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Aquatic Vivarium Research Publications
Research that makes a difference
The CMU Aquatic Vivarium gives you the opportunity to explore important questions about aquatic life, ecosystems and the way organisms respond to their environment. That work contributes to the broader scientific community through research published in peer-reviewed journals. Explore publications resulting from research conducted at the Aquatic Vivarium and see how CMU researchers are expanding our understanding of the aquatic world.
Vivarium publications (bold = CMU Biology Department Faculty, #= CMU Student Researchers).
2025
Dijkstra, P.D., Buzinski, O.D.K#. Beyett, T.W. #, Hager, Z.D.#, and E.T. Maes. 2025. Male-male competition affects color phenotype expression and color-dependent oxidative stress levels in a polymorphic cichlid fish. Ethology. 131: 152–162.
Dijkstra, P.D. 2025. Growth rate is associated with reduced oxidative stress and this effect is modulated by the degree of social dominance in males of an African cichlid fish. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part A. 307: 111892.
Hoyer, K.A.#, P.D. Dijkstra, T.L. Galarowicz, J.R. Harig#, J.L. Jonas, J.E. Marsden, J.B. Smith, and A.S. McNaught. 2025. Routine metabolism of larval and juvenile lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) and cisco (C. artedi) at three temperatures. Journal of Great Lakes Research. 51:102509.
Hoyer, K.A.#, T.L. Galarowicz, J.L. Jonas, J.E. Marsden, K.L. Pangle, J.B. Smith, and A.S. McNaught. 2025. Vulnerability of early life-stage lake whitefish and cisco to invasive nearshore predators. Ecology of Freshwater Fish. 34:e70022.
Moore, T.I. #, Bright, W.G.#, Bell, W.E., Solomon-Lane, T.K, Alvarado, S.G., and P.D. Dijkstra. 2025. Background color matching influences sexual behavior, growth, and mortality rate in an African cichlid fish. In press. Behavioral Ecology. DOI: 10.1101/2025.02.05.636662.
2024
Dijkstra, P.D., Fialkowski, R.J.#, Bush, B.J.#, Moore, T.I.#, Wong, R.Y., and Harvey, A.R.# 2024. Oxidative stress in the brain is regulated by social status in a highly social cichlid fish. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience. 18: 1477984.
Dijkstra, P.D., Funnell, T.R. #, Fialkowski, R.J. #, Piefke, T.J. #, Border, S.E. #, Aufdemberge, P.M.#, and Hartman, H.A.# 2024. Sexual selection may support phenotypic plasticity in male colouration of an African cichlid fish. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Biological Sciences. 291: 20241127.
Hartman, H.A.#, Mitchell, H.A.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2024. Filial cannibalism influences the link between gonadal development and antioxidant function in a mouthbrooding cichlid fish. microPublication Biology. 10.17912/micropub.biology.001352.
Richard, M.A., S. Elliott, S.L. Hummel, D.A. Woolnough, L.D. Rzodkiewicz#, S.P. Gill#, J. Rappold#, and M.L. Annis. 2024.Reduced freshwater mussel juvenile production as a result of agricultural and urban contaminant mixture exposures. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. 43 (5): 1112-1125.
Sceniak, M.P. and S.L. Sabo. 2024. Prefrontal cortical network dysfunction from acute neurotoxicant exposure. Journal of Neurophysiology. 132 (1): 277-289.
2023
Culbert, B.M., Fialkowski, R.#, Border, S.E.#, Bolitho, I.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2023. Social rank affects relationships between hormones and oxidative stress in a cichlid fish. Hormones and Behavior. 152: 105365.
Dijkstra, P.D., Piefke, T.J.#, and Bonnell, T.R. 2023. Behavioral changes during social ascent and descent in replicate social networks of an African cichlid fish. Hydrobiologia. 850: 2405–2423.
Rzodkiewicz, L.#, M. Annis, and D.A. Woolnough. 2023. Alterations to unionid transformation during agricultural and urban contaminants of emerging concern exposures. Ecotoxicology. 32: 451-468.
Sabo, S.L., J.M. Lahr#, M. Offer#, A.L.A. Weekes#, and M.P. Sceniak. 2023. GRIN2B-related neurodevelopmental disorder: current understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms. Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience. 14: 1090865.
2022
Culbert, B.M., Dijkstra, P.D., Gilmour, K.M., and S. Balshine. 2022. Social ascension elicits tissue-specific antioxidant adjustments in a group-living fish. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part A. 265: 111126.
Fialkowski, R.#, Border, S.E. #, Bolitho, I., and P.D. Dijkstra. 2022. Social dominance and reproduction result in increased integration of oxidative state in males of an African cichlid fish. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part A. 269: 111216.
Funnell, T. #, Fialkowski, R.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2022. Social dominance does not increase oxidative stress in a female dominance hierarchy of an African cichlid fish. Ethology. 128: 15-22.
Gill, S.#, M. Annis, D. Learman, and D.A. Woolnough. 2022. Freshwater mussels and host fish gut microbe community composition shifts after agricultural contaminant exposure. Journal of Applied Microbiology. 33(6):3645-3658.
Rzodkiewicz, L.#, M. Annis, and D.A. Woolnough. 2022. Contaminants of emerging concern may pose prezygotic barriers to freshwater mussel recruitment. Journal of Great Lakes Research. 48 (3): 768-781.
Sawecki, J# and P.D. Dijkstra. 2022. Mothers reduce the cost of reproduction by dynamic changes in antioxidant function and filial cannibalism. Biology Letters. 18: 20220319.
2021
Border, S.E. #, Piefke, T. #, Funnell, T. #, Fialkowski, R. #, Sawecki, J.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2021. Social instability influences rank-specific patterns of oxidative stress in a cichlid fish. Journal of Experimental Biology. 224: jeb237172.
Fialkowski, R. #, Aufdemberge, P.#, Wright, V.D.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. Radical change: 2021. Radical change: temporal patterns of oxidative stress during social ascent in a dominance hierarchy. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. 75, Article number: 43.
Kvistad, J.T. #, T.L. Galarowicz, D.F. Clapp, W.L. Chadderton, A.J. Tucker, and M. Herbert. 2021. An evaluation of three trap designs for suppressing invasive rusty crayfish (Faxonius rusticus) on native fish spawning habitats in northern Lake Michigan. Management of Biological Invasions. 12:975-996.
Piefke, T.#, Bonnell, T.R., DeOliveira, G.#, Border, S.E.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2021. Social network stability is impacted by removing a dominant male in replicate dominance hierarchies of a cichlid fish. Animal Behaviour. 175: 7-20.
2020
Woolnough, D.A., A. Bellamy, M. Annis, and S. Longstaff Hummel. 2020. Environmental exposure of freshwater mussels to contaminants of emerging concern: Implications for species conservation. Journal of Great Lakes Research. 46 (6): 1625-1638.
2019
Border, S.E. #, DeOliveira, G. #, Janeski, H. #, Piefke, T. #, Brown, T. #, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2019. Social rank, body coloration and agonistic social networks predict oxidative stress in a cichlid fish. Behavioral Ecology. 30: 490-499.
Border, S.E. #, Piefke, T. #, Fialkowski, R. #, Tryc, M. #, Funnell, T. #, DeOliveira, G.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2019. Color change and pigmentation in a color polymorphic cichlid fish. Hydrobiologia. 832: 175-191.
Malish, M.A.# and D.A. Woolnough. 2019. Varied physiological responses of Amblema plicata and Lampsilis cardium exposed to rising temperatures. Freshwater Science. 38 (4): 842-855.
Sawecki, J.#, Miros, E., Border, S.E.#, and P.D. Dijkstra. 2019. Reproduction and maternal care increase oxidative stress in a mouthbrooding cichlid. Behavioral Ecology. 30: 1662-1671.