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Dr Essie Rodgers

Contact

Department: Biological Sciences

Email: essie.rodgers@canterbury.ac.nz

Direct Dial: +64 3 3691202

Office:

Language: English

About
Research / Creative works

Fields of Research

  • Conservation physiology
  • Comparative Physiology
  • Meta-analytic Physiology
  • Diving Physiology
  • Cardiovascular Physiology
  • Thermal Physiology

Researcher Summary

My group’s research is at the forefront of the emerging field of conservation physiology, which explores the responses of organisms to anthropogenic threats. We integrate a wide range of tools (respirometry, performance testing, cardiovascular physiology, biochemical assays, field-monitoring, niche-modelling and meta-analyses) to determine the eco-physiological constraints dictated by current conditions and future environmental change.

Currently, our research is focused on how fish, reptiles and amphibians respond to a multivariate set of changes in their habitat. To survive, species must navigate a milieu of stressors (e.g. climate warming, contamination, acidification, hypoxia, invasive species, etc.) and stressors often interact in complex ways. Global climate change is expected to exacerbate the multitude of stressors organisms face, particularly for aquatic species in higher latitude regions, such as New Zealand. Essential to our ability to generate robust predictions of how New Zealand’s fauna will fare in the face of climate warming, is an understanding of the physiological mechanisms these organisms use to respond to multiple threats. Our research explores how exposure to stressors modulates a species’ capacity to cope with climate warming. Specifically, we explore the impact of stressors on thermal acclimation capacity, heat tolerance, and thermal reaction norms of locomotor performance, metabolism and lower-level physiological functions. For more information about my group’s research and opportunities visit our website (www.rodgerslab.com).

Subject Area: Disciplines

  • Biology: Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour: Biodiversity/Conservation; Ecology

Research/Scholarly/Creative Works

  • Pillet M., Castaldo G., Rodgers EM., Poleksić V., Rašković B., Bervoets L., Blust R. and De Boeck G. (2021) Physiological performance of common carp (Cyprinus carpio, L., 1758) exposed to a sublethal copper/zinc/cadmium mixture. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part - C: Toxicology and Pharmacology 242 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpc.2020.108954. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM. and Franklin CE. (2021) Aerobic scope and climate warming: Testing the “plastic floors and concrete ceilings” hypothesis in the estuarine crocodile (Crocodylus porosus). Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological and Integrative Physiology 335(1): 108-117. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jez.2412. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Franklin CE. and Noble DWA. (2021) Diving in hot water: a meta-analytic review of how diving vertebrate ectotherms will fare in a warmer world. The Journal of experimental biology 224(Pt) http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.228213. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Opinion AGR., Gomez Isaza DF., Rašković B., Poleksić V. and De Boeck G. (2021) Double whammy: Nitrate pollution heightens susceptibility to both hypoxia and heat in a freshwater salmonid. Science of the Total Environment 765 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142777. (Journal Articles)
  • Opinion AGR., De Boeck G. and Rodgers EM. (2020) Synergism between elevated temperature and nitrate: Impact on aerobic capacity of European grayling, Thymallusthymallus in warm, eutrophic waters. Aquatic Toxicology 226 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.aquatox.2020.105563. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM. (2020) Rest and relaxation may be the key to more effective sea turtle conservation. Conservation Physiology 8(1) http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coaa006. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM. (2019) Caught out! Scientists discover a cryptic stress response in a bycatch species. Conservation Physiology 7(1) http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coz008. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM. and De Boeck G. (2019) Nitrite-induced reductions in heat tolerance are independent of aerobic scope in a freshwater teleost. Journal of Experimental Biology 22(23) http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.212035. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM. and Franklin CE. (2019) Diving beyond aerobic limits: Effect of temperature on anaerobic support of simulated predator avoidance dives in an air-breathing ectotherm. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 92(3): 293-302. http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/702828. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Poletto JB., Gomez Isaza DF., Van Eenennaam JP., Connon RE., Todgham AE., Seesholtz A., Heublein JC., Cech JJ. and Kelly JT. (2019) Integrating physiological data with the conservation and management of fishes: A meta-analytical review using the threatened green sturgeon (Acipenser medirostris). Conservation Physiology 7(1) http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coz035. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Todgham AE., Connon RE. and Fangue NA. (2019) Stressor interactions in freshwater habitats: Effects of cold water exposure and food limitation on early-life growth and upper thermal tolerance in white sturgeon, Acipenser transmontanus. Freshwater Biology 64(2): 348-358. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/fwb.13224. (Journal Articles)
  • Yanagitsuru YR., Hewitt CR., Gam LTH., Phuong-Linh P., Rodgers EM., Wang T., Bayley M., Huong DTT., Phuong NT. and Brauner CJ. (2019) Effect of water pH and calcium on ion balance in five fish species of the Mekong Delta. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology -Part A : Molecular and Integrative Physiology 232: 34-39. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpa.2019.02.026. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Cocherell DE., Nguyen TX., Todgham AE. and Fangue NA. (2018) Plastic responses to diel thermal variation in juvenile green sturgeon, Acipenser medirostris. Journal of Thermal Biology 76: 147-155. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jtherbio.2018.07.015. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM. (2017) Foraging for fast food: The changing diets of wildlife. Conservation Physiology 5(1) http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/conphys/cox046. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM. and Franklin CE. (2017) Physiological mechanisms constraining ectotherm fright-dive performance at elevated temperatures. Journal of Experimental Biology 220(19): 3556-3564. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.155440. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Heaslip BM., Cramp RL., Riches M., Gordos MA. and Franklin CE. (2017) Substrate roughening improves swimming performance in two small-bodied riverine fishes: Implications for culvert remediation and design. Conservation Physiology 5(1) http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/conphys/cox034. (Journal Articles)
  • Campbell HA., Beyer HL., Dennis TE., Dwyer RG., Forester JD., Fukuda Y., Lynch C., Hindell MA., Menke N. and Morales JM. (2015) Finding our way: On the sharing and reuse of animal telemetry data in Australasia. Science of the Total Environment 534: 79-84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.01.089. (Journal Articles)
  • Lynch AJJ., Thackway R., Specht A., Beggs PJ., Brisbane S., Burns EL., Byrne M., Capon SJ., Casanova MT. and Clarke PA. (2015) Transdisciplinary synthesis for ecosystem science, policy and management: The Australian experience. Science of the Total Environment 534: 173-184. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.04.100. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Schwartz JJ. and Franklin CE. (2015) Diving in a warming world: The thermal sensitivity and plasticity of diving performance in juvenile estuarine crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus). Conservation Physiology 3(1) http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/conphys/cov054. (Journal Articles)
  • Rodgers EM., Cramp RL., Gordos M., Weier A., Fairfall S., Riches M. and Franklin CE. (2014) Facilitating upstream passage of small-bodied fishes: Linking the thermal dependence of swimming ability to culvert design. Marine and Freshwater Research 65(8): 710-719. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/MF13170. (Journal Articles)
  • Merritt DJ., Rodgers EM., Amir AF. and Clarke AK. (2012) Same temporal niche, opposite rhythmicity: Two closely related bioluminescent insects with opposite bioluminesce propensity rhythms. Chronobiology International 29(10): 1336-1344. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/07420528.2012.728549. (Journal Articles)
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