Phil Brown
Phil Brown - Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
Phil Brown is an aquatic biologist with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resource’s Great Salt Lake Ecosystem Program. He received a Bachelors degree in watershed science from Utah State University and a Masters degree in freshwater ecology from Oregon State University in 2008.
A native of Utah, Phil shamefully had never visited the Great Salt Lake until he worked on the lake as a research technician in 2005 for Dr. Wayne Wurtsbaugh of Utah State University. Now he is thrilled to be conducting field work and research for the Great Salt Lake Ecosystem Program, which is charged with monitoring the brine shrimp population and furthering knowledge of the lake’s ecology.
Abstract: Salinity tolerance of Artemia and Ephydra: uncertainty and discrepancies
A shrinking Great Salt Lake is expected to strain the current aquatic ecosystem through increased salinity. However, the upper range of salinity that can support viable brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana) and brine fly (Ephydra spp.) populations within this system is unknown to resource managers. Much of the existing research on salinity tolerance of Artemia has either examined different strains or species than those found in the Great Salt Lake, or focused on salinities well below those observed in Gilbert Bay for the past several years. Research on Ephydra is even more disparate. The results of existing studies often conflict and provide insufficient information to define the upper salinity level tolerated by these species. Additionally, it is unknown whether a direct physiological response to salinity or a change in algal food resources is the responsible stressor at high salinities. The identification of a maximum salinity threshold for the Great Salt Lake is important for determining a minimum acceptable lake elevation, and will require experiments specifically targeting the resident Artemia and Ephydra populations.
Wall of Birds by Charles Uibel
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