Lacey Rzodkiewicz

Indirect effects of cyanotoxins: Untangling the multitrophic impacts of cyanotoxins and trait-based mediation

I am interested in addressing how toxic cyanobacteria (commonly known as blue-green algae) alter the ecology and evolution of other organisms within their communities.  Cyanotoxins are known to surpress plant competitors and deter zooplankton predators, but it is unclear what the community level consequences of such interactions may be.  Should plant competitors evolve mechanisms of tolerance or resistance, will interactions with their own herbivores change? Can a cyanotoxin have an indirect effect reaching beyond community members cyanobacteria interact with?  

Exploring these questions offers an exciting route to assess how toxin-producing organisms impact their broader communities and how adaptation may mediate those impacts. This builds upon framework in both the allelopathy and evolutionary ecotoxicology research and may provide further insights into system stability.