Mark S. Peterson, Ph.D.

Department of Coastal Sciences
The University of Southern Mississippi
703 East Beach Drive
Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Phone: (228) 872-4203

Fax: (228) 872-4204

mark.peterson@usm.edu

Coastal Ecosystems Group Webpage

http://www.usm.edu/gcrl/ceg

Position:

• Professor - Department of Coastal Sciences, Fisheries Ecology
• Editor - Gulf and Caribbean Research

Administrative Experience:

• Acting Department Chair, Department of Coastal Sciences (August 2002-October 2003).
• Department of Coastal Sciences Summer Field Program (SFP) Advisory Committee, member (2000-2002) and Chair (2002-2005).
• Coordinator of Graduate Studies, Department of Coastal Sciences (1998-2002).
• Editor-in-Chief and Chair of the Advisory & Editorial Boards for Gulf and Caribbean Research (1996-2001; 2003-present; formerly Gulf Research Reports).

Synergistic Activities:

• St. Johns Cumulative Impact Assessment Review Panel committee member, The National Academy of Sciences, National Rsearch Council, Water Science and Technology Board, October 2008-May 2010.
• Board of Governors American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, 2005-2010.
• Board of Directors, Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute, 2005-2009.
• Florida Keys Carrying Capacity (FKCCS) Model Review Panel committee member, The National Academy of Sciences, Ocean Studies Board, January 2001-January 2002. (Published: 2002. A Review of the Florida Keys Carrying Capacity Study, National Academy Press, Washington, D.C. 166p).
• President-Elect/President/Past President, Gulf Estuarine Research Society. 2000-05.
• Estuarine Research Federation, Education Committee (1998-00); Estuarine Research Federation Board (2002-05).
• Secretary-Treasurer/President-Elect/President, Southeastern Division-American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. 1999-02.

• President-Elect/President, Mississippi Chapter of the American Fisheries Society. 1992-94.

Professional Experience:

Professor (August 2002-present). Department of Coastal Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Ocean Springs, MS. Duties include development of a research program in fisheries resource ecology and ecological physiology. Teaching responsibilities include Marine Ichthyology, Ecology of Fishes, Coastal Processes II, and Topics in Fisheries Ecology.

Associate Professor (Tenured) (July 1998-August 2002). Department of Coastal Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Ocean Springs, MS.

Associate Research Scientist. (Dec.1994-July 1998). Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Institute of Marine Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Ocean Springs, MS.

Associate Professor. (Tenured) (Aug. 1994-Dec. 1994). Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, MSU, MS. Teaching duties included Ichthyology, Ecology of Fishes, Ecology, Animal Behavior, and Principles of Zoology. Other duties included curation of fish museum.

Assistant Professor. (Aug. 1989-Aug. 1994). Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, MSU, MS.

Post-Doctoral Fellow. (Sept. 1987-Aug. 1989). Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution, Inc., Ft. Pierce, FL. Ecophysiology research focused on experimental causes of fish kills of euryhaline, subtropical resident and transient fishes utilizing impounded mangrove habitats.

Instructor. (Spring 1987). Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS. Taught, coordinated and graded General Zoology lecture and laboratory.

Teaching Assistant. (Fall 1983-Fall 1986 (@USM); Fall 1980-Spring 1981(@FIT)). Contact teaching and grading of lower and upper levels labs. Lower level labs.: Introductory biology (majors & honors) and General Zoology. Upper level labs.: Nearshore benthic ecology, Deepsea benthic ecology, Ichthyology.

Marine Science Research Associate. (April 1981-Aug. 1982). University of Florida-IFAS, Florida Medical Entomology Lab., Wetlands Ecology Section, Vero Beach, FL. Assisted in the design of field research, and collection, identification and enumeration of fishes, zooplankton and benthic organisms in mangrove habitats.

Research Assistantships. (Dept. Biol. Sci., USM: Sowashee creek water quality model verification (Summer 1984); American eel study (Summer 1983). Dept. Oceanogr. & Ocean Eng., FIT: Paradise Beach restoration project (Fall 1979); Melbourne Beach restoration project (August 1979-July 1980).

Graduate Student Assistant. (Summers 1979-1980). Project leader to "Marine Field Projects" at FIT. Duties included assistance in the design of the field activities and the collection and identification of fish, zooplankton and benthic animals.

Adjunct Professorships:

• (Sept.2000-01). Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS.
• (Feb.1995-98). Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS.
• (Winter 1989). Department of Oceanography & Ocean Engineering, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL. Taught, coordinated and graded Marine & Estuarine Benthic Ecology.

Consultant:

• South Florida Water Management District, West Palm Beach, FL; Adequacy of Technical Information to Support Minimum Inflow Needs for Biscayne Bay, panel member (Oct.-Nov. 2008).
• The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; 2004 Research Assessment Review Panel for the Marine and Coastal Research Programs at Texas Universities, panel member (Aug. 2004).
• The Nature Conservancy and the U.S. EPA; Evaluation of the final report of the Florida Keys Carrying Capacity Study, Panel member (Sept.-Nov. 2002).
• South Florida Water Management District, West Palm Beach, FL; Evaluation of the St. Lucie River and Estuary Minimum Flow Plan, Chair of Panel (May-August 2001).
• Southwest Florida Water Management District, Brooksville, FL; Evaluation of Hillsborough River Minimum Flow Plan (June-November 1999).
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-WES, Vicksburg, MS.; Trophic ecology of freshwater catfishes (Sept. 1982).
• Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, San Diego, CA.; Bottlenose dolphin and manatee survey (Nov. 1979).

Education:

• Ph.D. Degree - University of Southern Mississippi, 1987. Biological Sciences. Ecological and physiological factors affecting the assembly of littoral fish communities along an environmental gradient, Stephen T. Ross, advisor.
• M. S. Degree - Florida Institute of Technology, 1981. Bio-Environmental Oceanography. Variations in the feeding ecology of the silver jenny, Eucinostomus gula (Quoy and Gaimard) and the spotfin mojarra, E. argenteus Baird. R. Grant Gilmore, advisor.
• B. S. Degree - Coastal Carolina University, 1978. Marine Science.

Research Interests:

My research goal is to create and maintain a research program that addresses issues centered around nekton (fish and decapods) resource ecology and also successfully trains graduate students. My research interests are broadly focused on habitat-use in nekton, with particular emphasis on factors affecting recruitment success in estuarine-dependent fishes and the tradeoffs made by nekton when living in different habitats. In that vein, I am particularly interested in the impacts of habitat alteration on recruitment and habitat use, the basic biology and ecology of invasive species and the impacts they have on native communities, and how alteration of watersheds influence essential fish habitat of resident and estuarine-dependent species. In my research, I have emphasized important ecological issues that have some applied aspects but which requires an approach founded in basic ecological theory and has good experimental design. Much of my research has this direction. Specific research projects currently address:

Habitat characteristics and aspects of the reproductive life history of the saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi, in Mississippi coastal watersheds, with the production of a comparative diagnostic key for young stages of select members of the genus Fundulus (w/T. Slack). Gulf sturgeon, Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi, in the Pascagoula drainage, Mississippi: Post-Hurricane Katrina assessment of habitat and movement of the juvenile cohort (w/W.T. Slack). [2A] [2B] Fundulus jenkinsi, Saltmarsh Topminnow: Conservation Planning and Implementation (w/G.L. Grammer, J. Walker, M.Woodrey, R. Calderon, & D. Ruple). Fundulus jenkinsi image taken by G. Grammer.  [3A] Grand Bay Intertidal Oyster Restoration Project and Study (w/A. Stricklin, C. May & N. Vickey). [4A] [4B] [4C] [4D] [4E] [4F] Faunal composition and food web dynamics in natural versus constructed intertidal oyster reefs in the northern Gulf of Mexico: a partnership approach to sustainable restoration (w/A. Stricklin). Ecosystem-based management – ecosystem models (w/R.S. Fulford).[6A] Mapping coastal habitat parameters in the Pascagoula River estuary: tools to protect and preserve coastal habitat diversity and sustainability (w/S. T. Ross);[7A][7B][7C] Ecology and impact of non-native cichlid fishes and decapods in coastal marsh ecosystems (w/W. T. Slack);[8A][8B][8C][8D][8E][8F]	Research Interests 1-5
	Research Interests 6-9

Fisheries Ecology Program Lab Personnel:

Current Graduate Students:

Alix Guidry (Ph.D. candidate) Faunal colonization and food web dynamics of natural and restored intertidal oyster beds.

Mike Lowe (Ph.D. student). Community metrics and trophic dynamics in tidal creeks in an anthropogenically fragmented, coastal landscape.

Jeanne-Marie Havrylkoff (M.S. student). Ontogenetic routes of movement of Gulf sturgeon from summer staging areas to the coast in the Pascagoula River system.

Erik T. Lang (M.S. student).Reproductive life history of the saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi, in coastal Mississippi, with the production of a comparative diagnostic key for young stages of select members of the genus Fundulus.

Former University of Southern Mississippi Graduate Students:

• John D. Lopez (M.S.) August 2009. Characterization of habitat, abundance, distribution and perspectives on Fundulus jenkinsi (saltmarsh topminnow) life history in the north-central Gulf of Mexico.
• Kim Dawson-Guynn (M.S.) May 2007. A review of mercury in fishes with a detailed treatment of mercury in patagonian toothfish, Dissostichus eleginoides Smitt 1898, among three distinct ocean basins.
• Jennifer L. McDonald (M.S.) December 2006. Habitat characteristics and reproductive behavior of introduced Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) in coastal Mississippi: interactions with native centrarchids?
• Melissa L. Partyka (M.S.) August 2005. Salt marsh communities in an anthropogenic landscape: habitat characteristics, distribution and density of infauna, epifauna and nekton along an estuarine gradient.
• Tami Wells (M.S.) May 2005. Hyperspectral remote sensing of noxious aquatic vegetation in the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta, Alabama. (co-chair).
• Gretchen Waggy (M.S.) December 2004. Life history of the silver perch, Bairdiella chrysoura Lacepède in the north-central Gulf of Mexico.
• Brian J. Lezina (M.S.) August 2004. Life history of the Gulf toadfish, Opsanus beta in the north-central Gulf of Mexico.
• Ches Vervaeke (M.S.) May 2004. Stage-structured predator/prey interactions between seasonal transients and permanent residents of an estuary: A testing of the "window of vulnerability" hypothesis.
• Gregory L. Fulling (Ph.D.) May 2001. Prey patchiness and the associated distribution and growth of larval anchovies: an estuarine landscape perspective.
• Christa M. Woodley (M.S.) May 2001. Measuring predation threat using behavioral and physiological metrics: implications for habitat loss in estuarine ecosystems.
• Eric J. Pederson (M.S.) December 2000. Bryozoa as ephemeral estuarine habitat: use by invertebrates and young fishes.
• J. Read Hendon (M.S.) August 1998. Spatial and temporal distribution of Gobiid fishes in natural and altered marsh-edge habitats.
• Douglas J. Snyder (M.S.) December 1997. Life history of a peripheral population of bluespotted sunfish, Enneacanthus gloriosus in southern Mississippi.

Former Mississippi State University Graduate Students:

• Gregorious N. Susanto (M.S.) December 1994. Salinity tolerance, osmoregulation, and respiratory physiology of coastal largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides.
• Steven J. VanderKooy (M.S.) August 1994. Survival of juvenile walleye, Stizostedion vitreum, in riverine systems: test of the prey size vulnerability and swimming performance hypotheses.
• Natalie J. Musselman (M.S.) July 1993. Interaction of salinity and prey salt content on osmoregulation and growth of juvenile bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus.

• Marine Ichthyology (COA 421/521) and Marine Ichthyology Laboratory (COA 421L/521L)
  The objective of this course is to provide the student with a sound foundation in ichthyology and fish biology/ecology within a marine laboratory setting. Working in this setting provides the students with intensive hands-on experience with tidal freshwater to marine fishes and the habitats that these fish use during all or part of their life history. The course will be split equally between lecture and laboratory and the students will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of the principles involved with classification, taxonomy and evolutionary relationships of fishes. The lecture will cover fundamental topics of fishes (systematics, physiology, biology) and a brief overview of fishes in different aquatic habitats. Laboratory will focus on identification of fishes and discussions on their ecology.
• Coastal Processes II (COA 602)
  In this course, we examine a conceptual framework encompassing biotic processes in pelagic, benthic, and land margin subsystems. Coupling among coastal subsystems will be emphasized so that an integrated framework is developed. The objective of this course is to provide the graduate student with a knowledge of fundamental biotic processes in coastal ecosystems. It is offered in conjunction with a complementary course stressing abiotic processes (Coastal Processes I). Team-taught upon request.
• Ecology of Fishes (COA 746)
  This course would be taken by graduate students that wish to have a more advanced treatment of fish ecology/biology. Although the course focuses on fish ecology, the non-lecture portion of the course will provide a better understanding of experimental design in field and laboratory situations. The course utilizes fish as a tool, but the development of pre-proposal designs and statistical analyses and presentation of papers will be very useful for all graduate students.
• Topics in Fisheries Ecology (COA 742)
  This advanced topics course changes focus each semester based in part on graduate student needs and interests. Graduate students and faculty read a series of related papers (or books) and the students generally lead detailed discussions upon which they are evaluated. The course is designed to intensely evaluate the primary literature on the subject and in some terms, interested students in the class actually do a research project.  In recent semesters the focus has been:
• Restoration Science (Spring 2009 w/R. Fulford)
• Biology of Fishes w/research project (Fall 2008)
• Marine Metapopulations & Metacommunities (Fall 2007)
• Global Climate Change and Fisheries (Fall 2005)
• Historical Ecology (Spring 2005)
• Fishes in Estuaries (Fall 2003)
• Statistical Approaches in Coastal Ecology (Fall 1999, w/C. Rakocinski)
• Recruitment of Fishes to Coral Reef Systems (Fall 1998, w/C. Rakocinski)
• Metapopulation Biology/Landscape Ecology (Spring 1998, w/C. Rakocinski)

Comprehensive Publications List:

• Lopez, J.D. and M.S. Peterson. (In review). Trophic ecology and gape limitation in the rare saltmarsh topminnow (Fundulus jenkinsi): trophic relay in a saltmarsh landscape. Copeia.
• Lopez, J.D., E.T. Lang, M.S. Peterson, and A.M. Charbonnet. (In review). Sexually dimorphic characters and ovarian dynamics of the rare saltmarsh topminnow (Fundulus jenkinsi). Environmental Biology of Fishes.
• Schofield, P.J., M.S. Peterson, M.R. Lowe, N.J. Brown-Peterson, and W.T. Slack. (In review). Survival, growth and reproduction responses of nonindigenous Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus (Linnaeus, 1758) to temperature and salinity: invasive potential across brackish water ecosystems.  Biological Invasions.
• Lopez, J.D., M.S. Peterson, J. Walker, G.L. Grammer, and M.S. Woodrey. (in revision). Distribution, abundance, and habitat characterization of the Saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi (Everman 1892). Estuaries and Coasts.
• Grammer, G.L., N.J. Brown-Peterson, M.S. Peterson, and B.H. Comyns. (2010). Life history of silver perch, (Bairdiella chrysoura Lacepeded 1803), in north-central Gulf of Mexico estuaries. Gulf of Mexico Science (2009(1):12p.
• Peterson, M.S. and M.R. Lowe. (2009) Alterations to estuarine and marine habitat quality and fish and invertebrate resources: what have we wrought and where do we go? Proceedings of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute 61:256-262.
• Headley, M.D., H.A. Oxenford, M.S. Peterson and P. Fanning. (2009). Size-related variation in summer diet of blackfin tuna (Thunnus atlanticus Lesson, 1831), in Tobago, the Lesser Antilles. Journal of Applied Ichthyology.
• Peterson, M.S. and M.R. Lowe. (2009). Implications of cumulative impacts to estuarine and marine habitat quality for fish and invertebrate resources. Reviews in Fisheries Science 17(4):505-523. Please contact author for PDF.
• Partyka, M.L. and M.S. Peterson. (2008). Habitat quality and salt marsh species assemblages along an anthropogenic estuarine landscape. Journal of Coastal Research 24(6):1570-1581. DOWNLOAD PDF.
• Comyns, B.H., C.F. Rakocinski, M.S. Peterson and A.M. Shiller. (2008). Otolith microchemistry of juvenile spotted seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus, reflects local natal regions across coastal Mississippi.  Marine Ecology Progress Series 371:243-252. DOWNLOAD PDF.
• Jackson, D.C., M.O'Connell, J. Delabbio, M.S. Peterson, J. Franks, and H. Perry. (2008). After the Storm: Post-Katrina Reflections from AFS Members in Louisiana and Mississippi. Fisheries 33(4):186-191. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rakocinski, C.F., C.A. Moncreiff, M.S. Peterson, K.E. VanderKooy and T.A. Randall. (2008). Habitat condition and associated macrofaunal effect differences between protected and exposed seagrass landscapes. Gulf and Caribbean Research 20:11-19. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Dawson-Guynn, K. and M.S. Peterson. (2008). Mercury concentration in Patagonian toothfish, Dissostichus eleginoides Smitt 1898, among three distinct stocks.  Polar Biology 31(3):269-274. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., G.L. Waggy, and S. LeCroy. (2007). Nekton. Pages 197-212 in Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve: An Ecological Characterization (Peterson, M.S., G.L. Waggy, and M.S. Woodrey, editors). Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Moss Point, Mississippi, 268p.
• Waggy, G.L., M.S. Peterson, and B.H. Comyns. (2007). Feeding habits and mouth morphology of young silver perch, Bairdiella chrysoura, from the north-central Gulf of Mexico. Southeastern Naturalist 6(4):743-751. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Abarca-Arenas, L.G., J. Franco-Lopez, M.S. Peterson, N.J. Brown-Peterson and E. Valero-Pacheco. (2007). Sociometric analysis of the role of penaeids in the continental shelf food web off Alvarado coast, Veracruz, Mexico based on by-catch. Fisheries Research 87:46-57. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., M.R. Weber, M.L. Partyka, and S.T. Ross. (2007). Integrating in situ quantitative geographic information tools and size-specific laboratory-based growth zones in a dynamic river-mouth estuary. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 17(6):602-618. Please contact author for PDF.
• Peterson, M.S., N.J. Brown-Peterson, and J.S. Franks. (2007). Editorial Comments - Large Pelagic Fishes in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico: Current Status and Integrated Management. Gulf and Caribbean Research 19(2):1-3. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Brown-Peterson, N.J., J.S. Franks, M.S. Peterson, P. McConney, and B.E. Luckhurst. (2007). Where do we go from here?  A summary of issues of concern and recommendations developed during the panel discussion of the Large Pelagic Fishes Symposium. Gulf and Caribbean Research 19(2):161-162. DOWNLOAD PDF
• McDonald, J.L., M.S. Peterson, and W.T. Slack. (2007). Morphology, density, and spatial patterning of reproductive bowers in an established alien population of Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus Linnaeus. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 22(3):461-468. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Schofield, P.J., W.T. Slack, M.S. Peterson, and D.R. Gregoire. (2007). Assessment and control of an invasive aquaculture species: an update on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) in coastal Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina. Southeastern Fishes Council, Proceedings 49:9-15. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and M.L. Partyka. (2006).Baseline mapping of common reed, Phragmites australis, in three coastal Mississippi estuarine basins. Southeastern Naturalist 5(4):747-756. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rakocinski, C.F., M.S. Peterson, B.H. Comyns, G.A. Zapfe, and G.L. Fulling. (2006). Do abiotic factors drive fluctuation in the early growth of juvenile spot (Leiostomus xanthuruus)? Fisheries Research 82(1-3):186-193. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Waggy, G.L., N.J. Brown-Peterson, and M.S. Peterson. (2006). Evaluation of the reproductive life history of the Sciaenidae in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea: "greater" versus "lesser" strategies? Proceedings of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute 57: 263-281. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., W.T. Slack, G.L. Waggy, J. Finley, C.M. Woodley, and M.L. Partyka. (2006). Foraging in non-native environments: comparison of Nile tilapia and three co-occuring native centrarchids in invaded coastal Mississippi watersheds. Environmental Biology of Fishes 76:283-301. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Reed, D.J., M.S. Peterson, and B.J. Lezina. (2006). Reducing the effects of dredged material levees on coastal marsh function: sediment deposition and nekton utilization. Environmental Management. 37(5):671-685. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Cruz-Escalona, V.H., M.S. Peterson, L. Campos-Dávila, and M. Zetina-Rejón. (2005). Feeding habits and trophic morphology of Inshore Lizardfish (Synodus foetens) on the central continental shelf off Veracruz, Gulf of Mexico. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 21:525-530. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and N.J. Brown-Peterson. (2005). Special section on research activities at the Iztacala campus of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México. Gulf and Caribbean Research 17(1):121. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Chávez-López, R., M.S. Peterson and N.J. Brown-Peterson, A.A. Morales-Gómez, and J. Franco-López. (2005). Ecology of the Mayan cichlid, Cichlosoma urophthalmus Günther, in the Alvarado lagoonal system, Veracruz, Mexico. Gulf and Caribbean Research 17(1):123-132. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Morán Silva, A., L. Antonio Martínez Franco, R. Chávez López, J. Franco López, C. Manuel Bedia Sánchez, F. Contreras Espinosa, F. Gutiérrez Mendieta, N.J.Brown-Peterson, and M.S. Peterson. (2005). Seasonal and spatial patterns in salinity, nutrients and chlorophyll a in the Alvarado lagoonal system, Veracruz, Mexico. Gulf and Caribbean Research 17(1):133-144 DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., W.T. Slack, and C.M. Woodley. (2005). The occurrence of non-indigenous Nile Tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus (Linnaeus) in coastal Mississippi: ties to aquaculture and thermal effluent. Wetlands 25(1):112-121. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., W.T. Slack, N.J. Brown-Peterson, and J.L. McDonald. (2004). Reproduction in non-native environments: establishment of the Nile Tilapia Oreochromis niloticus in coastal Mississippi watersheds. Copeia 2004(4):842-849. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., B.H. Comyns, C.F. Rakocinski, and G.L. Fulling. (2004). Defining the fundamental physiological niche of young estuarine fishes and its relationship to understanding distribution, vital metrics, and optimal nursery conditions. Environmental Biology of Fishes 71(2):143-149. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Cházaro-Olvera, S. and M.S. Peterson. (2004). Effects of salinity on growth and molting of sympatric Callinectes spp. from Camaronera Lagoon, Veracruz, México. Bulletin of Marine Science 74(1):115-127. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and N.J. Brown-Peterson. (2004). Introduction to special section on research activities at the Iztacala campus of the Universidad Nácional Autónoma de México, México. Gulf and Caribbean Research 16:77-78. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Hernandez-Saavedra, R., J.A. Martinez-Perez, N.J. Brown-Peterson, and M.S. Peterson. (2004) Gonadal development and sexual dimorphism of Gobiomorus dormitor from the estuarine system of Tecolutla, Veracruz, Mexico. Gulf and Caribbean Research 16: 95-100. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Mata-Cortes, S., J.A. Martinez-Perez, and M.S. Peterson. (2004). Feeding habits and sexual dimorphism of the Violet Goby, Gobioides broussoneti Lacepede (Pisces: Gobiidae), in the estuarine system of Tecolutla, Veracruz, Mexico. Gulf and Caribbean Research 16: 89-93. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. (2003). A conceptual view of environment-habitat-production linkages in tidal-river estuaries. Reviews in Fisheries Science 11(4):291-313. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Woodley, C.M. and M.S. Peterson. (2003). Measuring responses to simulated predation threat using behavioral and physiological metrics: the role of aquatic vegetation. Oecologia 136(1):150-155. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., G.L. Fulling, and C.M. Woodley. (2003). Status and habitat characteristics of the saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi (Evermann), in eastern Mississippi and western Alabama coastal bayou’s. Gulf and Caribbean Research 15:51-59. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Woodley, C.M., W.T. Slack, M.S. Peterson, and W.C. Vervaeke. (2002). Occurrence of the non-indigenous prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii (deMan 1879) in Simmons Bayou, Mississippi, U.S.A. Crustaceana 75(8):1025-1031. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Pederson, E.J. and M.S. Peterson. (2002). Bryozoa as an ephemeral estuarine habitat and a larval transport mechanism for mobile benthos and young fishes in the north-central Gulf of Mexico. Marine Biology 140(5):935-947. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Brown-Peterson, N.J., M.S. Peterson, M.D. Murphy, and J.R. Warren. (2002). Reproductive biology of female spotted seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus, in the northern Gulf of Mexico: differences among estuaries? Environmental Biology of Fishes 63:405-415. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rakocinski, C.F., B.H. Comyns, M.S. Peterson, and G.A. Zapfe. (2002). Field growth responses of juvenile white trout (Cynoscion arenarius) to continuous variation in physical habitat conditions. Proceedings of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute 53:623-635. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Hendon, J.R., M.S. Peterson, and B.H. Comyns. (2001). Seasonal distribution of gobiids in waters adjacent to estuarine marsh-edge habitats: assessing the effects of habitat alteration. Proceedings of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute 52:428-441. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., L.C. Nicholson, G.L. Fulling, and D.J. Snyder. (2000). Catch-per-unit-effort, environmental conditions and spawning migration of Cycleptus meridionalis Burr and Mayden in coastal rivers of the northern Gulf of Mexico. The American Midland Naturalist 143(2):414-421. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., C.F. Rakocinski, B.H. Comyns, and G.L. Fulling. (2000). Laboratory growth responses of juvenile Mugil sp. to temperature and salinity: delineating optimal field growth conditions. Proceedings of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute 51:341-352. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., B.H. Comyns, J.R. Hendon, P.A. Bond, and G.A. Duff. (2000). Habitat use by early life-history stages of fishes and crustaceans along a changing estuarine landscape: differences between natural and altered shoreline sites. Wetlands Ecology and Management 8(2/3):209-219. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rakocinski, C.F., B.H. Comyns, and M.S. Peterson. (2000). Relating environmental fluctuation and early growth of estuarine fishes: ontogenetic standardization. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society. 129(1):210-221. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Hendon, J.R., M.S. Peterson, and B.H. Comyns. (2000). Spatio-temporal distribution of larval Gobiosoma bosc adjacent to natural and altered marsh-edge habitats of Mississippi coastal waters. Bulletin of Marine Science 66(1):143-156. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., L.C. Nicholson, D.J. Snyder, and G.L. Fulling. (1999). Growth, spawning prepardness and diet of Cycleptus meridionalis (Catostomidae). Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 128(5):900-908. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Fulling, G.L., M.S. Peterson, and G.J. Crego. (1999). Comparison of Breder traps and seines used to sample marsh nekton. Estuaries 22(2A):224-230. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Snyder, D.J. and M.S. Peterson. (1999). Foraging and prey selection by bluespotted sunfish Enneacanthus gloriosus (Holbrook) in backwater, vegetated ponds in coastal Mississippi. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 14(2):187-196. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., B.H. Comyns, C.F. Rakocinski, and G.L. Fulling. (1999). Does salinity affect growth in juvenile Atlantic croaker, Micropogonias undulatus (Linnaeus)? Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 238:199-207. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Snyder, D.J. and M.S. Peterson. (1999). Life history of a peripheral population of bluespotted sunfish Enneacanthus gloriosus, with comments on geographic variation. The American Midland Naturalist 141(2):345-357. DOWNLOAD PDF
• VanderKooy, S.J. and M.S. Peterson. (1998). Critical current speeds for young Gulf Coast walleyes. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 127:137-140. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Crego, G.J. and M.S. Peterson. (1997). Salinity tolerance of four ecologically distinct species of Fundulus (Pisces:Fundulidae) from the northern Gulf of Mexico. Gulf of Mexico Science 15(1):45-49. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rakocinski, C.F., M.S. Peterson, S.J. VanderKooy, and G.J. Crego. (1997). Biodiversity patterns of littoral tidal-river fishes in the Gulf coastal-plain region of Mississippi, USA. Gulf of Mexico Science 15(1):2-16. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and S.J. VanderKooy. (1997). Distribution, habitat characterization and aspects of reproduction of a peripheral population of bluespotted sunfish Enneacanthus gloriosus (Holbrook). Journal of Freshwater Ecology 12(1):151-161. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. (1997). Spatial and temporal changes in subtidal benthic crustaceans along a coastal river-estuarine gradient in Mississippi. Gulf Research Reports 9(4):321-326. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and S.J. VanderKooy. (1996). Preservation-induced changes in morphology of fishes: influence on prey size-choice in juvenile walleye, Stizostedion vitreum (Mitchill). Ecology of Freshwater Fish 5:133-139. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., J.F. Fitzpatrick Jr., and S.J. VanderKooy. (1996). Distribution and habitat use by dwarf crayfishes (Decapoda:Cambaridae:Cambarellus). Wetlands 16(4):594-598. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Susanto, G.N. and M.S. Peterson. (1996). Survival, osmoregulation and oxygen consumption of YOY coastal largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides (Lacepede) exposed to saline media. Hydrobiologia 323(2):119-127. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and S.J. VanderKooy. (1995). Phenology and spatial and temporal distribution of larval fishes in a partially channelized warmwater stream. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 4:93-105. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Musselman, N.J., M.S. Peterson and W.J. Diehl. (1995). Interaction of salinity and prey salt content on intestinal Na+/K+-ATPase activity and growth of juvenile bluegill Lepomis macrochirus. Environmental Biology of Fishes 42:303-311. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and M.R. Meador. (1994). Effects of salinity on freshwater fishes in coastal plain drainages in the southeastern United States. Reviews in Fisheries Science 2(2):95-121. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. (1993). Notes on the habitat characteristics of the backwater darter, Etheostoma zonifer (Hubbs and Cannon). Southeastern Fishes Council, Proceedings 28:1-7. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., N.J. Musselman, J. Francis, G. Habron, and K. Dierlof. (1993). Lack of salinity selection by freshwater and brackish populations of juvenile bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus Rafinesque. Wetlands 13(3):194-199. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. (1993). Thermal tolerance of Iowa and Mississippi populations of juvenile walleye, Stizostedion vitreum. Copeia 1993(3):890-894. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Brown-Peterson, N.J., M.S. Peterson, D.A. Rydene, and R.W. Eames. (1993). Fish assemblages in natural and well-established recolonized seagrass meadows. Estuaries 16(2):177-189. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and J.P. Key. (1992). Evaluation of hand-tagging juvenile walleye with binary-coded wire microtags. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 12(4):814-818. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and N.J. Brown-Peterson. (1992). Growth under stressed conditions in juvenile channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus Rafinesque as measured by nucleic acids. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 103A(2):323-327. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and B.E. Ardahl. (1992). Automated maintenance of dissolved oxygen concentrations in flow-through aquaria. Aquaculture 101(3/4):379-384. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. (1991). Differential length-weight relations among centrarchids (Pisces: Centrarchidae) from tidal freshwater and oligohaline wetland habitats. Wetlands 11(2):325-332. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rey, J.R., T. Kain, R.A. Crossman, M.S. Peterson, J. Shaffer, and F. Vose. (1991). Zooplankton of impounded marshes and shallow areas of a sub-tropical lagoon. Florida Scientist 54(3/4):191-203. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., R.E. Brockmeyer, and D.M. Scheidt. (1991). Hypoxia-induced changes in vertical position and activity in juvenile snook, Centropomus undecimalis (Bloch): its potential role in survival. Florida Scientist 54(3/4):173-178. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and S.T. Ross. (1991). Dynamics of littoral fishes and decapods along a coastal river-estuarine gradient. Estuarine, Coastal & Shelf Science 33(5):467-483. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and R.G. Gilmore, Jr. (1991). Eco-physiology of juvenile snook, Centropomus undecimalis (Bloch): life-history implications. Bulletin of Marine Science 48(1):46-57. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rey, J.R., M.S. Peterson, T.R. Kain, F.E. Vose, and R.A. Crossman. (1990). Fish populations and physical conditions in ditched and impounded marshes in east-central Florida. Northeast Gulf Science 11(2):163-170. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. (1990). Hypoxia-induced physiological changes in two mangrove swamp fishes: sheepshead minnow, Cyprinodon variegatus Lacepede and sailfin molly, Poecilia latipinna (Lesueur). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 97A(1):17-21. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Brown-Peterson, N. and M.S. Peterson. (1990). Comparative life history of female mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis in tidal freshwater and oligohaline habitats. Environmental Biology of Fishes 27(1):33-41. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and R.G. Gilmore, Jr. (1988). Hematocrit, osmolality and ion concentration in fishes: consideration of circadian patterns in the experimental design. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 121(1):73-78. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. (1988). Comparative physiological ecology of centrarchids in hyposaline environments. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 45(5):827-833. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S. and S.T. Ross. (1987). Morphometric and meristic characteristics of a peripheral population of Enneacanthus. Southeastern Fishes Council, Proceedings 17:1-4. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Rey, J.R., R. Crossman, T.R. Kain, F.E. Vose and M.S. Peterson. (1987). Sampling zooplankton in very shallow marsh and estuarine habitats: gear description and field tests. Estuaries 10(1):61-67. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Peterson, M.S., D.E. Gustafson, Jr., and F.R. Moore. (1987). Orientation behavior of Lepomis macrochirus Rafinesque to salinity fluctuations. Journal of Fish Biology 30(4):451-458. DOWNLOAD PDF
• Kerschner, B.A., M.S. Peterson, and R.G. Gilmore, Jr. (1985). Ecotopic and ontogenetic trophic variation in the mojarras (Pisces: Gerreidae). Estuaries 8(3):311-322. DOWNLOAD PDF

Book Reviews:

• Estuarine Research, Monitoring, and Resource Protection. M.J. Kennish (ed), CRC Press. Copeia 2004(4):957-958.
• Stemming the Tide: Controlling Introductions of Nonindigenous Species in Ships' Ballast Water. National Research Council. 1997. Estuaries 20(4):819-820.

Current Research

• 2009-2010. Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, Tidelands Trust Fund, "Ecosystem-based management: assessing ecosystem services of oyster reefs using stable isotope signatures." (w/K.S. Dillon & R. Fulford).
• 2009. NOAA – Office of Oceanic & Atmospheric Research, NGI initiative, "Participation in the NGI prototype Integrated Ecosystem Assessment for the northern Gulf of Mexico." (w/R. Fulford & S. Lohrenz).
• 2008-10. State Wildlife Grant program, Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, "Habitat characteristics and aspects of the reproductive life history of the saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi, in Mississippi coastal watersheds, with the production of a comparative diagnostic key for young stages of select members of the genus Fundulus" (w/WT Slack).
• 2007-10. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, “Gulf sturgeon, Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi, in the  Pascagoula drainage, Mississippi: post-Hurricane Katrina assessment of habitat and movement of the juvenile cohort” (w/WT Slack).
• 2007-09 - NOAA – Office of Oceanic & Atmospheric Research, CIGoM initiative, “Identifying critical habitat across multiple scales for estuarine-dependent fishes with a landscape modeling approach” (w/R. Fulford).
• 2006-11 - NOAA Office of Protected Fisheries, Proactive Species Conservation Grant Program, ”Fundulus jenkinsi, Saltmarsh Topminnow: Conservation Planning and Implementation.” (w/D. Ruple, R. Calderon, G. Waggy, & M. Woodrey).

Past Research

• 2008 - Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve Program, "Stable isotope analysis of constructed and natural oyster reefs in the Grand Bay NERR."
• 2006-08 - NOAA/Nature Conservancy and NOAA, National Estuarine Research Reserve Program, "Grand Bay intertidal oyster restoration project and study."
• 2006 - MS Department of Marine Resources, “Fish survey of Grand Bay NERR.”
• 2005 - United States Forest Service, “Water quality measurements in selected sites of the DeSoto National Forest” (June-September 2005).
• 2005-06 - Harte Research Institute, “Development of a searchable CD of all issues of Gulf and Caribbean Research (formerly Gulf Research Reports)”.
• 2004-06 - Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, Tidelands Trust Fund, “A pilot study to develop quantitative marsh function assessment measures in various restoration projects being planned along the Mississippi Gulf coast ” (w/ J. Campbell, B.H. Comyns, & C.F. Rakocinski).
• 2004-06 - Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, “Use of otolith microchemistry of spotted seatrout to identify stock source-areas, reveal population movements, and determine interannual variability in regional patterns of otolith signatures in Mississippi coastal waters.” (w/B.H. Comyns, C.F. Rakocinski, & A. Shiller).
• 2002-06 - NOAA Coastal Impact Assistance Program, MS-DEQ, “Present and future coastal wetlands and sustainable diversity: coast-wide mapping of the highly invasive common reed, Phragmites australis.”
• 2002-06 - NOAA Coastal Impact Assistance Program, MS-DEQ, “Maintaining responsible coastal and estuarine waterfront development in Mississippi: mapping and quantifying shoreline habitat types.” (w/B.H. Comyns).
• 2003-06 - Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, Tidelands Trust Fund, “Use of otolith (earbone) microchemistry to determine the importance of specific habitats and regions for juvenile red drum.” (w/B.H. Comyns & C.F. Rakocinski).
• 2004-05 - NOAA, National Estuarine Research Reserve Program, “Development of the Site Profile for the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.”
• 2003-05 - Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, “Observations following surgical implantation of acoustic transmitters in non-indigenous Nile tilapia (Cichlidae: Oreochromis niloticus).”
• 2004-05 - PAPCA program of the Faciltidad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, “Calidad ecologica de los habitat de pastos sumergidos (Ruppia maritima) para los peces del sistema langunar de Alvarado, Veracruz.” (w/R. Chavez-Lopez & A. Rocha-Ramirez).
• 2004-05 - National Science Foundation, FSML Program, “Developing a strategic plan for expansion and renovation of education and research facilities at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.” (DBI 0330298; w/J.L. Williams).
• 2003-05 - NOAA - Coastal Restoration and Enhancement through Science and Technology Program (CREST), “Does habitat fragmentation and shoreline hardening alter density, growth and mortality patterns of fishes in an estuarine landscape?” (w/Melissa Partyka).
• 2001-03 - Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, “Fisheries recruitment in the northcentral Gulf of Mexico: can important geographic sources of juvenile nursery habitat be determined using otolith microchemistry?.” (R/SP-4; w/B.H. Comyns, C.F. Rakocinski, & A. Shiller).
• 2003-04 - Environmental Defense, “Jump-starting the environmental careers of minority students from the southern Gulf of Mexico.” (w/N.J. Brown-Peterson).
• 2003-04 - The Harte Research Institute, “English language publication of student research from the southern Gulf of Mexico.” (w/N.J. Brown-Peterson).
• 2003-04 - USM College of Science and Technology, “Development of an international education and research program with Mexico.” (w/N.J. Brown-Peterson).
• 2003-04 - Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, “A field guide to aquatic habitats and common fauna of the northern Gulf of Mexico: Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana to St. Joseph’s Bay, Florida.” (ED-11-PD; w/K. Heck, Jr.).
• 2002-04 - NOAA Coastal Impact Assistance Program, MS-DEQ, “Mapping coastal habitat parameters in the Pascagoula River estuary: tools to protect and preserve coastal habitat diversity and sustainability.” w/S.T. Ross).
• 2002-03 - Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute, Special Symposium Issue of Gulf and Caribbean Research entitled “Caribbean Marine Protected Areas.”
• 2001-03 - Waterways Experiment Station, USACE, “Can gapping material levees improve sustainability and nekton utilization in Louisiana coastal salt marshes?.” (w/D.J. Reed).
• 2001-02 - NOAA, National Estuarine Research Reserve Program, “The Grand Bay National Research Reserve: initial habitat-specific essential fish habitat study and establishment of the SWMP I program.” (w/C.F. Rakocinski).
• 2000-02 - U.S. Department of the Interior, Sport Fish Aid Restoration Funds, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries & Parks, “The influence of invasive, non-native tilapiine fishes on freshwater recreational fishes in south Mississippi: spatial/ temporal distribution, species associations, and trophic interactions.” (w/W.T. Slack).
• 2000-01 - A.K. and E.G. Lucas Endowment for Faculty Excellence Award, USM, “Validation of the use of fluctuating asymmetry in fish otoliths as an environmental indicator of habitat quality.” (w/M. Brouwer).
• 2000-01 U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, New Orleans District, “Projecting the effects of management actions on fisheries species in the Vermillion-Atchafalaya coastal bays.” (w/D.J. Reed & L.P. Rozas).
• 1999 - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Section 6 Program, "Distribution and habitat characteristics of the saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi (Evermann) in eastern Mississippi bayous.” (w/G.L. Fulling).
• 1999 - The Nature Conservancy, "Distribution and habitat characteristics of the saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi (Evermann) in western Alabama bayous.” (GB1999-01, w/G.L. Fulling).
• 1999 - Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, "Nekton densities in the Pascagoula River estuary: anthropogenic effects on essential fish habitat.” (R/ER-45PD; w/C.F. Rakocinski & B.H. Comyns).
• 1999 - Caribbean Marine Research Center/National Undersea Research Program (NOAA), (CMRC-99-7301) and College of Marine Sciences, USM, “Habitat-specific early recruitment of snappers in Exuma Sound.” (w/C.F. Rakocinski & B.H. Comyns).
• 1999 - Office of Vice President for Research, The University of Southern Mississippi, “Publication of supplemental issue of Volume 11(S) of Gulf Research Reports.”
• 1997-98 - Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, Tidelands Funds, "Quantitative assessment of resources in protected and non-protected seagrass habitats.” (w/ C.A. Moncreiff, & C.F. Rakocinski).
• 1996-97 - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Section 6 Program, "Relative abundance, life history and habitat characteristics of the blue sucker Cyclepterus elongatus (Lesueur) in the lower Pascagoula and Pearl River systems in Mississippi." (w/L.C. Nicholson).
• 1996 - Mississippi Wildlife Heritage Program, "Distribution and habitat characteristics of the saltmarsh topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi (Evermann)."
• 1995-01 - Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, "Recruitment dynamics and the effects of environmental variation on early growth and survival of important estuarine fishes." (#R/ER-39; w/C.F. Rakocinski & B.H. Comyns).
• 1995-97 - Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, Tidelands Funds, "Use of Mississippi marsh-edge habitats as a nursery for young fishes and invertebrates." (w/B.H. Comyns).
• 1995-96 - USDA-ARS, Cooperative Research Agreement, "Impacts of MSEA on fisheries characteristics and ecology of Mississippi Delta watersheds and oxbow lakes."
• 1994-95 - U.S. Forest Service, "A survey of fishes in the Biloxi and Tchoutacabouffa Rivers and Tuxachanie Creek of the Desoto National Forest."
• 1993-95 - Mississippi Wildlife Heritage Fund, "Distribution and habitat characteristics of the bluespotted sunfish, Enneacanthus gloriosus (Holbrook)."
• 1993-94 - Mississippi State University, Office of Research, "Support for curation of the Mississippi State Ichthyological Collection."
• 1993-94 - Mississippi State University, Office of Research, "Preliminary evaluation of a highly sensitive nucleic acid protocol for evaluation of short term environmental stressors in fish (w/M.L. Salin)."
• 1992-94 - U.S. Department of the Interior, Sport Fish Aid Restoration Funds, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries & Parks, "Investigation of the role and timing of prey availability on the walleye stocking program in the Luxapalila Creek."
• 1990-92 - Mississippi Wildlife Heritage Program, "Distribution and habitat association of the backwater darter, Etheostoma zonifer in northeast Mississippi drainages."