Michael H. Horn
Professor of Biology
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California State University Fullerton
Department of Biological Science
800 N. State College Boulevard
Fullerton CA 92834-6850
(714) 278-3707
mhorn@fullerton.edu
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Fall 2006
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TEACHING ACTIVITIES
Teaching Philosophy
I strive to provide up-to-date, hands-on experiences through lab and field exercises and inquiry-based investigations. In all of my recent classes, groups of students undertake problem-based learning projects giving them the opportunity to work together to seek solutions by integrating and interpreting material gathered from the print literature, the internet, and through direct contact with professionals actively involved in the field.
Courses Recently Taught
Biol 301 Problems in Environmental Biology - upper division requirement for SCERP Scholars (participant, Summer 2005)
Biol 330 Ecology of American Indians - upper division non-majors (Fall 2004)
Biol 401 Biogeography - upper division elective (Fall 2005)
Biol 450 Conservation Biology - upper division elective (Spring 2007)
Biol 475 Ichthyology - upper division elective (Spring 2007)
Biol 500A&B Professional Aspects of Biology - graduate student requirement (Fall 2005)
Biol 517T Seminar in Ecology - graduate student elective (Marine Conservation Biology, Spring 2006)
RESEARCH PROGRAM
Feeding ecology and digestive physiology of herbivorous fishes
Marine fishes - The research focuses on the ontogeny and phylogeny of dietary specialization involving gut structure and function in carnivorous and herbivorous fishes, the evolution of herbivory, and answering the question: What does it take to be a herbivore?.
Current projects :
• Digestive specializations for herbivory in marine fishes: Genetic adaptation and phenotypic plasticity in gut structure and function in a clade of carnivorous and herbivorous prickleback fishes (Stichaeidae) in the northeastern Pacific Ocean (supported by a grant from the NSF Biological Oceanography Program, 2000-2004)
• Trophic position, gut ultrastructure, and digestive physiology of New World silversides (Atherinopsidae) in the northeastern Pacific Ocean (supported by above
NSF grant)
Projects being developed:
• Structure and function of the digestive system in atheriniform fishes
• Occurrence and evolution of stomachlessness in teleost fishes
Tropical freshwater fishes - The research focuses on fruit-eating fish in Neotropical rain forests as related to tree seed dispersal, terrestrial - aquatic linkages, and the evolution of frugivory in characid fishes.
Project being developed :
• Evolution of herbivory in characiform fishes with emphasis on the characid genus Brycon
Feeding ecology and heavy metal contamination of fish-eating seabirds
The research focuses on the food and foraging of terns and skimmers nesting in southern California, their trophic structure and heavy metal accumulation, and their response to shifting prey abundance and changing ocean climate.
Current projects :
• Diet and foraging ecology of California Least Tern, Caspian Tern, Elegant Tern Forster's Tern, and Black Skimmer nesting at sites in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties (series of articles in preparation for publication in Studies in Avian Biology )
• Food web structure and heavy metal accumulation in a guild of breeding seabirds in southern California (C. T. Collins and A. Z. Mason, co-PIs , CSU Long Beach) (supported by a grant from the USC Sea Grant Program, 1996-2004)
• Dietary response of the Elegant Tern to changing ocean conditions and prey populations in southern California
Boyle, K. S. and M. H. Horn (2006) Comparison of feeding guild structure and ecomorphology of intertidal fish assemblages from central California and central Chile. Marine Ecology Progress Series 319: 65-84.
Horn, M. H., A. K. Gawlicka, D. P. German, E. A. Logothetis, J. W. Cavanagh, and K. S. Boyle (2006) Structure and function of the stomachless digestive system in three related species of New World silverside fishes (Atherinopsidae) representing herbivory, omnivory, and carnivory. Marine Biology 149(5): 1237-1245 (published online 15 March 2006)
German, D. P. and M. H. Horn (2006) Gut length and mass in herbivorous and carnivorous prickleback fishes (Teleostei: Stichaeidae): ontogenetic, dietary, and phylogenetic effects. Marine Biology 148(5): 1123-1134 (published online 18 January 2006)
Gawlicka, A. K. and M. H. Horn (2006) Trypsin gene expression by quantitative in situ hybridization in carnivorous and herbivorous prickleback fishes (Teleostei: Stichaeidae): ontogenetic, dietary, and phylogenetic effects. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 79(1): 120-132 (published online 22 November 2005)
Allen, L. G., D. J. Pondella II and M. H. Horn (eds.) (2006) The ecology of marine fishes: California and adjacent waters . University of California Press, Berkeley, 660 p.
Horn, M. H., L. G. Allen and R. N. Lea (2006) Biogeography, Chapter 1, pp. 3-25. In: The ecology of marine fishes: California and adjacent waters (L. G. Allen, D. J. Pondella II and M. H. Horn, eds.). University of California Press, Berkeley.
Allen, L. G., M. M. Yoklavich, G. M. Cailliet and M. H. Horn (2006) Bays and estuaries, Chapter 5, pp. 119-148. In: The ecology of marine fishes: California and adjacent waters (L. G. Allen, D. J. Pondella II and M. H. Horn, eds.). University of California Press, Berkeley.
Horn, M. H. and K. L. M. Martin (2006) Rocky intertidal zone, Chapter 8, pp. 205-226. In: The ecology of marine fishes: California and adjacent waters (L. G. Allen, D. J. Pondella II and M. H. Horn, eds.). University of California Press, Berkeley.
Horn, M. H. and L. A. Ferry-Graham (2006) Feeding mechanisms and trophic interactions, Chapter 14, pp. 387-410. In: The ecology of marine fishes: California and adjacent waters (L. G. Allen, D. J. Pondella II and M. H. Horn, eds.). University of California Press, Berkeley.
Horn, M. H. and J. S. Stephens Jr. (2006) Climate change and overexploitation, Chapter 25, pp. 621-635. In: The ecology of marine fishes: California and adjacent waters (L. G. Allen, D. J. Pondella II and M. H. Horn, eds.). University of California Press, Berkeley.
Fidopiastis, P. M., D. J. Bezdek, M. H. Horn and J. S. Kandel (2006) Characterizing the resident, fermentative microbial consortium in the hindgut of the temperate-zone herbivorous fish, Hermosilla azurea (Teleostei: Kyphosidae). Marine Biology 148(3): 631-642 (published online 1 October 2005)
Gawlicka, A. K. and M. H. Horn (2005) Storage and absorption in the digestive system of carnivorous and herbivorous prickleback fishes (Teleostei: Stichaeidae): ontogenetic, dietary, and phylogenetic effects. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 78(6): 879-892 (published online 8 September 2005)
Floeter, S. R., M. D. Behrens, C. E. L. Ferreira, M. J. Paddack and M. H. Horn (2005) Geographical gradients of marine herbivorous fishes: patterns and processes . Marine Biology 147(10): 1435-1447 (published online 22 July 2005)
German, D. P., M. H. Horn and A. Gawlicka (2004) Digestive enzyme activities in herbivorous and carnivorous prickleback fishes (teleostei: Stichaeidae): ontogenetic, dietary, and phylogenetic effects. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 77(5):789-804
Chan, A. S., M. H. Horn, K. A. Dickson and A. Gawlicka (2004) Digestive enzyme activities in carnivores and herbivores: comparisons among four closely related prickleback fishes (Teleostei: Stichaeidae) from a California rocky intertidal habitat. Journal of Fish Biology 65(3):848-858
O'Reilly, K. M. and M. H. Horn (2004) Phenotypic variation among populations of Atherinops affinis (Atherinopsidae) with insights from a geometric morphometric analysis. Journal of Fish Biology 64(4): 1117-1135
Drewe, K. E., M. H. Horn, K. A. Dickson and A. Gawlicka (2004) Insectivore to frugivore: ontogenetic changes in gut morphology and digestive enzyme activity in the characid fish Brycon guatemalensis from Costa Rica rain forest streams. Journal of Fish Biology 64(4): 890-902
Dahdul, W. M. and M. H . Horn (2003) Energy allocation and postnatal growth in captive Elegant Tern (Sterna elegans ) chicks: responses to high- versus low-energy diets. Auk 120(4): 1069-1081
Banack, S. A., M. H. Horn and A. Gawlicka (2002) Disperser- vs. establishment limited distribution of a riparian fig tree ( Ficus insipida ) in a Costa Rican tropical rain forest. Biotropica 34(2): 232-243
Sturm, E. A. and M. H. Horn (2001) Increase in occurrence and abundance of zebraperch (Hermosilla azurea ) in the Southern California Bight in recent decades. Bulletin Southern California Academy of Sciences 100(3):170-174
Logothetis, E. A., M. H. Horn and K. A. Dickson (2001) Gut morphology and function in Atherinops affinis (Teleostei: Atherinopsidae), a stomachless omnivore feeding on macroalgae. Journal of Fish Biology 59(5):1298-1312
Gawlicka, A., B. Parent, M. H. Horn, N. Ross, I. Opstad and O. J. Torrissen (2000) Activity of digestive enzymes in yolk-sac larvae of Atlantic halibut ( Hippoglossus hippoglossus ): indication of readiness for first feeding. Aquaculture 184(3,4):303-314.
Horn, M. H. and A. Gawlicka (2000) Digestion in fish, 9 pp. In: Encyclopedia of Life Sciences . Macmillan Reference Limited, London , England. (Internet Publication: www. els.net/elsonline/html/A0001838.html)
Horn, M. H., K. L. M. Martin and M. A. Chotkowski (eds.) (1999) Intertidal Fishes: Life in Two Worlds. Academic Press, San Diego, California.
Horn, M. H., K. L. M. Martin and M. A. Chotkowski (1999) Introduction, pp. 1-6. In: Intertidal Fishes: Life in Two Worlds (M. H. Horn, K. L. M. Martin, eds.). Academic Press, San Diego, California.
Horn, M. H. and F. P. Ojeda (1999) Herbivory, pp. 197-222. In: Intertidal Fishes: Life in Two Worlds (M. H. Horn, K. L. M. Martin and M. A. Chotkowski, eds.). Academic Press, San Diego, California.
Horn, M. H. (1999) Convergent evolution and community convergence: Research potential using intertidal fishes, pp. 356-372. In: Intertidal Fishes: Life in Two Worlds (M. H. Horn, K. L. Martin and M. A. Chotkowski, eds.). Academic Press, San Diego, California.
CURRENT GRADUATE STUDENTS
Kelly Connell (undergraduate institution: UC Santa Cruz) - Dietary response of the Elegant Tern ( Thalasseus elegans ) to changing ocean conditions and prey populations in southern California: evidence for a warm-to-cool regime shift
Anne Hannes (UC Santa Barbara) - Jaw mechanics in atherinopsine silverside fishes
Jeanette Hendricks (CSU Fullerton) - Foraging ecology of terns and skimmers at a newly restored wetland
Jessica Kondel (Florida Inst of Technology) - Fisheries management of floating aggregation devices in the ocean
Kelly Min (UC Irvine) - Amylase gene expression by quantitative in situ hybridization in carnivorous and herbivorous prickleback fishes (Teleostei: Stichaeidae): ontogenetic, dietary, and phylogenetic effects
Mike Saba (2004) - Biologist, Glen Lukos Associates, Lake Forest, CA
Kelly Boyle (2004) - Ph.D. Student, Department of Zoology, University of Hawai'i
Ingrid Chlup (2003) - Biologist, Glen Lukos Associates, Lake Forest, CA
Donovan German (2003) - Ph.D. Student, Department of Zoology, University of Florida
Albert Chan (2003) - Veterinarian, Salinas, CA
Karen Drewe (2003) - Biologist, California Department of Transportation, Irvine
Darryl Smith (2002) - Lecturer in Biology , California State University, Fullerton
Wasila Dahdul (2001) - Ph.D. Student, Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania
James Cavanagh (2001) - Science Teacher, Sycamore Middle School, Anaheim, CA
Kelly O'Reilly (2001) - Marine Biologist, California Department of Fish & Game, Los Alamitos
Elaine Logothetis (2000) - Sea Grant Researcher, Wilmington, North Carolina