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Faculty & Research
Jan A. Pechenik
Professor
Invertebrate Zoology and Marine Biology
Education
B.A., Zoology, Duke University
Ph.D., Biological Oceanography, University of Rhode Island Graduate Research Area:
Ecology,
Behavior and Evolution Research Interests
Marine invertebrates show a remarkable range of reproductive and
developmental patterns. I am especially interested in
understanding the costs and benefits associated with these
different patterns. Our research is driven by the questions we
ask, rather than by the features of any particular group of
animals. One of my lifetime goals is to publish one paper on
every major animal group. I still need to do studies on sponges,
cnidarians, and nematodes: I’m open to collaboration! Over the years, I have worked with gastropods,
bivalves, chitons, polychaetes, crustaceans, parasitic
flatworms, colonial ascidians, and bryozoans. The research
presently going on in my lab considers the following major
issues:
- To what extent do sublethal larval stresses (e.g., food
limitation, exposure to pollutants, delayed metamorphosis)
affect the fitness of individuals after they metamorphose?
- What role does nitric oxide play in controlling
metamorphosis of the marine gastropod Crepidula
fornicata.
- How are slipper limpets (Crepidula fornicata) adapted
for life in the intertidal zone? What are the physiological
differences between intertidal and subtidal individuals of
this species.
Courses
Bio 164: Marine Biology
Bio 179: Marine Biology Seminar
Bio 51: Experiments in Ecology
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