Research Interests:

Nitrogen in estuarine ecosystems is considered both a hypoxia-inducing threat that kills fish and a limiting nutrient that supports food webs. Juveniles of economically important fish species occupy estuarine nursery habitats and therefore it is essential to understand nitrogen’s true nature in these ecosystems.  My research uses stable isotopes (carbon, nitrogen, sulfur) to identify the major nitrogen pathways in West Central Florida during this region’s wet and dry season. My interests span both biology and chemistry and therefore, I study ecosystems from perspectives of both biogeochemistry and trophic ecology. Using a biogeochemical approach, I seek to identify the paths of nitrogen that originate upstream from land use as well as paths that participate in-situ sedimentary recycling, while using a trophic ecological approach, I seek to trace nitrogen, carbon, and sulfur through primary producers to economically important food webs. This ecosystem wide study strategy not only has the potential to identify the primary producers (algae or vascular plants) that support fish production but can also identify whether land use or in-situ recycling is responsible for supporting food webs. By identifying these major pathways, ecosystem managers and city planners can more realistically predict the consequences of different land use development plans.

Publications

Malkin, E., Peebles, E, Hollander, D. 2008. Parallel nitrogen cycles in Southwest Florida's tidal rivers: Selective remineralization of algal material supports fish biomass. Limnology and Oceanography (submitted)

Malkin, E., Peebles, E, Hollander, D. 2008. Land Use Specific Nutrients Support Juvenile Fish Production in Southwest Florida (in preparation)

Tlusty, M., Metzler, A., Malkin, E., Goldstein, J., Koneval, M. 2008. Microecological impacts of global warming on crustaceans- temperature induced shifts in the release of larvae from American lobster, Homarus americanus, females. Journal of Shellfish Research 27: 443-448.

Presentations & Posters

Malkin, E., Hollander, D., Peebles, E. 2008 Parallel nitrogen cycles in Southwest Florida’s tidal rivers: selective remineralization of algal material supports fish biomass. Presentation. 2008 American Society of Limnology and Oceanography. (Download Powerpoint Presentation, 5.1MB, .ppt)

Malkin, E., Hollander, D., Peebles, E. 2007. Land Use Specific Nutrients and Selective Remineralization Supporting Fish Biomass in Southwest Florida’s Tidal Rivers. Presentation. 2007 Estuarine Research Federation Conference. (Download Powerpoint Presentation, 4.8MB, .ppt)

D. Hollander, Malkin E., Murasko, S., Peebles, E. Isotopic perspective on the foundation of estuarine dependent fish biomass: macrophytes vs. microphytes.2005. Presentation. AGU 2005 Joint Assembly. (Download Powerpoint Presentation, 3.4MB, .ppt)

D. Hollander, Malkin, E., Van Vleet, E. 2005. Evaluating the influence that anthropogenic inputs have on carbon and nitrogen cycling and on the biological assemblages in Tampa Bay, FL. Presentation. 2005 Gulf of Mexico Integrated Science Tampa Bay Study Fourth Annual Science Conference. (Download Powerpoint Presentation, 3.4MB, .ppt)

D. Hollander, Malkin, E., Van Vleet, E. 2005. Linking the sedimentary geochemical record in Tampa Bay to historical changes in land use development and nutrient inputs. Poster. 2005 Gulf of Mexico Integrated Science Tampa Bay Study Fourth Annual Science Conference.