Christopher M. Pennuto, Ph.D.

Dr. Pennuto recently was appointed Interim Director of the Great Lakes Center. He joined the Great Lakes Center in 2003 as a research scientist, and holds a joint appointment as a Professor of Biology. He serves as the Director for WNY PRISM (Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management) and is the Coordinator for the Great Lakes Environmental Science graduate programs. Dr. Pennuto conducts research, with graduate and undergraduate students, in areas of aquatic invasive species, behavioral ecology, and stream and lake ecology.

Education

Ph.D., Systematics and Ecology (Aquatic Ecology), University of Kansas, 1994. Dissertation title: Acidification effects on stream macroinvertebrates: behavioral, physiological, and community level responses.

M.S., Zoology, North Dakota State University, 1988. Thesis title: Habitat ecology, distribution, and economic value of the ribbon leech, Nephelopsis obscura, in North Dakota.

B.S., Fisheries and Wildlife Biology, Iowa State University, 1984.

Areas of Interest

aquatic invasive species, predator/prey behavioral ecology, stream ecosystem dynamics, nutrient stoichiometry and lake budgets

Grants and Awards (last 5 years)

NY DEC. 2024-2028. “Administration of the Western NY PRISM: Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management.” $4,667,125. Pennuto (PI).

USFWS, Lower Great Lakes Fisheries Unit. 2023-2025. “Efficacy of predatory fish to control invasive crayfish in small ponds.” $78,420. Pennuto (PI).

US EPA, Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). 2022-2023. “Mitigating risk of invasive crayfish introductions and spread in the Great Lakes through standardized early detection protocols, site prioritizations, and training opportunities.” $30,670 (subaward thru Michigan State University, B. Roth, PI).

USFWS, Lower Great Lakes Fisheries Unit. 2020-2022. “Historic and contemporary sturgeon habitats in the Lake Erie basin.” $70,555. Pennuto (PI).

NYS DEC, Invasive Species Management Grant Program. 2019-2021. “Rapid response and early detection of Slender false brome and Japanese stiltgrass in Western New York.” $99,858. Pennuto and Hernon (co-PI).

USGS, Northern Forest/Great Lakes CESU. 2018-2019. “Support for a Cladophora growth model: frequent biomass and coverage assessments married to Sentinel 3 satellite imagery in Lake Ontario." $103,576. Pennuto (PI)

NYS DEC. 2019-2023. “Administration of the Western NY PRISM: Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management.” $3,499,212. Pennuto (PI).

Published Papers (last 5 years)

§ = graduate student, * = undergraduate student

Glenn, K.R. § and C.M. Pennuto. (in review) Round goby presence alters drift in occupied streams. Freshwater Science.

Emily Klimcak § and C.M. Pennuto. (in review) The winner-loser effect as a management strategy for invasive crayfish. Biological Invasions.

Wagner J.A. § and C.M. Pennuto. 2025. Mass loss and nutrient release of sloughed Cladophora. Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management 28:1-10. DOI: 10.14321/aehm.028.02.1

Glenn, K. R. § and C.M. Pennuto. 2023. Winter residency and foraging of non-native round goby populations in Great Lakes tributary streams. Journal of Fish Biology, 103: 1401-1408. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.15540

Haines, A.D. § and C.M. Pennuto. 2022. Seasonal diet and body condition changes in the Common Mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus Rafinesque, 1818) in Western New York. Journal of Herpetology 56: 324-335.

Pennuto, C.M. 2022. Rapid response of the nearshore Round Goby population to temperature declines associated with upwelling events in Lake Ontario. Journal of Great Lakes Research 48:843-848.

Pennuto, C.M., K. Mehler, B. Weidel, B.F. Lantry, and E. Bruestle §. 2021. Dynamics of the seasonal migration of Round Goby (Neogobius melanostomus Pallas, 1814) and implications for the Lake Ontario food web. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 30:151-161. DOI: 10.1111/eff.12568

Bruestle, E.L. §, C. Karboski, A. Hussey, A.T. Fisk, K. Mehler, C. Pennuto, and D. Gorsky. 2019. Novel trophic interaction between lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) and invasive species in an altered food web. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 76: 6-14.

Courses Taught

Aquatic Entomology (BIO 431), Limnology (BIO 418), Stream Ecology (BIO 430/630), Great Lakes Environmental Science (GLES 535), Introduction to Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior (BIO 213), Biological Form, Function, & Diversity (BIO 333)

Professional Societies

Society for Freshwater Science (SFS; formerly North American Benthological Society (NABS)), Ecological Society of America (ESA), International Association for Great Lakes Research (IAGLR)