Department of

Biology

Dr. James Kerfoot

Assistant Professor of Biology
134 White Hall
Union University
Jackson, Tennessee 38305
(731) 661-5926
jkerfoot@uu.edu

Education

• B.S. and M.S., Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, IL
• Ph.D., Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL

Previous Experience

• Teaching Assistant and Lab Coordinator, Florida Institute of Technology, 2003-2008
• Teaching Assistant and Lab Coordinator, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, 2001-2003
• Research Associate, Kinetric, Inc. Mechanisms to deter fish from Power Plant Intakes, 2005-2009

Courses Commonly Taught

• Advanced Anatomy and Physiology
• Anatomy and Physiology
• Wildlife Biology
• Marine Biology
• Collaborative Research Experience

Majors and Pre-Professionals Advised

• Pre-Physician's Assistant
• Conservation
• Pre-Chiropractic

Research/Scholarship Interests

• Ecophysiology of Aquatic Vertebrates, Movement and Dispersal of Invasive Fish Species, Functional and Ecological Morphology of Feeding Systems in Fishes
• Population Dynamics, Trophic Ecology, Conservation and Management Policy

Collaborative Research Projects/Student Projects

• Emily Easter. Feeding kinematic differences between hatchery-raised and wild Alligator mississipiensis.
• Mason English. Validity of water based cortisol tests as compared to whole body cortisol tests in Xiphophorus helleri.
• Haaken Magnuson. Measuring levels of stress induced by varying concentrations of an alarm cue analog, hypoxanthine-3-N-oxide, in blackstrip topminnow.
• William Pierce. The effect of water chemistry on the occurrence of Eustrongylides spp. in Gambusia affinis.
• Joshua French. Relationship between aquatic environment and the presence of Eustrongylides. 
• Sarah Porter. Measuring the stress level and behavior of French Grunts from hatchery rearing to the marketplace.
• Jacob Landfield. Linking thermal stress to cortisolin fish.
• Justin Williams. Influence of Temperature on Prey Escape Success between Gambusia affinis and Belonesox belizanus.
• Justin Bryan. The Effect of Temperature on the Feeding Ability in Tiger Bass.
• The Effect of Temperature on Escape Velocity of Pimephalos promelas. Sudents: L. Bright, A. Dick, and K. Wright.
• Modulation of Prey Capture; the Influence of Temperature and Prey Type. Students: E.Bailey, A. Green, and B. McCarter.
• Daniel Kelley. The effects waster water inputs into local fresh water sources have on aquatic Eustrongylides species populations. Co-mentor with M. Lockett, Ph.D.
• John Kartzinel. The Influence of Temperature and the Presence/Absence of a Predator on the Startle Response of the Mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis.
• Tyler Boone. Geographical Distribution of Larval Eustrongylides sp. in West Tennessee. Co-mentor with M. Lockett, Ph.D.
• Micah Fern. Scaling the Feeding Mechanism in the American Alligator, Alligator mississippieusis.
• Sarah Williams. The Effects of Temperature on the Feeding Kinematics of the invasive Lionfish, Pterosis volitaus.
• Thomas Duncan: Scaling the Feeding Mechanism of Pike Killifish (Belonesox belizanus).
• Aaron Davidson. Testing the Link Between Diet and Phentotypic Plasticity in the Feeding Mechanism of Lepomis microlophus

• The Influence of Temperature on the Feeding Rates of Two Introduced Species, Astronotus ocellatus (Oscar) and Archcentrus nigrofasciatus (Convict Cichlid): Implications for Their Successful Establishment in Florida. 

  Students: Mollie Carter, Chelsea Harden, Jared Littlejohn, Dakota Tracy, and Tara Tucker

• Johnathan Love. Morphological Variation in Native and Introduced Populations of Pike Killifish (Belonesox belizanus).

Scholarship

• Kerfoot, JR. 2012. Thermal Tolerance of the Invasive Belonesox belizanus, Pike Killifish, throughout Ontogeny. Journal of Experimental Zoology, 317:266-274.
• Kerfoot, J.R. and R.G. Turingham. 2011; Similarity and Disparity in Prey-Capture Kinematics Between the Invasive Pike Killifish (Belonesox belizanus) and the Native Florida Largemouth Bass (Micropterus floridanus). Florida Scientist, 74(3): 137-150.
• Kerfoot, J.R., J.J. Lorenz and R.G. Turingham. 2011. Environmental Correlates of the Abundance and Distribution of Belonesox belisanus in a Novel Environment. Environmental Biology of Fishes, 92: 125-139.
• Kerfoot, J.R. and J.F. Schaefer. 2006; Ecomorphology and habitat utilization of Cottus species. Environmental Biology of Fishes, 76: 1-13.
• Schaefer, J.F. and J.R. Kerfoot. 2002; Long term community change in an adventitious stream: Landscape Perspectives. American Midland Naturalist, 151(1): 134-145.

Professional Affiliations

• Florida Academy of Sciences
• Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology
• Illinois State Academy of Science
• American Society of Ichthyology and Herpetology
• Southwestern Association of Naturalists
• Tennessee Academy of Sciences