[{"id":59,"date":"2013-01-20T20:33:28","date_gmt":"2013-01-20T20:33:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.manyhandscollective.com\/client\/paulbukaveckas\/?page_id=59"},"modified":"2025-07-29T18:29:36","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T18:29:36","slug":"graduate-students","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/graduate-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Graduate Students"},"content":{"rendered":"

There are opportunities to participate in research projects related to the ecology of tidal freshwater rivers and other topics. If you have an interest, please contact me and visit the graduate program web page for the<\/a> VCU Center for Environmental Studies or the graduate program web page<\/a> \u00a0for the Integrated Life Sciences PhD Program.<\/p>\n

\"image002small\"<\/p>\n

Recent Students and their Projects:<\/b><\/em><\/h3>\n

Samantha Rogers (PhD 2023 Integrated Life Sciences) \u2013 <\/strong>Samantha’s project focused on aquatic insect emergence from the tidal freshwater segment of the James Estuary.\u00a0 Emergent aquatic insects (dragonflies, midges, etc.) are an important food resource for riparian consumers including birds, bats and spiders.\u00a0 Prior studies have documented large-scale emergence of aquatic insects, such as mayflies from the Mississippi River, but we knew of no prior studies on tidal rivers.\u00a0 Samantha deployed emergence traps in multiple locations of the James and found high rates of emergence, exceeding those typically reported for lakes and streams.\u00a0 Because these insects feed on algae during their aquatic stage, they were found to have higher lipid content in comparison to terrestrial insects.\u00a0 Related work carried out by Samantha and her co-advisor (Lesley Bulluck) showed that warbler nestlings fed a higher proportion of aquatic prey outperformed nestlings provisioned with terrestrial prey.\u00a0 By combining this work with Lesley\u2019s long-term study of Prothonotary warblers, we hope to learn more about aquatic food subsidies to riparian food webs.<\/p>\n

Rachel Henderson (MS 2021 Environmental Studies) \u2013 <\/strong>Rachel’s project focused on the factors influencing water clarity in upper estuarine segments of the James and York.\u00a0 We found that inorganic suspended particulate matter was the primary agent causing poor water clarity in these estuaries.\u00a0 For the sub-estuaries of the York (Pamunkey and Mattaponi), dissolved color originating from wetland sources was also an important factor.\u00a0 Long-term data suggest that water clarity is improving but has not yet reached the point where the growth of submerged aquatic vegetation would dominate over phytoplankton.\u00a0 A paper based on our research is currently in review at Estuaries & Coasts.<\/p>\n

Jack Ryan (MS 2020 Environmental Studies) \u2013 <\/strong>Jack’s project investigates the feasibility of restoring endangered freshwater mussels to urban streams.\u00a0 Mussels have the potential to provide important ecosystem services by filtering water, removing sediment and other particulates, and promoting in-stream denitrification. Recent advances in mussel propagation allow the possibility of restoring them to habitats where they likely once occurred, but have been extirpated due to poor water quality conditions. Jack placed mussels in cages in three urban streams, two non-urban streams to assess their growth, survivorship and physiological status.\u00a0 This project is being done in collaboration with Rachel Mair at the Harrison Lake National Fish Hatchery .<\/p>\n

Joe Famularo (MS 2019 Biology) \u2013 <\/strong>Joe’s project focused on nutrient limitation of urban and non-urban streams in central Virginia.\u00a0 Urban streams exhibit higher nitrogen concentrations in comparison to nearby forested streams and therefore we expected that they would respond more strongly to additions of phosphorus.\u00a0 We were surprised to find that there were no consistent differences in nitrogen vs. phosphorus limitation among these streams.\u00a0 We did find that urban streams provide a high level of biogeochemical functioning in removing N and P and preventing their downstream transport.<\/p>\n

Rikki Lucas (MS 2019 Biology) \u2013 <\/strong>Rikki’s project focused on the hydrologic and geomorphological properties of urban streams.\u00a0 This work was conducted as part of our urban stream monitoring project for the City of Richmond.\u00a0 Although the Urban Stream Syndrome predicts poor hydrologic functioning of these streams, we found that urban streams were quite variable in their capacity to store water for short periods of time.\u00a0 Results from this study will be useful for interpreting differences in water quality among these streams, and may help to inform stream restoration efforts.\u00a0 We are grateful to our colleagues at the USGS Richmond office for their technical advice on this project.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There are opportunities to participate in research projects related to the ecology of tidal freshwater rivers and other topics. If you have an interest, please contact me and visit the graduate program web page for the VCU Center for Environmental Studies or the graduate program web page \u00a0for the Integrated Life Sciences PhD Program. Recent […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":960,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-59","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/59","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/960"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/59\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":35,"date":"2013-01-20T20:19:48","date_gmt":"2013-01-20T20:19:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.manyhandscollective.com\/client\/paulbukaveckas\/?page_id=35"},"modified":"2013-01-20T20:19:48","modified_gmt":"2013-01-20T20:19:48","slug":"restoration-of-kimages-creek","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/research\/restoration-of-kimages-creek\/","title":{"rendered":"Restoration of Kimages Creek"},"content":{"rendered":"

Restoration of a Tidal Stream<\/em><\/p>\n

\"kimages1\"In 1927 a dam was built at the confluence between Kimages Creek and the James River to create a 179 acre impoundment.\u00a0 The impoundment persisted until October 2007 when the dam was partially breached following a period of heavy rain.\u00a0 Over subsequent months, out-flowing water continued to drain from the lake and erode the dam.\u00a0 By Spring 2008, the breach had incised to a depth below the high-tide water level of the James resulting in a reversal of flow and the restoration of tidal exchange between Kimages Creek and the James River. The tidal portion of Kimages Creek is located on the property of the VCURiceCenter. The tidal stream is approximately 1300 m in length, ranges 5 to 40 m in width and has an average depth of 0.5 m.\u00a0 The narrow dam breach provided a location at which the exchange of water between Kimages and the James River could be accurately measured.\u00a0 We took advantage of this unplanned restoration experiment to investigate the functioning of Kimages Creek, and specifically, its capacity to retain nitrogen.\u00a0 We measured the amount of N entering and leaving the Creek over a tidal cycle to determine whether Kimages was a net source or sink of N.\u00a0 These measurements were performed monthly over an annual cycle to determine whether there were seasonal patterns in retention.<\/p>\n

\"kimages2\"We found that water exchange in Kimages Creek was dominated by tidal fluxes but that these were highly variable.\u00a0 During periods when water level in the James was elevated, the volume of tidal exchange was 20-fold higher.\u00a0 Water levels in the James were responsive to local events (e.g., rainfall in the river catchment) as well as regional factors influencing sea level (e.g., wind forcing of coastal ocean).\u00a0 The importance of events in influencing fluxes is well-established for non-tidal streams but our work shows that tidal streams are also greatly affected and that these events may originate outside the watershed.\u00a0 The tidal stream was a net source of dissolved inorganic N during winter months but a net sink overall.\u00a0 The direction and rate of N transformation was found to be significantly related to temperature and ecosystem metabolism (production and respiration).\u00a0 Overall, restoration of tidal exchange to Kimages Creek resulted in a 20-fold increase in water and N fluxes and a two-fold increase in N retention.\u00a0 Our findings are presented in the paper by Bukaveckas & Wood (2014) published in the Journal of Environmental Quality<\/em> (vol 43, page 1614).\"kimages3\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Restoration of a Tidal Stream In 1927 a dam was built at the confluence between Kimages Creek and the James River to create a 179 acre impoundment.\u00a0 The impoundment persisted until October 2007 when the dam was partially breached following a period of heavy rain.\u00a0 Over subsequent months, out-flowing water continued to drain from the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":960,"featured_media":0,"parent":8,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-35","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/35","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/960"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/35\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":28,"date":"2013-01-20T20:13:36","date_gmt":"2013-01-20T20:13:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.manyhandscollective.com\/client\/paulbukaveckas\/?page_id=28"},"modified":"2013-01-20T20:13:36","modified_gmt":"2013-01-20T20:13:36","slug":"james-river-ecosystem-study","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/research\/james-river-ecosystem-study\/","title":{"rendered":"James River Ecosystem Study"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"algal_blooms\"As I began studying the James River I was particularly intrigued by the persistently high chlorophyll levels occurring in the tidal freshwater zone (which are the highest in the James River Estuary and among the highest throughout Chesapeake Bay; see map).\u00a0I found that the location of the chlorophyll maximum was linked to a change in channel morphometry whereby shallower depths partially released phytoplankton from light limitation, and coupled with longer water residence, allowed them to more efficiently utilize available nutrients (<\/a>Bukaveckas et al. 2011; Estuaries & Coasts<\/a>)<\/a>.\u00a0What further interests me about the James is that it has a large base of primary production, and high levels of fecundity among apex predators (eagles, osprey and fish), but we have little understanding of how energy gets from the bottom to the top.\u00a0 Given the low levels of zooplankton grazing that we have documented, I hypothesize that the primary consumers are either filter-feeding fishes (shad, menhaden) or that the bulk of phytoplankton production enters the benthic food chain (figure below).<\/p>\n

\"rangia\"This has led to new interests in measuring sedimentation and grazing by benthic and pelagic consumers. I hope to have a forthcoming paper on the role of phytoplankton in retaining nutrients within the tidal-fresh segment (Bukaveckas & Isenberg, Estuaries & Coasts, in review).\u00a0With my current PhD student, we have recently completed an intensive field season for the James River Algal Blooms Study.\u00a0We performed algal bioassay experiments to measure forms and rates of nutrient uptake, filtration experiments to do determine grazing rates by wedge clams (Rangia<\/i>) and an analysis of chlorophyll and algal toxins in the gut contents of fishes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As I began studying the James River I was particularly intrigued by the persistently high chlorophyll levels occurring in the tidal freshwater zone (which are the highest in the James River Estuary and among the highest throughout Chesapeake Bay; see map).\u00a0I found that the location of the chlorophyll maximum was linked to a change in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":960,"featured_media":0,"parent":8,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-28","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/960"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":21,"date":"2013-01-20T20:09:57","date_gmt":"2013-01-20T20:09:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.manyhandscollective.com\/client\/paulbukaveckas\/?page_id=21"},"modified":"2025-07-29T19:15:03","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T19:15:03","slug":"welcome","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/","title":{"rendered":"Welcome!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"150714_007_tk_ar\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This page provides information about my research projects, course offerings and opportunities for graduate students.\u00a0 You can also access some of my publications for download. Drop me an email if you have questions (pabukaveckas@vcu.edu).<\/p>\n

News & Updates<\/h2>\n

Teaching: During the Fall-2025 semester I will be offering a 2-credit course on data analysis techniques for water quality monitoring data.\u00a0 This is a hands-on, Excel-based course that will meet in the ENVS computer lab.\u00a0 The course meets once per week on Mondays at 2pm.\u00a0 In Spring 2026, I will be teaching my course on Monitoring, Assessment and Restoration of Inland and Coastal Waters (“Water” for short), which is a core course in the undergraduate ENVS curriculum.<\/p>\n

Research: this summer my lab group is carrying out field projects at Lake Anna, the James River Estuary, urban lakes of the Richmond metro area, and lakes in the Adirondack Mountain region of New York State.\u00a0 My work in the Adirondacks is documenting the long-term recovery of these lakes following acidification and is carried out with the help of Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation.\u00a0 The Lake Anna work is being conducted in collaboration with the Lake Anna Civic Association and focuses on factors influencing water clarity.\u00a0 The James River work continues our long-term monitoring (since 2010) of harmful algae and bacteria in the tidal freshwater segment of the James, which is funded in part by the City of Richmond Department of Public Utilities.\u00a0 The urban lakes monitoring project is a new initiative, which is being carried out by my graduate student Kyleigh Johnson (below).\u00a0 Study sites include lakes at Byrd Park, Bryan Park, Forest Hill Park and Deep Run Park.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

My most recent paper published in Inland Waters describes the effects of climate change on reservoirs in Virginia.\u00a0 Prior studies focused on northern lakes have shown that lake surface temperatures are rising, whereas bottom temperatures are cooling or unchanged. This has resulted in stronger stratification and greater oxygen depletion among north temperate lakes.\u00a0\u00a0Our results based on data collected by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality since the 1970s show that both surface and bottom temperatures are rising in VA reservoirs. Among deep stations (>10 m) surface temperatures are rising faster than bottom temperatures resulting in stronger stratification and greater DO depletion (e.g., at near-dam locations). Among shallow stations, bottom temperatures are rising faster than surface temperatures resulting in weaker stratification and rising DO due to earlier onset of Fall mixing.\u00a0 The faster rate of increase in bottom waters may be due to warming of tributary inflows to the reservoirs.<\/p>\n

Paul A.\u00a0<\/span>Bukaveckas<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Liz\u00a0<\/span>Buikema<\/span>\u00a0&\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Andrew\u00a0<\/span>Cameron<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0(2025)<\/span>\u00a0Effects of climate change on temperature and oxygen stratification of mid-latitude reservoirs,<\/span>\u00a0Inland Waters,<\/span>\u00a015:1,<\/span>\u00a0DOI:\u00a010.1080\/20442041.2025.2460928<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Dr. Paul A. Bukaveckas
\nVirginia Commonwealth University
\nTrani Life Sciences Room 037
\n1000 W Cary St
\nRichmond, VA 23284
\npabukaveckas@vcu.edu<\/a>
\n804-828-0168<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This page provides information about my research projects, course offerings and opportunities for graduate students.\u00a0 You can also access some of my publications for download. Drop me an email if you have questions (pabukaveckas@vcu.edu). News & Updates Teaching: During the Fall-2025 semester I will be offering a 2-credit course on data analysis techniques for water […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":960,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-21","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/960"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":11,"date":"2013-01-20T19:54:53","date_gmt":"2013-01-20T19:54:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.manyhandscollective.com\/client\/paulbukaveckas\/?page_id=11"},"modified":"2025-07-29T18:01:16","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T18:01:16","slug":"teaching","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/pabukaveckas\/teaching\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaching"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"0421151627a\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I teach courses for undergraduates and graduate students in Biology and Environmental Studies.\u00a0 Here are the courses I am currently offering at VCU.<\/p>\n