Aquatic Ecology
Our research includes both basic and applied ecology projects and focuses on five areas: stream ecology, aquatic insect biology, biodiversity studies, the use of microinvertebrates in the ecological risk assessment process and environmental education. This research is conducted in a diverse range of aquatic ecosystems that include springs, wetlands,streams, rivers and impoundments. The laboratory has hosted workshops, and routinely provides support to the UNT Elm Fork Education Program, and the Lake Lewisville Education Learning Area (LLELA).
Wildlife Conservation Research Group
The common theme in our research group is the use of ecological and evolutionary principles in the dissemination of knowledge to promote practical science-based solutions in wildlife conservation. Our primary aim under this theme is to mesh collaborative science in wildlife ecology and conservation with education at the undergraduate and graduate levels through field and laboratory research. Many of our research studies have contributed to the conservation of threatened and endangered species in both captive and natural settings. Similarly, we are interested in obtaining information that can be used in population and species management from a sustainable approach, regardless of threatened status.
Ecological Risk Assessment and the Experimental Stream
Primary research interests include contaminant effects on freshwater aquatic communities. Specifically, understanding linkages among fisheries and benthic population dynamics and how these are influenced by anthropogenic perturbations are studied by examining how chemical pollutants are distributed through biological communities and how they affect community structure and function. The Experimental Research Stream, recently constructed, is located at the City of Denton Wastewater Treatment Facility on Pecan Creek and is used to examine the effects of pollutants on benthic ecosystems.
Center for Environmental Archaeology
The Center for Environmental Archaeology actively pursues interdisciplinary research on past environments, archaeology, and Quaternary geology. Research focuses on geo-archaeology, Paleo-Indian archaeology, and zoo-archaeology.
Elm Fork Natural Heritage Museum
The mission of the Elm Fork Natural Heritage Museum is to provide opportunities to discover and share knowledge about plants, animals and their environments. In addition to providing resources to trained scientists the museum also provides resources for citizen scientists of all ages and backgrounds to explore natural history and especially to inspire in the young a life long interest in nature.
Water Research Field Station
The Water Research Field Station (WRFS) is one of the only facilites in the southwest designed to assess,under controlled field conditions, the effects of pesticides on aquatic ecosystems prior to their general use in the environment. Field station research is supported on campus by a biological and residue analysis laboratory with state-of-the-art equipment such as computer-interfaced gas chromatography.
Lewisville Aquatic Ecosystem Research Facility (LAERF)
A Corp of Engineers facility that supports studies on biology, ecology, and managment of aquatic plants, LAERF provides an intermediate scale research environment to bridge the gap between small scale laboratory studies and large-scale field tests. In addition to 53 earthen and 21 lined ponds, LAERF utilizes 18 flowing water raceways, 3 large outdoor mesocosm facilities, a research greenhouse, and several laboratories to conduct research activities.