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
Infectious diseases affect marine fisheries and aquaculture economics
Densovirus associated with sea-star wasting disease and mass mortality
Sapronosis: a distinctive type of infectious agent
How have fisheries affected parasite communities?
A lack of crowding? Body size does not decrease with density for two behavior-manipulating parasites
Sea otters are recolonizing southern California in fits and starts
Abalone farm discharges the withering syndrome pathogen into the wild
The role of infectious disease in marine communities
Biodiversity loss and infectious diseases
Reduced disease in black abalone following mass mortality: Phage therapy and natural selection
How to predict community responses to perturbations in the face of imperfect knowledge and network complexity
Parasites as prey in aquatic food webs: implications for predator infection and parasite transmission
Science and Products
- Science
- Data
- Multimedia
- Publications
Filter Total Items: 230
Infectious diseases affect marine fisheries and aquaculture economics
Seafood is a growing part of the economy, but its economic value is diminished by marine diseases. Infectious diseases are common in the ocean, and here we tabulate 67 examples that can reduce commercial species' growth and survivorship or decrease seafood quality. These impacts seem most problematic in the stressful and crowded conditions of aquaculture, which increasingly dominates seafood produAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, C. Drew Harvell, Jonathan M. Conrad, Carolyn S. Friedman, Michael L. Kent, Armand M. Kuris, Eric N. Powell, Daniel Rondeau, Sonja M. SaksidaDensovirus associated with sea-star wasting disease and mass mortality
Populations of at least 20 asteroid species on the Northeast Pacific Coast have recently experienced an extensive outbreak of sea-star (asteroid) wasting disease (SSWD). The disease leads to behavioral changes, lesions, loss of turgor, limb autotomy, and death characterized by rapid degradation (“melting”). Here, we present evidence from experimental challenge studies and field observations that lAuthorsIan Hewson, Jason B. Button, Brent M. Gudenkauf, Benjamin Miner, Alisa L. Newton, Joseph K. Gaydos, Janna Wynne, Cathy L. Groves, Gordon Hendler, Michael Murray, Steven Fradkin, Mya Breitbart, Elizabeth Fahsbender, Kevin D. Lafferty, A. Marm Kilpatrick, C. Melissa Miner, Peter T. Raimondi, Lesanna L. Lahner, Carolyn S. Friedman, Stephen D. Danielson, Martin Haulena, Jeffrey Marliave, Colleen A. Burge, Morgan E. Eisenlord, C. Drew HarvellSapronosis: a distinctive type of infectious agent
Sapronotic disease agents have evolutionary and epidemiological properties unlike other infectious organisms. Their essential saprophagic existence prevents coevolution, and no host–parasite virulence trade-off can evolve. However, the host may evolve defenses. Models of pathogens show that sapronoses, lacking a threshold of transmission, cannot regulate host populations, although they can reduceAuthorsArmand M. Kuris, Kevin D. Lafferty, Susanne H. SokolowHow have fisheries affected parasite communities?
To understand how fisheries affect parasites, we conducted a meta-analysis of studies that contrasted parasite assemblages in fished and unfished areas. Parasite diversity was lower in hosts from fished areas. Larger hosts had a greater abundance of parasites, suggesting that fishing might reduce the abundance of parasites by selectively removing the largest, most heavily parasitized individuals.AuthorsChelsea L. Wood, Kevin D. LaffertyA lack of crowding? Body size does not decrease with density for two behavior-manipulating parasites
For trophically transmitted parasites that manipulate the phenotype of their hosts, whether the parasites do or do not experience resource competition depends on such factors as the size of the parasites relative to their hosts, the intensity of infection, the extent to which parasites share the cost of defending against the host’s immune system or manipulating their host, and the extent to whichAuthorsKL Weinersmith, Chloe B. Warinner, Virgina Tan, David J. Harris, Adrienne B. Mora, Armand M. Kuris, Kevin D. Lafferty, Ryan F. HechingerSea otters are recolonizing southern California in fits and starts
After near extinction as a result of the fur trade in the 1700s and 1800s, the southern sea otter slowly reoccupied the core of its range in central California. Range expansion beyond central California is seen as key to full recovery of otters, but the rate of expansion has been sporadic, raising concerns about habitat quality in southern California. To describe the range expansion of sea ottersAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, M. Tim TinkerAbalone farm discharges the withering syndrome pathogen into the wild
An intracellular bacterium Candidatus Xenohaliotis californiensis, also called Withering-Syndrome Rickettsia-Like Organism (WS-RLO), is the cause of mass mortalities that are the chief reason for endangerment of black abalone (Haliotis cracherodii). Using a real-time PCR assay, we found that a shore-based abalone farm (AF) in Santa Barbara, CA, USA discharged WS-RLO DNA into the ocean. Several othAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, Tal Ben-HorinThe role of infectious disease in marine communities
Marine ecologists recognize that infectious diseases play and important role in ocean ecosystems. This role may have increased in some host taxa over time (Ward and Lafferty 2004). We begin this chapter by introducing infectious agents and their relationships with their hosts in marine systems. We then put infectious disease agents with their hosts in marine systems. We then put infectious diseaseAuthorsKevin D. Lafferty, C. Drew HarvellBiodiversity loss and infectious diseases
When conservation biologists think about infectious diseases, their thoughts are mostly negative. Infectious diseases have been associated with the extinction and endangerment of some species, though this is rare, and other factors like habitat loss and poorly regulated harvest still are the overwhelming drivers of endangerment. Parasites are pervasive and play important roles as natural enemies oAuthorsKevin D. LaffertyReduced disease in black abalone following mass mortality: Phage therapy and natural selection
Black abalone, Haliotis cracherodii, populations along the NE Pacific ocean have declined due to the rickettsial disease withering syndrome (WS). Natural recovery on San Nicolas Island (SNI) of Southern California suggested the development of resistance in island populations. Experimental challenges in one treatment demonstrated that progeny of disease-selected black abalone from SNI survived bettAuthorsGlenn R. VanBlaricomHow to predict community responses to perturbations in the face of imperfect knowledge and network complexity
Recent attempts to predict the response of large food webs to perturbations have revealed that in larger systems increasingly precise information on the elements of the system is required. Thus, the effort needed for good predictions grows quickly with the system's complexity. Here, we show that not all elements need to be measured equally well, suggesting that a more efficient allocation of efforAuthorsHelge Aufderheide, Lars Rudolf, Thilo Gross, Kevin D. LaffertyParasites as prey in aquatic food webs: implications for predator infection and parasite transmission
While the recent inclusion of parasites into food-web studies has highlighted the role of parasites as consumers, there is accumulating evidence that parasites can also serve as prey for predators. Here we investigated empirical patterns of predation on parasites and their relationships with parasite transmission in eight topological food webs representing marine and freshwater ecosystems. WithinAuthorsDavid W. Thieltges, Per-Arne Amundsen, Ryan F. Hechinger, Pieter T.J. Johnson, Levin D. Lafferty, Kim N. Mouritsen, Daniel L. Preston, Karsten Reise, C. Dieter Zander, Robert Poulin - 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