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 role of spatial and temporal heterogeneity and competition in structuring trematode communities in the great pond snail, Lymnaea stagnalis (L.)
Ecological consequences of manipulative parasites
Incidence of adult brain cancers is higher in countries where the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii is common
Stage structure alters how complexity affects stability of ecological networks
A nematomorph parasite explains variation in terrestrial subsidies to trout streams in Japan
Parasite transmission in social interacting hosts: Monogenean epidemics in guppies
Food webs and fishing affect parasitism of the sea urchin Eucidaris galapagensis in the Galápagos
Parasite distribution, prevalence, and assemblages of the grass shrimp, Palaemonetes pugio, in Southwestern Alabama, U.S.A.
Nematomorph parasites drive energy flow through a riparian ecosystem
A common scaling rule for abundance, energetics, and production of parasitic and free-living species
Trematode communities in snails can indicate impact and recovery from hurricanes in a tropical coastal lagoon
Effects of disease on community interactions and food web structure
Science and Products
The role of spatial and temporal heterogeneity and competition in structuring trematode communities in the great pond snail, Lymnaea stagnalis (L.)
Ecological consequences of manipulative parasites
Incidence of adult brain cancers is higher in countries where the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii is common
Stage structure alters how complexity affects stability of ecological networks
A nematomorph parasite explains variation in terrestrial subsidies to trout streams in Japan
Parasite transmission in social interacting hosts: Monogenean epidemics in guppies
Food webs and fishing affect parasitism of the sea urchin Eucidaris galapagensis in the Galápagos
Parasite distribution, prevalence, and assemblages of the grass shrimp, Palaemonetes pugio, in Southwestern Alabama, U.S.A.
Nematomorph parasites drive energy flow through a riparian ecosystem
A common scaling rule for abundance, energetics, and production of parasitic and free-living species
Trematode communities in snails can indicate impact and recovery from hurricanes in a tropical coastal lagoon
Effects of disease on community interactions and food web structure
*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