Marty Meyer
Department of Zoology,
University of Hawai`i
2538 McCarthy Mall,
Edmondson 152
Honolulu, HI 96822
meyerwal@hawaii.edu
www2.hawaii.edu/~meyerwal/

Research Interests:
I have an array of research interests. However, I am particularly interested in how changes the size, distribution, and genetic composition of populations impact ecosystem processes. Much of the current concern over the extinction crisis centers on the loss of species. However, the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem processes is primarily a function of populations of species, and population change can have a substantial impact on an ecosystem that is independent of changes in species richness.

Native Hawaiian succineid land-snails are a great model group in which to study these relationships. They face many threats including habitat loss/modification and the introduction of predators which includes 2 snail predators: the rosy wolf snail, Euglandina rosea, and the omnivorous garlic snail, Oxychilus alliarius. However, they are still abundant enough to conduct manipulative experiments. My three research questions for my Ph.D. thesis include:

1) What is the status of the 3 succineid species found between Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and the Saddle Rd. on the island of Hawaii?

2) What potential impacts do the introduced predatory snail species have on the populations of succineids?

3)What is the functional role of succineids in their environment, and how does density impact ecosystem processes provided by these snails?