MATT  R.  WHILES
Associate Professor

Southern Illinois University
Department of Zoology
Life Sciences II, Room 351
Carbondale, Illinois 62901-6501
Phone: (618) 453-7639
mwhiles@zoology.siu.edu

Field:  Stream Ecology; Freshwater Invertebrate Ecology

 

EDUCATION

Ph.D. in Ecology, 1995, University of Georgia
M.S. in Entomology, 1991, University of Georgia
B.S. in Biology, 1988, Kansas State University

RECENT PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

 Assistant Professor of Zoology, Southern Illinois University
 Assistant Professor of Entomology, Kansas State University
 Assistant Professor of Biology, Wayne State College

TEACHING

 Principles of Ecology (Biol 307)
 Freshwater Invertebrates (Zool 414)
 Stream Ecology (Zool 521)

RESEARCH

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.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Whiles, M. R., and R. E. Charlton. In press. The ecological significance of tallgrass prairie arthropods. Annual Review of Entomology

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.

Whiles, M. R., and W. K. Dodds. 2002. Relationships between stream size, suspended particles, and filter-feeding macroinvertebrates in a Great Plains drainage network. Journal of Environmental Quality 31: 1589-1600.

Stagliano, D. M., and M. R. Whiles. 2002. Macroinvertebrate production and trophic structure in a tallgrass prairie headwater stream. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 21: 97-113.

Meyer, C. K., M. R. Whiles, and R. E. Charlton. 2002. Life history, secondary production, and ecosystem significance of acridid grasshoppers in annually burned and unburned tallgrass prairie. American Entomologist 48: 52-61.

Whiles, M. R., and B. S. Goldowitz. 2001. Hydrologic influences on insect emergence production from central Platte River wetlands. Ecological Applications 11: 1829-1842.

Schrank, S. J., C. S. Guy, M. R. Whiles, and B. L. Brock. 2001. Assessment of Physicochemical and watershed features influencing Topeka shiner (Notropis topeka) distribution in Kansas streams. Copeia 2001: 413-421.

Callaham, M. A., Jr., M. R. Whiles, C. K. Meyer, B. L. Brock, and R. E. Charlton. 2000. Feeding ecology and emergence production of annual cicadas (Homoptera: Cicadidae) in tallgrass prairie. Oecologia 123: 535-542.

Whiles, M. R., B. L. Brock, A. C. Franzen, and S. Dinsmore II. 2000. Stream invertebrate communities, water quality, and land use patterns in an agricultural drainage basin of northen Nebraska. Environmental Management: 26: 563-576.

Whiles, M. R., B. S. Goldowitz, and R. Charlton. 1999. Life history and production of a semi-terrestrial limnephilid caddisfly in a Platte River wetland. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 18: 533-544.

Whiles, M. R., and J. B. Wallace. 1997. Litter decomposition and macroinvertebrate communities in headwater streams draining pine and hardwood catchments. Hydrobiologia 353: 107-119.

Whiles, M. R. and J. B. Wallace. 1996. Macroinvertebrate production in a headwater stream during recovery from anthropogenic disturbance and hydrologic extremes. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 52: 2402-2422.

Whiles, M. R., K. Chung, and J. B. Wallace. 1993. Influence of Lepidostoma (Trichoptera: Lepidostomatidae) on leaf litter processing in disturbed streams. American Midland Naturalist 130: 356-363.

• E-mail:   mwhiles@zoology.siu.edu
• Web:  http://www.science.siu.edu/zoology/whiles/
• Department of Zoology e-mail:  zoology@zoology.siu.edu
• Comments and questions related to web server:  webmaster@science.siu.edu
• SIUC campus web privacy policy

Last updated: 6-Jul-2005/mrw