Bruce Vondracek, Ph.D.

Bruce Vondracek

Emeritus Professor, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology
E-mail: [email protected]
Ph.D. University of California, Davis

 


Fields of Interest

Stream ecology, winter ecology of Chironomids, stream restoration and land use effects on aquatic communities

Research

Understanding the mechanisms that influence fish and invertebrate assemblages is important to predict how aquatic systems have responded and will respond to impacts both natural and human induced. Over the past several years, I have examined the interaction across management practices, water quality, fish and invertebrate assemblages, and winter emergence of Chironomidae in agricultural and forested settings to assess ecosystem health or biological integrity in relation to land use practices, especially in riparian systems. The aquatic community composition of a stream is largely structured by its proximate physical habitat, which in turn is structured by riparian and watershed conditions at larger spatial scales. I have chosen to work in agricultural and forested settings because nonpoint source pollution associated with agricultural production and timber harvest has been identified as a major threat to water quality in the United States. Concern over the alarming rate of habitat alteration and increasing pressure on aquatic systems has translated into primarily site-level restoration and management strategies, while larger scale processes that may account for many of the observed habitat losses at a site have been unresolved or remain poorly understood. The inability to understand or separate larger scale effects may interfere with conclusions derived from research at smaller scales, more amenable to experimental tests.

Recent Publications

Bodmer, H.C. Nyquist, B. Vondracek and L. Ferrington, Jr. 2023. Exposure of cold-adapted Diamesa mendotae Muttkowski, 1915 (Diptera: Chironomidae) to short-term high temperature reduces longevity and reproduction. Aquatic Insects 44: 310-324.

Danehy, R.J., Nislow, K.H., Dolloff, C.A., Warrington, B., Newman, R., Blinn, C.R., Vondracek, B., Mackereth, R.W., Young, M.K., Walter, J.K. and Bisson, P.A. 2022. Region-Specific Interactions of Forests and Fish in North America. American Fisheries Society Symposium 92: 189–244.

Nyquist, C., Gíslason, G.M., Vondracek, B. and Ferrington Jr., L.C. 2021. Longevities of adult Chironomidae (Diptera) from two streams in Iceland. CHIRONOMUS Journal of Chironomidae Research 34: 4-12.

Nyquist, C. E., B. Vondracek and L. Ferrington, Jr. 2020. The influence of an in-stream thermal gradient on chironomid emergence during winter. Hydrobiologia 847: 3153–3167.

Cochran-Biederman, J.L. and B. Vondracek. 2017. Seasonal feeding selectivity of brown trout Salmo trutta in five groundwater-dominated streams. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 32: 653 673.

French, W.E., Vondracek, B., Ferrington Jr., L.C., Finlay, J.C. and Dieterman, D.J. 2017. Brown trout (Salmo trutta) growth and condition along a winter thermal gradient in temperate streams. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 74: 56-64. 

Carlson, A.K., French, W.E., Vondracek, B., Ferrington Jr., L.C., Mazack, J.E. and Cochran-Biederman, J.L. 2016. Brown trout growth in Minnesota streams as related to landscape and local factors. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 31: 421-429. 

French, W.E., Vondracek, B., Ferrington Jr., L.C., Finlay, J.C. and Dieterman, D.J. 2016. Winter diet of brown trout Salmo trutta in groundwater-dominated streams: influence of environmental factors on spatial and temporal variation. Journal of Fish Biology 89: 2449-2464. 

Anderson, A.M., Mittag, E., Middleton, B., Vondracek, B. and Ferrington, L.C. 2016. Winter diets of brown trout populations in southeastern Minnesota and the significance of winter-emerging invertebrates. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 145: 206-220. 

Brand, G., B. Vondracek, and N.R. Jordan. 2015. Influence of grazing and land use on stream channel characteristics at multiple scales. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems: 30: 524–536. 

Dolph, C.L., Eggert, S.L., Magner, J., Ferrington Jr., L.C. and Vondracek, B. 2015. Reach-scale stream restoration in agricultural streams of southern Minnesota alters structural and functional responses of macroinvertebrates. Freshwater Science 34: 535-546.

Mazack, J.E., P. Kranzfelder, A.M. Anderson, R.W. Bouchard Jr., J. Perry, B. Vondracek and L.C. Ferrington Jr. 2014. Survivorship and longevity of adult Diamesa mendotae Muttkowski, 1915 (Diptera: Chironomidae) at controlled, sub-freezing temperatures. Aquatic Insects 36: 35-42. 

Beck, M.W., B.N. Wilson, B. Vondracek, and L.K. Hatch. 2014. Application of neural networks to quantify the utility of indices of biotic integrity for biological monitoring. Ecological Indicators 45: 195-208.

Vondracek, B., J.D. Koch, and M.W. Beck. 2014. A comparison of survey methods to evaluate macrophyte index of biotic integrity performance in Minnesota lakes. Ecological Indicators 36: 178-185.

French W. E., B. Vondracek, L. C. Ferrington Jr., J. C. Finlay and D. J. Dieterman. 2014. Winter feeding, growth and condition of brown trout Salmo trutta in a groundwater-dominated stream. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 29: 187-200.