Malcolm G. Butler, Department of Biological Science, NDSU

My research focuses on limnology and wetland ecology, with emphasis on the ecological roles of invertebrates and vertebrates in lentic systems. I am also interested in the biology of the Chironomidae, especially the genus Chironomus. Current and recent research projects include:

Effects of water-level regulation on lake benthos in Voyageur’s National Park.
Effects of fish on wetlands in the prairie ecosystem.
Thermal ecology of aquatic insects in a spring-fed stream.
Systematics and ecology of Chironomus (Diptera: Chironomidae) in the Holarctic.
Limnology of a shallow prairie lake (Lake Christina) following biomanipulation.
Use of benthic macroinvertebrates in biological assessment of lakes and wetlands.
Biological characteristics of forested wetlands.

Professional Societies:

American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Society of Limnology and Oceanography
Ecological Society of America
International Association of Theoretical and Applied Limnology
North American Benthological Society
North Dakota Chapter of the Wildlife Society
Sigma Xi

Other Experience:

NATO Postdoctoral Fellow (studied Chironomus systematics at Zoologische Staatssammlung in Munich and Albert-Ludwigs-Universität in Freiburg, Germany) 1980-81.

Associate Editor, Journal of the North American Benthological Society (1993-1995)

Recent Publications:

Scheffer, M., G.J. van Geest, E. Jeppesen, K. Sondergaard, K.D. Zimmer, M.G. Butler, M.A. Hanson, S. Declerck, and L. De Meester. 2006. Small habitat size and isolation can promote species richness: second-order effects on biodiversity in shallow lakes and ponds. Oikos 112: 227-231.

Hanson, M.A., K.D. Zimmer, M.G. Butler, B.A. Tangen, B. Herwig and N.H. Euliss, Jr. 2005. Biotic interactions as determinants of ecosystem structure in prairie wetlands: an example using fish. Wetlands 25:764-775.

James, W.F., J.W. Barko, and M.G. Butler. 2004. Shear stress and sediment resuspension in relation to submersed macrophyte biomass. Hydrobiologia 515:181-191.

Zimmer, K.D., M.A. Hanson, M.G. Butler. 2003. Relationships among nutrients, phytoplankton, macrophytes, and fish in prairie wetlands. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 60:721-730.

Zimmer, K.D., M.A. Hanson, M.G. Butler. 2003. Interspecies relationships, community structure, and factors influencing abundance of submersed macrophytes in prairie wetlands. Wetlands 23:717-728.

Laurich, L., K.D. Zimmer, M.G. Butler, and M.A. Hanson. 2003. Selectivity for zooplankton prey by fathead minnows and brook sticklebacks. Wetlands 23:416-422.

Tangen, Brian, M.G. Butler, and M.J. Ell. 2003. Potential limitations of macroinvertebrate bioassessment in Prairie Pothole Region wetlands. Wetlands 23:104-115.

Hansel-Welch, N., M.G. Butler, T.A. Carlson, and M.A.Hanson. 2003. Changes in macrophyte community structure in Lake Christina (Minnesota), a large shallow lake, following biomanipulation. Aquatic Botany 75:323-337.

Zimmer, K.D., M.A. Hanson, M.G. Butler. 2002. Effects of fathead minnows and drainage on prairie wetland ecosystems Freshwater Biology 47:2071-2086

Muscha, M.J., K.D. Zimmer,M.G. Butler, and M.A. Hanson. 2001. A comparison of horizontally and vertically deployed aquatic invertebrate activity traps. Wetlands 21:301-307.

Zimmer, K.D., M.A. Hanson, and M.G. Butler. 2001. Impacts of fathead minnow colonization and removal on a prairie wetland ecosystem. Ecosystems 4:346-357.

Melaas, C.L., K.D. Zimmer, M.G. Butler, and M.A.Hanson. 2001. Effects of rotenone on aquatic invertebrate communities in prairie wetlands. Hydrobiologia 459:177-186.

Zimmer, K.D., M.A. Hanson, M.G. Butler, and W.G. Duffy. 2001a. Influences of fathead minnows and aquatic macrophytes on nutrient partitioning and ecosystem structure in two prairie wetlands. Arch. Hydrobiol. 150:411-433.

Zimmer, K.D., M.A. Hanson, M.G. Butler, and W.G. Duffy. 2001b. Size distributions of aquatic invertebrates in two prairie wetlands, with and without fish, with implications for community production. Freshwater Biology.

Hansel-Welch, N., M.G. Butler, T.J. Carlson, and M.A. Hanson. 2000. Ten years of plant community change following biomanipulation of a large shallow lake. Verh. Int. Ver. Limnol. 27:3465-3469.

Kiknadze, I.I., M.G. Butler, V.V. Golygina, J. Martin, W.F. Wülker, J.E. Sublette, and M.F. Sublette. 2000. Intercontinental cytogenetic differentiation of Chironomus entis Shobanov, a Holarctic member of the C. plumosus group (Diptera, Chironomidae). Genome 43:857-873.

Butler, M.G. 2000. Tanytarsus aquavolans, spec. nov. and Tanytarsus nearcticus spec. nov., two surface-swarming midges from arctic tundra ponds. Spixiana 23:211-218.

Zimmer, K.D., M.A. Hanson, and M.G. Butler.2000. Factors influencing invertebrate community structure in prairie wetlands: A multivariate approach. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 57:76-85.

Noraker, T.D., K.D. Zimmer, M.G. Butler, and M.A. Hanson. 1999. Dispersion and distribution of marked fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) in prairie wetlands. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 14:287-292.

Butler, M.G., R.L. Rezanka, and K.M. Giovannielli. 1999. Utility of species-level identification of Chironomus larvae in biological assessment of prairie lakes. Verhandlungen, Internationale Vereinigung für Limnologie 27:273-277.

Butler, M.G., I.I. Kiknadze, V.V. Golygina, J. Martin, A.G. Istomina, W.F. Wülker, J.E. Sublette, and M.F. Sublette. 1999. Cytogenetic differentiation between Palearctic and Nearctic populations of Chironomus plumosus L. (Diptera, Chironomidae). Genome 42:797-815.

Kiknadze, I.I., M.G. Butler, K.G. Aimanova, E.N. Andreeva, J. Martin, and L.I. Gunderina. 1998. Divergent cytogenetic evolution in Nearctic and Palearctic populations of sibling species in the subgenus Camptochironomus Keiffer. Can. J. Zool. 76:361-376.

Cox, R.R. Jr., M.A. Hanson, C.R. Roy, N.H Euliss Jr., D.H. Johnson, and M.G. Butler. 1998. Growth and survival of mallard ducklings in relation to aquatic invertebrates. J. Wildlife Management 62:124-133.

Kiknadze, I.I., M.G. Butler, K.G. Aimanova, L.I. Gunderina, and J.K. Cooper. 1996. Geographic variation in polytene chromosome banding pattern of the Holarctic midge Chironomus tentans (Fabricius). Can. J. Zool. 74:171-191.

Butler, M.G., I.I. Kiknadze, J.K. Cooper, and M. Siirin. 1995. Cytologically identified Chironomus species from lakes in North Dakota and Minnesota, USA. Proceedings of the 12th International Symposium on Chironomidae, P. Cranston (ed.) CSIRO, Melbourne.

Hanson, M.A., and M.G. Butler. 1994. Responses of plankton, turbidity, and macrophytes to biomanipulation in a shallow prairie lake. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 51:1180-1188.

Hanson, M.A., and M.G. Butler. 1994. Responses to food web manipulations in a shallow waterfowl lake. Hydrobiologia 279/280:457-466.

Monday, February 27, 2006