Dr. Emma J. Rosi

Aquatic Ecologist | PhD, University of Georgia

Expertise
freshwater, invasive species, human impacts

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Emma Rosi advanced our understanding of how land use, urbanization, and climate change shape freshwater ecosystems, with projects exploring environmental contaminants such as pharmaceutical and personal care products, aging wastewater infrastructure, environmental implications of agricultural GMOs, and the effects of dams.

Rosi directed the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES), a National Science Foundation Long Term Ecological Research site. As part of BES, Rosi explored the role that failing wastewater infrastructure plays in polluting streams and creating antibiotic-resistant microbes. She also revealed how prescription and illicit drugs that enter our waterways impact freshwater quality and aquatic life.

In addition to her work on human-driven threats to freshwaters, Rosi co-led a long-term project, in collaboration with Yale University, investigating how wildebeest and hippos shape the food web in the Kenyan reach of Africa’s Mara River.

Rosi is a leader in the field of freshwater science, is a Fellow of the Society for Freshwater Science and has conducted research on the role of emerging contaminants shaping these systems.  Rosi served on the  US Environmental Protection Agency’s Science Advisory Board and her research has implications for our understanding of anthropogenic stressors on freshwater ecosystems.

Theoretical Perspectives of the Baltimore Ecosystem Study: Conceptual Evolution in a Social-Ecological Research Project
Pickett, Steward T. A., M. L. Cadenasso, M. E. Baker, L. E. Band, C. G. Boone, G. L. Buckley, Peter M. Groffman, et al. (2024) 2020. “Theoretical Perspectives of the Baltimore Ecosystem Study: Conceptual Evolution in a Social-Ecological Research Project”. Bioscience 70 (4): 297-314+.
Towards more realistic estimates of DOM decay in streams: Incubation methods, light, and non-additive effects
Kelso, Julia E., Emma J. Rosi, and Michelle A. Baker. 2020. “Towards More Realistic Estimates of DOM Decay in Streams: Incubation Methods, Light, and Non-Additive Effects”. Freshwater Science 39 (3). University of Chicago Press: 559-75. doi:10.1086/710218.
Urban ecology as an integrative science and practice.
Pickett, Steward T. A., Morgan Grove, Shannon L. LaDeau, Emma J. Rosi, and Mary L. Cadenasso. 2020. “Urban Ecology As an Integrative Science and Practice”. In Urban Ecology: Its Nature and Challenges, 122-43. CABI. doi:10.1079/9781789242607.0122.
A River of Bones: Wildebeest Skeletons Leave a Legacy of Mass Mortality in the Mara River, Kenya
Subalusky, Amanda L., Christopher L. Dutton, Emma J. Rosi, Linda M. Puth, and David M. Post. 2020. “A River of Bones: Wildebeest Skeletons Leave a Legacy of Mass Mortality in the Mara River, Kenya”. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 8. Frontiers Media SA. doi:10.3389/fevo.2020.00031.
Food web controls on mercury fluxes and fate in the Colorado River, Grand Canyon
Walters, D. M., W.F. Cross, T.A. Kennedy, C.V. Baxter, R.O. Hall, and Emma J. Rosi. 2020. “Food Web Controls on Mercury Fluxes and Fate in the Colorado River, Grand Canyon”. Science Advances 6 (20). American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS): eaaz4880. doi:10.1126/sciadv.aaz4880.
Parasite and pathogen effects on ecosystem processes: A quantitative review
Fischhoff, Ilya R., Tao Huang, Stephen K. Hamilton, Barbara A. Han, Shannon L. LaDeau, Richard S. Ostfeld, Emma J. Rosi, and Christopher T. Solomon. 2020. “Parasite and Pathogen Effects on Ecosystem Processes: A Quantitative Review”. Ecosphere 11 (5). Wiley. doi:10.1002/ecs2.3057.
Alternative Biogeochemical States of River Pools Mediated by Hippo Use and Flow Variability
Dutton, Christopher L., Amanda L. Subalusky, Stephen K. Hamilton, Ella C. Bayer, Laban Njoroge, Emma J. Rosi, and David M. Post. 2020. “Alternative Biogeochemical States of River Pools Mediated by Hippo Use and Flow Variability”. Ecosystems. Springer Science and Business Media LLC. doi:10.1007/s10021-020-00518-3.
Environmental concentrations of pharmaceuticals alter metabolism, denitrification, and diatom assemblages in artificial streams
Robson, Stephanie V., Emma J. Rosi, Erinn K. Richmond, and Michael Grace. 2020. “Environmental Concentrations of Pharmaceuticals Alter Metabolism, Denitrification, and Diatom Assemblages in Artificial Streams”. Freshwater Science 39 (2). University of Chicago Press: 256-67. doi:10.1086/708893.
Hydropeaking Operations of Two Run-of-River Mega-Dams Alter Downstream Hydrology of the Largest Amazon Tributary
Almeida, R. M., Stephen K. Hamilton, Emma J. Rosi, N. Barros, C. R. C. Doria, A. S. Flecker, A. S. Fleischmann, A. J. Reisinger, and F. Roland. (2024) 2020. “Hydropeaking Operations of Two Run-of-River Mega-Dams Alter Downstream Hydrology of the Largest Amazon Tributary”. Frontiers in Environmental Science 8.
Hippos (<i>Hippopotamus amphibius</i>): The animal silicon pump
Schoelynck, Jonas, Amanda L. Subalusky, Eric Struyf, Christopher L. Dutton, D. Unzue-Belmonte, Bart Van de Vijver, D.M. Post, Emma J. Rosi, Patrick Meire, and Patrick J. Frings. 2019. “Hippos (<i>Hippopotamus amphibius< I>): The Animal Silicon Pump”. Science Advances 5 (5): eaav0395. doi:10.1126/sciadv.aav0395.
Science for a Sustainable City
2019. Science for a Sustainable City. Edited by Steward T. A. Pickett, Mary Cadenasso, Morgan Grove, E. Irwin, Emma J. Rosi, and C.M. Swan. Yale University Press.
Influences of the antidepressant fluoxetine on stream ecosystem function and aquatic insect emergence at environmentally realistic concentrations
Richmond, Erinn K., Emma J. Rosi, Alexander J. Reisinger, B. Hanrahan, Ross M. Thompson, and Michael Grace. 2019. “Influences of the Antidepressant Fluoxetine on Stream Ecosystem Function and Aquatic Insect Emergence at Environmentally Realistic Concentrations”. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 34 (1): 513-31. doi:10.1080/02705060.2019.1629546.
Transport and instream removal of the Cry1Ab protein from genetically engineered maize is mediated by biofilms in experimental streams
Shogren, Arial, Jennifer L. Tank, Emma J. Rosi, Martha M. Dee, Shannon L. Speir, Diogo Bolster, and Scott P. Egan. 2019. “Transport and Instream Removal of the Cry1Ab Protein from Genetically Engineered Maize Is Mediated by Biofilms in Experimental Streams”. PLOS ONE 14 (5): e0216481. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0216481.
Limnological effects of a large Amazonian run-of-river dam on the main river and drowned tributary valleys
Almeida, Rafael M., Stephen K. Hamilton, Emma J. Rosi, João Durval Arantes, Nathan Barros, Gina Boemer, Anderson Gripp, et al. 2019. “Limnological Effects of a Large Amazonian Run-of-River Dam on the Main River and Drowned Tributary Valleys”. Scientific Reports 9 (1). Springer Science and Business Media LLC. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-53060-1.
Stoichiometry and daily rhythms: experimental evidence shows nutrient limitation decouples N uptake from photosynthesis
Chamberlin, Catherine A., Emily S. Bernhardt, Emma J. Rosi, and James B. Heffernan. 2019. “Stoichiometry and Daily Rhythms: Experimental Evidence Shows Nutrient Limitation Decouples N Uptake from Photosynthesis”. Ecology 100 (10). Wiley. doi:10.1002/ecy.2822.
A 2000-year sediment record reveals rapidly changing sedimentation and land use since the 1960s in the Upper Mara-Serengeti Ecosystem
Dutton, Christopher L., Amanda L. Subalusky, Troy D. Hill, Julie C. Aleman, Emma J. Rosi, Kennedy B. Onyango, Kanuni Kanuni, Jenny A. Cousins, A. C. Staver, and D.M. Post. 2019. “A 2000-Year Sediment Record Reveals Rapidly Changing Sedimentation and Land Use since the 1960s in the Upper Mara-Serengeti Ecosystem”. Science of The Total Environment 664: 148-60. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.01.421.
Give and Take: A Watershed Acid Rain Mitigation Experiment Increases Baseflow Nitrogen Retention but Increases Stormflow Nitrogen Export
Marinos, R. E., John L. Campbell, Charles T. Driscoll, Gene E. Likens, William H. McDowell, Emma J. Rosi, Lindsey E. Rustad, and Emily S. Bernhardt. 2018. “Give and Take: A Watershed Acid Rain Mitigation Experiment Increases Baseflow Nitrogen Retention But Increases Stormflow Nitrogen Export”. Environmental Science & Technology 52 (22): 13155-65. doi:10.1021/acs.est.8b03553.
High mortality in aquatic predators of mosquito larvae caused by exposure to insect repellent
Almeida, Rafael M., Barbara A. Han, Alexander J. Reisinger, Catherine Kagemann, and Emma J. Rosi. 2018. “High Mortality in Aquatic Predators of Mosquito Larvae Caused by Exposure to Insect Repellent”. Biology Letters 14 (10): 20180526. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2018.0526.
The influence of a semi-arid sub-catchment on suspended sediments in the Mara River, Kenya
Dutton, Christopher L., Amanda L. Subalusky, Shimon C. Anisfeld, Libon Njoroge, Emma J. Rosi, and D.M. Post. 2018. “The Influence of a Semi-Arid Sub-Catchment on Suspended Sediments in the Mara River, Kenya”. PLOS ONE 13 (2): e0192828. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0192828.
Long-term research reveals multiple relationships between the abundance and impacts of a non-native species
Strayer, David L., Christopher T. Solomon, Stuart E. G. Findlay, and Emma J. Rosi. 2018. “Long-Term Research Reveals Multiple Relationships Between the Abundance and Impacts of a Non-Native Species”. Limnology and Oceanography 64 (S1): S105 - S117. doi:10.1002/lno.11029.