Vincent H. Resh
Professor and Entomologist
305 Wellman Hall
Phone #: (510) 642-3763
FAX #: (510) 642-7428
vresh@nature.berkeley.edu
Research Interests
The research program in my laboratory follows three lines: (1) studies on
the evolutionary biology and ecology of aquatic insects, crustaceans, and
molluscs in stream and wetland habitats; (2) the evaluation of habitat manipulations
for use in environmental restoration or enhancement; (3) and the development
of techniques for the biological assessment of water quality.
The ecological studies of aquatic invertebrates involve descriptive and
experimental approaches to life history studies, herbivore-plant interactions,
effects of disturbance, and other topics related to population dynamics,
biotic and abiotic interactions, and community structure and function. These
studies currently are being conducted in California coastal streams and
on the diadromous fauna in oceanic island streams near the UC Berkeley research
station in Moorea, French Polynesia.
Research on habitat manipulations has been conducted in both running-water
and wetland habitats. In streams and rivers, emphasis has been on developing
an understanding of how hydraulic forces affect the distribution of organisms,
and how these forces can be modified to enhance running-water habitats in
stream restoration. These approaches have been used in the habitat restoration
of Strawberry Creek on the U.C. Berkeley campus. Students in my laboratory
conducting research in hydraulic ecology have the opportunity to participate
in an exchange program with the University of Lyon in France.
Habitat manipulations in wetlands have focused on water- and vegetation-management
strategies that enhance environmental quality by increasing invertebrates
that are essential to waterfowl diets and, concurrently, by decreasing pestiferous
and disease-carrying mosquitoes. This research is being conducted in experimental
ponds that have been built in Suisun Marsh. Research has clearly demonstrated
that the twin goals of enhancing wildlife habitat and controlling mosquitoes
are compatible. I'm now conducting a parallel study in Israel to examine
how the aquatic habitats of the now-drained Hula Lake, once one of the two
natural freshwater lakes of the Middle East, can be restored to enhance
waterfowl and not reintroduce malaria.
Research in the biological assessment of water quality involves the use
of several long-term data sets (> 10 years in duration) to evaluate the
natural variability in unperturbed systems, levels of change that occur
in perturbed systems, and to use this information in establishing thresholds
to indicate whether impact has occurred. Current research also includes
the development of population, community, and ecosystem indicators for use
in water quality assessment. Related to these topics are the development
of methods for the evaluation of mitigation procedures and habitat restoration
programs. Research sites include several streams in coastal California and
the 1,000-mile long Fraser River catchment in British Columbia.
In summary, the current and future research directions that I encourage
the students in my laboratory to pursue involve basic, quantitative research
in aquatic entomology and ecology, and the incorporation of this research
into a framework that can be used to solve applied problems of water-quality
assessment and habitat restoration. Graduates from this laboratory continue
to pursue these goals in universities, environmental consulting firms, industries,
and government agencies.
Selected Publications
Rosenberg, D. M. and Resh, V. H. (eds.). 1993. Freshwater biomonitoring
and benthic macroinvertebrates. Chapman and Hall, New York. 488 p.
Statzner, B. and Resh, V. H. 1993. Multiple-site and -year analyses of stream
insect emergence: a test of ecological theory. Oecologia 96: 65-79.
Resh, V. H., Hildrew, A. G., Statzner, B., and Townsend, C. R. 1994. Theoretical
habitat templets, species traits, and species richness: a synthesis of long-term
ecological research on the Upper Rhône River in the context of concurrently
developed ecological theory. Freshwater Biology 31: 539-554.
Resh, V. H., Norris, R. H., and Barbour, M. T. 1995. Design and implementation
of rapid assessment approaches for water resource monitoring using benthic
macroinvertebrates. Australian Journal of Ecology 20: 108-121.
Resh, V. H. and Yamamoto, D. M. 1996. International collaboration in the
publication of entomological research. The American Entomologist 42:48-55.
Current Graduate students:
- James Carter
- Kathleen Halat
- Morgan Hannaford
- Rosalie Leach
- Marilyn Myers
- Eric Schlossberg
Current Post-docs and Visiting Scholars:
- Ferenc de Szalay, Post-doc
- Avital Gasith, Visiting Scholar