Research

My work spans the gamut from local-scale trophic dynamics to global-scale patterns in landscape limnology. I am interested in the mechanisms that govern lake food web structure and function across heterogeneous landscapes and in understanding patterns in community dynamics occurring across scales. My early research at the Rocky Mountain Biological Lab sparked my interest in mountain freshwater ecosystems initially, and I have since been increasingly focused on freshwater ecosystems more broadly (including reservoirs) as a potential model for testing deeper ecological questions.

Currently, I am exploring the abundance, distribution, and vulnerability of lake ecosystems across the United States, as well as examining drivers of community and food web ecology across space and time. I am also studying the food web ecology of lake ecosystems in California’s Sierra Nevada and am investigating the effects of mega-wildfire on these lake communities and their food webs.

Field gear scattered across a rock. Photo by Christine Parisek. Caddisfly cases lined up on the edge of an inflatable packraft. Photo by Christine Parisek. Two people filter water by a sierran lake for a particulate organic matter sample. Photo by Christine Parisek.

Overlook of 2 mountain lakes. Photo by Christine Parisek. View inside the mouth of a rainbow trout. Photo by Christine Parisek. Rainy day at Sardine Lake in the Sierra Nevada. The sky is brooding, the forest is lush green, the water is reflecting the landscape but is speckled by heavy rain drops. Photo by Christine Parisek.

Panoramic view of the top of a mountain. A backpacker carring a lot of bulky field gear rests on a rock. Photo by Christine Parisek.