbance. We studied threatened western snowy plovers (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) at a publicAuthorsK. D. Lafferty, D. Goodman, C.P. SandovalIs a healthy ecosystem one that is rich in parasites?
Historically, the role of parasites in ecosystem functioning has been considered trivial because a cursory examination reveals that their relative biomass is low compared with that of other trophic groups. However there is increasing evidence that parasite-mediated effects could be significant: they shape host population dynamics, alter interspecific competition, influence energy flow and appear tAuthorsPeter J. Hudson, Andrew P. Dobson, Kevin D. LaffertyAn efficient strategy to estimate intensity and prevalence: Sampling metacercariae in fishes
Accurate estimates of population-level parameters of parasites, such as prevalence and mean intensity, require large sample sizes. The processing of such samples becomes an overwhelming task when parasites are abundant, as with trematode metacercariae in fishes. In the present study, a subsampling method reduced processing time while maintaining an accurate estimation of metacercariae prevalence aAuthorsJenny C. Shaw, Leopoldina Aguirre-Macedo, Kevin D. LaffertyTrematodes associated with mangrove habitat in Puerto Rican salt marshes
Batillaria minima is a common snail in the coastal estuaries of Puerto Rico. This snail is host to a variety of trematodes, the most common being Cercaria caribbea XXXI, a microphallid species that uses crabs as second intermediate hosts. The prevalence of infection was higher (7.1%) near mangroves than on mudflats away from man-groves (1.4%). Similarly, there was a significant positive associatioAuthorsK. D. Lafferty, R. F. Hechinger, J. Lorda, L. SolerThe introduced ribbed mussel (Geukensia demissa) in Estero de Punta Banda, Mexico: Interactions with the native cord grass, Spartina foliosa
Introduced populations of Guekensia demissa occur on the west coast of North America. They have been reported in San Francisco Bay, four southern California wetlands, and in Estero de Punta Banda (EPB), Baja California Norte, Mexico. We randomly sampled benthic invertebrates in four habitat types within EPB: marsh, channel, mudflat and pan. Geukensia demissa was the most abundant bivalve in the weAuthorsM.E. Torchin, R. F. Hechinger, T.C. Huspeni, K.L. Whitney, K. D. LaffertyExposing extinction risk analysis to pathogens: Is disease just another form of density dependence?
In the United States and several other countries, the development of population viability analyses (PVA) is a legal requirement of any species survival plan developed for threatened and endangered species. Despite the importance of pathogens in natural populations, little attention has been given to host-pathogen dynamics in PVA. To study the effect of infectious pathogens on extinction risk estimAuthorsLeah R. Gerber, Hamish McCallum, Kevin D. Lafferty, John L. Sabo, Andy Dobson - 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