Zoology

DEPARTMENT OF

Matt R. Whiles

Associate Professor
Office: 326 Life Science II
Phone: 618-453-7639
email: mwhiles@zoology.siu.edu

Education: B.S. Kansas State University; M.S. University of Georgia; Ph.D., University of Georgia

Courses taught: BIOL 307 (Principles of Ecology, ZOOL 414 (Freshwater Invertebrates), ZOOL 521 (Stream Ecology)

Areas of interest: Ecosystem ecology; Stream and wetland ecology, Invertebrate biology

My research focuses on the role of consumer groups, particularly invertebrates, in ecosystem function. Most of my efforts are focused on streams and wetlands, but I am also interested in the role of invertebrates in terrestrial systems. I am particularly interested in the effects of disturbance on aquatic invertebrate communities and ecosystem function, as well as the role of invertebrates in recovery of ecosystem processes following disturbance. Current and recent projects include investigating the influence of hydrologic fluctuations on aquatic communities of central Platte River wetlands, quantifying the ecosystem-level consequences of stream-dwelling amphibian extirpations in the Central American highlands, and estimating secondary production and energy flow along a tallgrass prairie stream continuum. Applied aspects of my research include biological assessment of river and wetland management and restoration techniques.

For more information on my research program, please see my lab webpage.

Recent Publications

Flinn MB, Adams SR, Whiles MR, et al. 2008. Biological responses to contrasting hydrology in backwaters of upper Mississippi river navigation pool 25. Environmental Management 41: 468-486.

Walther DA, Whiles MR. 2008. Macroinvertebrate responses to constructed riffles in the Cache River, Illinois, USA. Environmental Management 41: 516-527.

Colon-Gaud C, Peterson S, Whiles MR, et al. 2008. Allochthonous litter inputs, organic matter standing stocks, and organic seston dynamics in upland Panamanian streams: potential effects of larval amphibians on organic matter dynamics. Hydrobiologia 603: 301-312.

Meyer CK, Baer SG, Whiles MR. 2008. Ecosystem recovery across a chronosequence of restored wetlands in the platte river valley. Ecosystems 11: 193-208.

Garvey JE, Whiles MR, Streicher D. 2007. A hierarchical model for oxygen dynamics in streams. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 64: 1816-1827.

Heatherly T, Whiles MR, Royer TV, et al. 2007. Relationships between water quality, habitat quality, and macroinvertebrate assemblages in Illinois streams. Journal of Environmental Quality 36: 1653-1660

Rosi-Marshall EJ, Tank JL, Royer TV, Whiles MR, Evans-White M, Chambers C, Griffiths NA, Pokelsek J, Stephen ML. 2007. Toxins in transgenic crop byproducts may affect headwater stream ecosystems. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 104: 16204-16208.

Heatherly T, Whiles MR, Gibson DJ, et al. 2007. Stream insect occupancy-frequency patterns and metapopulation structure. Oecologia 151: 313-321.

Altig R, Whiles MR, Taylor CL. 2007. What do tadpoles really eat? Assessing the trophic status of an understudied and imperiled group of consumers in freshwater habitats. Freshwater Biology 52: 386-395.

Regester KJ, Whiles MR. 2006. Decomposition rates of Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) life stages and associated energy and nutrient fluxes in ponds and adjacent forest in in Southern Illinois. Copeia 2006: 640-649.

Regester KJ, Lips KR, Whiles MR. 2006. Energy flow and subsidies associated with the complex life cycle of ambystomatid salamanders in ponds and adjacent forest in southern Illinois. Oecologia 147: 303-314

Whiles, M. R., K. R. Lips, C. M. Pringle, S. S. Kilham, R. Brenes, S. Connelly, J. C. Colon Gaud, M. Hunte-Brown, A. D. Huryn, C. Montgomery, S. Peterson. 2006. The Consequences of Amphibian Population Declines to the Structure and Function of Neotropical Stream Ecosystems. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 4: 27-34

Whiles, M. R., and R. E. Charlton. 2006. The ecological significance of tallgrass prairie arthropods. Annual Review of Entomology 51: 387-412

Walther, D. A., M. R. Whiles, M. B. Flinn, and D. W. Butler. 2006. Assemblage-level estimation of nontanypodine chironomid growth and production in a southern Illinois stream. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 25: 444-452

Whiles, M. R. and B. S. Goldowitz. 2005. Macroinvertebrate communities in central Platte River wetlands: patterns across a hydrologic gradient. Wetlands 25: 462-472

Dodds, W. K., K. Gido, M. R. Whiles, K. M. Fritz, and W. J. Matthews. 2004. Life on the Edge: Ecology of Prairie Streams. Bioscience 54: 205-216

Evans-White, M. A., W. K. Dodds, and M. R. Whiles. 2003. Ecosystem significance of crayfishes and central stonerollers in a tallgrass prairie stream: functional differences between co-occurring omnivores. Journal of the North American Benthological Society: 22: 423-441