Graduates from the Lab

Gunnar Orcutt is a rising senior biochemistry major from Omaha. He joined the lab in the fall semester of 2014, has been on a variety of collecting trips, and has worked on several projects. He finished up a project started by James Shaffer on the distinctions between Glaridacris confusus and Glaridacris laruei, which is now due out in July, 2017 in Comparative Parasitology. In addition, he described what is now the seventh known species of Caecincola, which is also due out in July. Although the official work of the award is now completed, Gunnar will continue to work on developing molecular DNA tools for distinguishing between closely related species of caryophyllaeid tapeworms.

Haley Dutton has now graduated. She joined my lab as a freshman, working in the lab since before the NSF Award (previously working on the description of a new species and genus of tapeworm from suckers in the Big Thicket and briefly on the life cycle of a trematode parasite common in creek chub in Nebraska). Her project within the context of this award was on comparing biodiversity metrics of parasite communities in catfishes from locales inside and outside the Big Thicket National Preserve. She has presented her work at regional and national meetings, her first manuscript (survey paper reporting on parasites of channel catfish and yellow bullhead) was published in 2015, and her second manuscript (comparing diversity of parasites inside and outside the BTNP) was published in 2017. Haley is working at a medical school in Colorado and applying for M.D. and Ph.D. programs.

Hayden Kusy has now graduated. He was a wildlife ecology major who joined the lab in January, 2014. He went to the field throughout the summer and fall of 2014 and quickly completed an interesting project on the taxonomy of Macroderoides species in gar and bowfin. A manuscript describing that new species was published in 2017 and named after my own nephew, Luke Dierks. He plans to do graduate work in ecology, particularly of freshwater fishes. Hayden is a world traveler, having visited much of our planet, but has recently landed in Iowa and a job in fisheries.

Drew Wellenstein has now graduated. He joined the lab in 2013, and is a biology major. He went on field collecting trips, regional meetings (Southwestern Association of Parasitologists), and  worked on some taxonomic issues surrounding the freshwater species of Homalometron infecting drum and sunfishes. The manuscript resulting from his work was publised in 2015, giving names to 2 new species in the genus.He grew up in Gretna, NE, where he played baseball, and came to Peru as a freshman in 2010. He’s a member of the Honor’s Program, has been a resident assistant for the college, and has been involved in a variety of other activities on campus. Drew is now in veterinary school.

James Shaffer has now graduated. He is a biochemistry major who joined the lab in the fall of 2013. James worked on a thorny problem regarding variation in Glaridacris, which are monozoic tapeworms of suckers. He measured and counted (using a better scope than pictured here) hundreds of worms from a variety of locales and hosts to determine if there are morphometric or anatomical indications of a species complex in G. laruei, which has been reported widely across North America. His data set was the basis of the follow-up by Gunnar Orcutt (see above), the manuscript from which is now in press.James was born and raised in Auburn, NE, and both of James’ brothers also attended Peru State College, one of which is also a biology major. James has completed his M.S. degree in agricultural sciences and is working in that field in Kansas.

Kyle McAndrews joined the lab in the fall semester of 2014 and he has now graduated from Peru State College. During his time here, he worked on trematodes in a variety of fishes, showing initial interest in those in killifishes (Fundulus). In the end, however, he ended up working on Caecincola trematodes out of white bass and white crappie, and has now described and had published (in 2017) his description of Caecincola cookorum, named in honor of the Cook family from Sam Houston State University, who have been so instrumental to the success of this work. Kyle is now working at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha on cancer biology and treatment.

Taylor Herzog is a biochemistry major and business minor who just graduated in spring, 2017. Taylor has been our resident caryophyllaeid tapeworm expert since shortly after her first collecting trip. She likes dissecting large fish like buffalo for worms, and has probably looked at more tapeworms than the rest of us combined. She worked on a particularly thorny set of specimens, and has recently finished up writing the draft, and submitting a manuscript revising the genus Dieffluvium and describing its second species. She presented her work at the 2017 Southwestern Association of Parasitologists meeting, and she is now looking for graduate programs in biology and the biomedical sciences.