John Martin TaylorPhD student
About me
I was born in Virginia, USA but have spent most of my childhood and early adulthood in upstate New York. My experiences as a child playing and fishing in the numerous water bodies in the Northeastern United States instilled a curiosity to understand the aquatic realm. This curiostiy drives my scientific passion to this day.
I recieved a B.S. in Marine, Estuarine, and Freshwater Biology from the University of New Hampshire in 2018. My undergraduate research was split between fisheries biology and freshwater ecology. In 2020 I graduated from the University of New Hampshire Graduate School with a M.S. in Oceanography. My thesis, titled "Fuel From Within: Can Resuspended Organic Phosphorus Stimulate Harmful Cyanobacteria Blooms in Western Lake Erie," fell under the disciplines of biological oceanography and biogeochemistry.
I joined DEEP at Stockholm University in October 2020 and am thrilled to be working with such a diverse and knowledgable group of peers.
Research
My research investigates the contribution of cyanobacterial blooms to fish production and contaminant bioaccumulation in the Baltic Sea. I use isotope tracers to quantify how much fixed nitrogen from cyanobacterial blooms, which are increasing in the Baltic Sea, contribute to Herring (Clupea harengus membras) growth. The previous view of cyanobacterial blooms being detrimental to the Baltic Sea ecosystem has been re-evaluated and accumulating evidence demonstrates that they support secondary production during summer, when herring is food-limited. In my research I aim to analyse archived samples of fish from the Swedish contaminant monitoring program and invertebrates from other monitoring programs for stable isotopes with particular focus on nitrogen isotopes in amino-acids, and collect new samples from phytoplankton, zooplankton, and fish. Using fish bioenergetic models coupled to the collected isotope data, l aim to calculate fish growth and bioaccumulation of contaminants under varying environmental conditions ranging from low to high cyanobacterial bloom intensity. In doing so, threshold levels will be established for cyanobacterial blooms where positive effects on fish production and the bioaccumulation of contaminants can be expected.
Supervisor: Agnes Karlsson