Research interests

(1) Biofluid mechanics and physical approaches to evolutionary ecology: convergence, sex, functional morphology.

(2) Physical Ecology of Marine and Aquatic Organims: reproduction, dispersal and recruitment, trophic dynamics.

(3) Environmental Science and Engineering: introduced species, biomonitoring and bioremediation of aquatic systems.

(4) Biometric and Methodological Research.
 
 

Current research interests and projects

The ecological and evolutionary problems that underlie my research interests include the convergent evolution of morphology, the manner by which organisms have adapted to their physical environment, and the physical aspects of energy transfer through ecosystems. At present, I am interested in the biofluid mechanics of inorganic carbon uptake in macrophytes, benthic-pelagic coupling in benthic bivalves, and hydraulic habitats in riverine environments.

(1) Mass transfer and the ecophysiology of benthic producers and consumers in aquatic ecosystems (funded).

(2) The effects of flow on aquatic plant productivity (funded).

(3) Biophysical structuring of habitats in Riparian Ecosystems (funded).

(4) Abiotic pollination mechanisms in aquatic plants (unfunded).

(5) The effect of biased random walks on spatial patterns (unfunded).
 
 

Recent Publications

Ackerman, J.D. 1998. Is the limited diversity of higher plants in marine systems due to biophysical limitations for reproduction or evolutionary and physiological constraints? Functional Ecology 12:979-982.

Ackerman, J.D. 1997. Submarine pollination in the marine angiosperm, Zostera marina: Part I. The influence of floral morphology on fluid flow. American Journal of Botany. 84:1099-1109 (Cover Photo).

Ackerman, J.D. 1997. Submarine pollination in the marine angiosperm, Zostera marina: Part II. Pollen transport in flow fields and capture by stigmas. American Journal of Botany. 84:1110-1119.

Ackerman, J.D. 1995. Convergence of filiform pollen morphologies in seagrasses: Functional mechanisms. Evolutionary Ecology. 9:139-153.

Ackerman, J.D. 1993. Pollen germination and pollen tube growth in the marine angiosperm, Zostera marina L. Aquatic Botany 46:189-202.

Ackerman, J.D. and A. Okubo. 1993. Reduced mixing in a marine macrophyte canopy. Functional Ecology 7:305-309.

Ackerman, J.D. 1991. Pollination in aquatic vascular plants: Sex and fluids. Wildflower 7:28-31.

(II) BIVALVE EVOLUTIONARY ECOLOGY

Ackerman, J.D. 1999. The effect of velocity on the filter feeding of zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha and D. bugensis): Implications for Trophic Dynamics.  Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 56:1551-1651.

Ackerman, J.D., B. Sim, S.J. Nichols, and R. Claudi. 1994. A review of the early life history of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha): Comparisons with marine bivalves. Canadian Journal of Zoology. 72:1169-1179. (Download PDF)

Ackerman, J.D. 1993. Preliminary observations on the hydrodynamics of filter feeding in zebra mussels. pp. 513-514 In: R.F. Dame (ed.) Bivalve Filter Feeders in Estuarine and Coastal Ecosystem Processes (NATO ASI Series, Ecological Sciences, Vol. G 33). Springer-Verlag, Berlin.

Ackerman, J.D., C.R. Ethier, D.G. Allen, and J.K. Spelt. 1993. The biomechanics of byssal adhesion in Dreissena polymorpha. pp. 265-282 In: T.F. Nalepa and D.W. Schloesser (eds). Zebra Mussels: Biology, Impact, and Control. Lewis Press, Boca Raton, FL, 810 pp.
 

Ackerman, J.D. 1998. The effect of turbulence on the functioning of aquatic organisms. pp. 1784-1787 In H. Murakami and J.E. Luco (eds.) Engineering Mechanics: A Force for the 21st Century, Proceedings of the 12th Engineering Mechanics Conference, La Jolla, May 1998, ASCE. Reston, VA. 1956 pp.

(IV) ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

 Ackerman, J.D. and M.T. Nishizaki. In Press. How Stiff is a French Fry? – Teaching Biomechanics to Biology Students. Journal of Biological Education 14 pp.

Arocena, J. and J.D. Ackerman. 1998. Use of statistical tests to describe the basic distribution patterns of iron oxide nodules in soil thin section. American Soil Science Society Journal 62:1346-1350. (abstract)

Ackerman, J.D., C.M. Cottrell, C.R. Ethier, D.G. Allen, and J.K. Spelt. 1996. Attachment strength of zebra mussels on natural, polymeric and metallic materials. Journal of Environmental Engineering (ASCE) 122:141-148.

Ackerman, J.D., C.M. Cottrell, C.R. Ethier, D.G. Allen, and J.K. Spelt. 1995. A wall jet to measure the attachment strength in zebra mussels. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 52:126-135.

Ackerman, J.D., L. Wong, C.R. Ethier, D.G. Allen, and J.K. Spelt. 1994. Preston-static tubes for the measurement of wall shear stress. Journal of Fluids Engineering (ASME). 116:645-649.

Important Stuff

In Memorium

Akira Okubo, (1924 - 1996) - teacher, collaborator, and friend.

Nominations for Akira Okubo Prize

In cooperation, the Society for Mathematical Biology and the Japanese Association for Mathematical Biology have established the Okubo Prize, in memory of Akira Okubo, the late professor of the State University of New York, who passed away in February, 1996. The first Award will be given in 1999 to a junior scientist (under forty years old) who has published an outstanding piece of recent work.

For nominations for the Akira Okubo Prize, the following information should be submitted by August 1, 1998, to the Co-Chair of the selection committee, Simon Levin, 203 Eno Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544-1033:

1) Name, address, phone number, affiliation, and email address and/or fax number of the nominator. 2) Name, address, phone number, affiliation, and email address and/or fax number of the nominee. 3) Short curriculum vitae of the nominee. 4) A detailed statement describing why the nominee should be considered for the award. 5) Copies of one or two relevant publications. 6) Up to three letters of support. Self-nominations are not accepted

       A Revision of Akira Okubo's Diffusion and Ecological Problems

Akira Okubo's now classic text, Diffusion and Ecological Problems, is being revised by his colleagues, friends and students under the editorship of Simon Levin.  The publication of the revision is expected in 2000, and will be released by Springer Verlag.
 

Scientific Meetings and Presentations

Ocean Sciences Meeting (AGU/ASLO). San Antonio, TX, 24 -28 January, 2000.

ASLO 2000. Copenhagen, 5-9 June, 2000.

Botanical Society of America Annual Meeting.

British Ecological Society.
(1) Annual Symposium :
(2) Winter Meeting:

Ecological Society of America - ESA Annual Meeting. .

MPATHE (Mechanics of Plants, Animals, & Their Environment) 2000. 11-16 June, Tuscany.
North American Benthological Society Conference.

Society for Mathematical Biology (AIBS) Annual Meeting.  Salt Lake City, UT, 3-5 Aug. 2000.

5th International Stratified Flows Conference. Vancouver, BC. 10-13 July, 2000.

Watersheds 2000. Vancouver, BC., 9-12 July 2000.

 

 

Links to Other Interesting WEB Sites

• American Geophysical Union (home page)
• American Society of Limnology and Oceanography (home page)
• Botanical Society of America (home page)
• British Ecological Society (home page)
• Ecological Society of American (home page)
• North American Benthological Society (home page)
• Society for Mathematical Biology (home page)

 
• Biological and Environmetal Mechanics (Homepage)
• Fish & Fisheries Research (On-line Journal)
• Seagrass Information (home page)
• Center for Aquatic Plants
• Riparian Resources Homepage

 
• WWW Sites for Oceanographers
• WWW Sites for Ecologists
• WWW Sites for Mathematics
• Ecological Modelling Resource Homepage

 

 

 

Interested students should note that the Faculty of Natural Resources and Environmental Studies (~40 Faculty Members ) at the University of Northern British Columbia offers BSc, MSc and PhD degree programs in the areas of Biology and Environmental Science. UNBC is located in Prince George , which is the gateway to the central and northern interior of British Columbia, Canada.
 
 

 


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Last modified on October 4, 1999.