|
Bonnie first traveled to the Flathead to work on
the limnology of Flathead Lake in 1978. Her research at The Flathead
Lake Biological Station over the last 25 years has ranged from the
physiological ecology of phytoplankton in Flathead Lake to the dynamics
of food webs in the great steelhead rivers of Kamchatka, Russia.
When not at work, she is either fishing or wishing she was fishing.
|
|
|
Bonnie Overlooking
the Triple Divide Range |
Research
Interests
I am a limnologist with interests in both lake
and stream ecosystems. I am most interested in understanding the
physical, biological and chemical factors that control the distribution
and abundance of biota.
Of the 300 largest lakes in the world, Flathead
Lake is one of the most pristine, but water quality is declining.
The focus of my Flathead Lake research is on those factors controlling
the production of algae. It has been our great fortune to have maintained
a long-term record (i.e., 25 years) of phytoplankton and zooplankton
biomass and species distribution, nutrient loading, primary productivity,
water clarity and many other important chemical and physical parameters.
Determining which natural and anthropogenic factors are of greatest
importance in regulating primary productivity in the Lake is a major
goal of my work.
In Kamchatka, Russia, Jack Stanford and I are working
with our colleagues from Moscow State University to determine the
significance of biophysical controls on the varied life history
strategies of the steelhead-rainbow trout (Parasalmo (Onchorynchus)
mykiss). Much of my work there is concentrated on the major
differences in the food webs supporting the predominant life history
types and the importance of marine nutrients within the food web
of the different study rivers.
Education
- Ph.D. (Organismal Biology and Ecology): University of Montana,
2006
- M.S. (Biology): North Texas State University, 1980
- B.S. (Biology): Lamar University, 1975
|
Courses
Lake
Ecology-- BIOL 453
The focus of this course is biogeochemistry of lakes with
emphasis on glacial Flathead Lake and limnological methods
used to study and manage lake ecosystems. Topics include
origin and classification of lakes, thermodynamics, hydrodynamics,
identification and quantification of biota, trophic interactions
in food webs, nutrient cycles, productivity and water quality.
Students analyze data gathered on Flathead and other local
lakes with sophisticated instrumentation, such as computer-controlled
probes deployed from boats and remote sensing of in-lake
conditions from aircraft and satellites, to contrast Flathead
Lake with different lakes in the Flathead Basin and around
the world. Written and oral reports of independent studies
are required. |
 |
|
Students
preparing to collect zooplankton at Snyder Lake in Glacier
National Park |
Current Research
 |
Limnology of Flathead Lake (more
details)
Flathead Lake is one of the least culturally-eutrophied
lakes in comparison to other large lakes in the Northern
Hemisphere. With an area of 480 square km and volume of
23.3 cubic km, seasonal heating and cooling is slow, and
the lake moderates temperature and precipitation patterns
around the lake.
|
Bonnie with a typical
Steelhead in Kamchatka
|
Salmon Rivers Ecology Project (more
details)
The goal of this project is to fully describe
biodiversity and bioproductivity, as controlled by natural
and cultural processes, of a suite of pristine Pacific
salmon river ecosystems. We are particularly interested
in precise determination of ecological processes and responses
and biophysical feedbacks mediated by marine nutrient
subsidies from anadromous fishes within the differing
environmental settings of the rivers.
Much of my work is focused on fish prey
quality (lipid content) and availability in each of the
rivers. Stable isotopes have been used successfully to
distinguish between organisms feeding in marine and freshwater
environments and the method has also been used to identify
the presence of anadromous fishes in freshwater. I believe
it will be possible to distinguish between anadromous
and nonanadromous adult trout and their progeny and to
gain a better understanding of which food items are important
components of their diet (i.e., assimilated for animal
growth).
|
|
|
Food-web
Ecology of Glacial Lakes Invaded by Non-native Species
(more
details)
Isolation and protection of native species
are important in the Flathead Basin because many non-native
fishes were introduced into the basin, mainly in Flathead
Lake, and some established strong populations.
|
|
|
Monitoring Water Quality in Flathead Lake
(more
details)
Water quality in Flathead Lake has been
monitored continually since 1977 by The Flathead Lake Biological
Station. The purpose is to demonstrate long-term responses
of the lake ecosystem to environmental change. |
Past Research
|
Microbial Ecology of Alluvial Floodplain Aquifers
(details) |
|
Biogeochemistry of Alluvial River Flood Plains (details) |
|
Nutrient Loading from Forested Catchments
(details) |
|
Influences of Forest Harvest on Water Quality (details) |
|
Water Quality in Headwater Streams in the Flathead National
Forest (details) |
|
Selected
Publications |
For a full listing of FLBS publications,
click
here. |
Savvaitova, K. A., K. V. Kuzishchin, M. A. Gruzdeva, D. S. Pavlov, J. A. Stanford, and B. K. Ellis. 2003. Long-term and short-term variation in the population structure of Kamchatka steelhead Parasalmo mykiss from rivers of western Kamchatka. Journal of Ichthyology 43: 757–768.
Poole, G. C., J. A. Stanford, S. W. Running, C. A. Frissell, W. W. Woessner, and B. K. Ellis. 2004. A patch hierarchy approach to modeling surface and subsurface hydrology in complex flood-plain environments. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 29: 1259–1284 DOI: 1210.1002/esp.1091.
Savvaitova, K. A. and others 2005. "Half-Pounders" of Parasalmo mykiss—A Special Element of the Species Structure: On the Formation of Various Life Strategies. Journal of Ichthyology 45: 768–777.
Hauer, F. R., J. A. Stanford, M. S. Lorang, B. K. Ellis, and J. A. Craft. 2007. Aquatic ecosystem health, p. 310. In A. Prato and D. Fagre [eds.], Sustaining Rocky Mountain Landscapes: Science, Policy and Management of the Crown of the Continent Ecosystem. RFF Press
Stanford, J. A. and B. K. Ellis. 2003. Natural
and cultural influences on ecosystems processes in the Flathead
River Basin (Montana, British Columbia). Pp 269-284.
IN: Baron, J. S. (Editors). Rocky Mountain Futures: An
Ecological Perspective. Island Press, Covelo, California,
USA. 325 pp.
Boon, P.J., G.M. Gislason, P. S. Lake, B. K. Ellis, C. Frank
and J. J. Boulton. 2003. Competition for
water: international case studies of river management and conflict
resolution. Verhandlungen der Internationalen Vereinigung
fur Theoretische und Angewandte Limnologie. 28(3):1581-1587.
Ellis, B. K., J. A. Stanford, J. A. Craft, D. W. Chess, F. R.
Hauer and D. C. Whited. 2003. Plankton
communities of alpine and subalpine lakes in Glacier National
Park, Montana, U.S.A., 1984 - 1990. Verh.
Internat. Verein. Limnol. 28 (3):1542-1550.
Poole, G. C., J. A. Stanford, S. W. Running, C. A. Frissell and
B. K. Ellis. 2003. Floodplain Hydrologic
Complexity: Modeling Interactions between River Discharge, Geomorphology,
and Hyporheic Flow Dynamics. Ecological Applications
(submitted).
Ellis, B. K., J. A. Stanford and J. V. Ward 1998. Microbial
assemblages and production in alluvial aquifers of the Flathead
River, Montana, USA. Journal of the
North American Benthological Society 17(4): 382-402.
Pusch, M., D. Fiebig, I. Brettar, H. Eisenmann, B. Ellis, L.
A. Kaplan, M. A. Lock, M. Naegeli and W. Traunspurger. 1998.
The role of microorganisms in the ecological
connectivity of running waters. Freshwater
Biology 40(3): 453-495.
Spencer, C. N. and B. K. Ellis. 1998. Role
of nutrients and zooplankton in regulation of phytoplankton in
Flathead Lake (Montana, USA), a large oligotrophic
lake. Freshwater Biology 39(4): 755-763.
Wissmar, R. C., J. A. Stanford and B. K. Ellis. 1997.
Stable nitrogen isotope tracing of trophic
relations in food webs of river and hyporheic habitats. IN:
Groundwater/Surface Water Ecotones: Biological and Hydrological
Interactions and Management Options. J. Gibert,
J. Mathieu and F. Fournier (editors). Cambridge University
Press, Port Chester. 166-171 pp.
Stanford, J. A., J. V. Ward and B. K. Ellis. 1994. Ecology
of the alluvial aquifers of the Flathead River, Montana (USA),
pp. 367-390. IN: Givert, J., D. L. Danielopol and J. A. Stanford
(eds.), Groundwater Ecology. Academic Press,
San Diego, California, USA. 571pp.
Dodds, W. K., B. K. Ellis and J. C. Priscu. 1991. Zooplankton
induced decrease in inorganic phosphorus uptake by plankton in
an oligotrophic lake. Hydrobiologia
211: 253-259.
Dodds, W. K., J. C. Priscu and B. K. Ellis. 1991. Seasonal
uptake and regeneration of inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus in
a large oligotrophic lake: size-fractionation and antibiotic treatment.
Journal of Plankton Research 13(6): 1339-1358.
Spencer, C. N. and B. K. Ellis. 1990. Co-limitation
by phosphorus and nitrogen, and effects of zooplankton mortality,
on phytoplankton in Flathead Lake, Montana, U.S.A.
Verh. Internat. Verein. Limnol. 24: 206-209.
Ellis, B. K. and J. A. Stanford. 1988. Nutrient
subsidy in montane lakes: fluvial sediments versus volcanic ash.
Verh. Internat. Verein. Limnol. 23: 327-340.
Ellis, B. K. and J. A. Stanford. 1982. Comparative
photoheterotrophy, chemoheterotrophy and photolithotrophy in a
eutrophic reservoir and an oligotrophic lake.
Limnology and Oceanography 27(3): 440-454.
Community
Service
- Past President and Board Member of Lake County Planning Board
(1989-2003)
- Past President and Board Member of Lake County Chapter of
Big Brothers and Sisters (1995-2001); Big Sister 6 years
- Gratis Consultant to Montana Land Reliance
- Developed Pilot Shoreline Buffer Demonstration Project with
Montana Native Plant Society and the Montana Conservation Corp
- Wrote (with Montana Legislative Council) and secured passage
of Montana House Bill 833 that revised marine noise, sewage
and safety laws; aided by Representative Tom Lee and Flathead
Lakers
 |
Bonnie with Bonefish
at Christmas Island
|
|
