Liz Perkin: Rivers of light: How artificial light at night affects stream ecosystems

Artificial light is increasingly recognized as a potential disrupter of ecosystems and their functioning. The effects of artificial light on stream systems is of particular interest, as recent research in Berlin has shown that flowing waters are disproportionally more likely to experience increased levels of nighttime illumination in comparison with other urban habitats. The talk will review the results from several studies that examined the ways in which artificial light affect stream organisms. It will also discuss the need for future experiments to examine how artificial light might interact with other urban stressors, and the potential evolutionary consequences of these multiple stressors.

Elizabeth K. Perkin is currently a visiting professor of biology at Willamette University, a small liberal arts college in Oregon. Previously, Dr. Perkin completed a postdoc with John Richardson at the University of British Columbia, where she examined the effects of artificial light on cutthroat trout behavior. Perkin completed her doctoral work, on the effects of artificial light on stream ecosystems, at the Free University of Berlin, working under the guidance of Klement Tockner. Prior to that, she obtained her masters at SAFS, where she was advised by Robert Naiman. Perkin did her undergraduate studies at Reed College in Portland, OR.