Dr. Rudi Strickler, UWM Shaw Distinguished Professor and Biological Sciences Department Chair, will present a talk about his research, entitled ‘Olfaction in Copepods?’. Learn more about Dr. Strickler’s work here.

For years, since Antony van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723), we know zooplankton starting with Daphnia and Copepods. However, we took them as small unsophisticated automatons swimming at random in ponds, lakes, and oceans, and filtering the algae out of their waters. Some 40 years ago, one tried to research possible olfaction in these small animals. The experiments used coarse grain methods and ended with the conclusion that there might not be any olfaction.

However, now we know that there are chemoreception genes in these animals, and now the question is to what use. Using results entomologists gained on their model animals, we redesigned their equipment for our use in the aquatic environment. First results show that we will work at a much finer scale than earlier attempts on olfaction in copepods and other small aquatic and marine animals. Whether there is olfaction, stay tuned.

The presentation will begin at 4:00 PM via Microsoft Teams, preceded by an informal Q&A from 3:45 – 4:00 PM. Click here to join the meeting, via Microsoft Teams.