Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center

It is with great sadness that the UMSL Department of Biology and the Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center share the passing of Dr. Robert E. "Bob" Ricklefs on June 7, 2026.

Bob served as Curators' Professor of Biology for more than two decades, building one of the most significant careers in modern ecology. He was a warm and thoughtful colleague and an inspiring mentor to graduate students and postdocs. A member of the National Academy of Sciences and recipient of the Ramon Margalef Prize in Ecology, he advanced our understanding of evolutionary ecology, island biogeography, and the forces that shape biodiversity across the globe. He literally wrote the textbook, which has further introduced the discipline to students worldwide.

His influence at UMSL extended well beyond his own research. After winning the Margalef Prize in 2015, he and his wife, Dr. Susanne Renner, established an endowment known as the Margalef Seminar in Ecology, which brings leading scientists to campus year after year to talk with biology students. He measured his success not in honors but in the people he trained, once quoted as saying his students were the greatest reward of his work.

Our community is better for his decades of contribution and advocacy. We extend our condolences to his family, his colleagues and collaborators, and the many scientists he mentored. His legacy endures in all of them.

A memorial is being planned to celebrate Bob; we will share details as they are finalized.

Happy World Environment Day!

This year's theme is "Inspired by Nature. For Climate. For Our Future." — a pretty good description of what our community does every day.

The faculty, students, and alumni of the Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center study how ecosystems work and how to protect them. Our students are training as the next generation of conservation scientists, and our alumni are out doing that work right now in research, in policy, and in the field around the world.

Today, we're recognizing all of them.

Thank you for the science. Happy World Environment Day from all of us at the Harris Center. 🌱

The Robert R. Hermann World Ecology Award Dinner returns April 17th, 2026!

Join us as we honor Dr. Lúcia Lohmann: world-renowned scientist, conservation leader, and proud UMSL and Harris Center alumna. Dr. Lohmann's pioneering work in the Amazon basin launched an extraordinary career in research, teaching, and biodiversity conservation across the globe. In 2024, she became President of the Missouri Botanical Garden — the first woman to hold the position.

We're thrilled to welcome her back to St. Louis and celebrate her accomplishments.

🎟️ For tickets and sponsorship info visit umsl.edu/hwec2026

When you’re a fish, moving between habitats when they become unstable is impossible without water connecting those habitats. In the desert, where water is a limited resource, springs get pumped for human use which can make them unstable for the fish that live in them. The Pahrump poolfish (Empetrichthys latos) almost went extinct due to the pumping of water from their spring habitats.

However, conservation efforts have developed refuge ponds that have allowed their population sizes to grow. Much like my research, information about the environmental conditions in which these fish live help make conservation efforts more efficient. This information allows us to identify when the habitat is unstable, how to construct refuge ponds, and when to take species into captivity.

📸 Fish photo credit: rangerjosh (iNaturalist). Background removed with an online tool.