back to all faculty

Casey Godwin

Research Scientist
Ecosystem Science and Management
Water
Conservation + Restoration
CIGLR
cgodwin@umich.edu
734-741-2235
Websites
CIGLR
Website

About

Dr. Casey Godwin recently joined CIGLR as an Assistant Research Scientist. He has a Ph.D. in ecology, evolution, and behavior from the University of Minnesota. His research focuses on how the elemental requirements of bacteria and algae couple carbon and nutrient cycles in freshwater ecosystems. The driving question behind this work is “as we continue to pollute our aquatic ecosystems with excess nutrients, will cycling of carbon and other elements change in proportion, or will fertilization decouple key ecosystem processes?” He has examined this question in the context of impact of stream algae on nutrient retention within watersheds, functional diversity of freshwater bacteria in response to land use change, and most recently, minimizing the fertilizer demand of renewable fuels produced from algae. As part of CIGLR, he is working on projects including the effects of nutrient abundance and forms on harmful algal blooms and the influence of hypoxia on the biogeochemical cycling of nutrients and heavy metals in Lake Erie.

Publications

  • Godwin. C.M., F.H. Chang and B.J. Cardinale. 2020. An empiricist’s guide to modern coexistence theory for competitive communities. Oikos. 129(8):1109-1127. (DOI:10.1111/oik.06957). [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M., J.R. Zehnpfennig and D.R. Learman. 2020. Biotic and Abiotic Mechanisms of Manganese (II) Oxidation in Lake Erie. Frontiers in Environmental Science. 8(57). (DOI:10.3389/fenvs.2020.00057). [Altmetric Score]

  • Carruthers, D.N., C.M. Godwin, D.C. Hietala, B.J. Cardinale, X.N. Lin and P.E. Savage. 2019. Biodiversity Improves Life Cycle Sustainability Metrics in Algal Biofuel Production. Environmental Science and Technology. 53(15):9279-9288. (DOI:10.1021/acs.est.9b00909). [Altmetric Score]

  • Hietala, D.C., C.M. Godwin, B.J. Cardinale and P.E. Savage. 2019. The individual and synergistic impacts of feedstock characteristics and reaction conditions on the aqueous co-product from hydrothermal liquefaction. Algal Research. 42. (DOI:10.1016/j.algal.2019.101568).

  • Hietala, D.C., C.M. Godwin, B.J. Cardinale and P.E. Savage. 2019. The independent and coupled effects of feedstock characteristics and reaction conditions on biocrude production by hydrothermal liquefaction. Applied Energy. 235:714-728. (DOI:10.1016/j.apenergy.2018.10.120).

  • Godwin, C.M., A.R. Lashaway, D.C. Hietala, P.E. Savage and B.J. Cardinale. 2018. Biodiversity improves the ecological design of sustainable biofuel systems. Global Change Biology Bioenergy. (DOI:10.1111/gcbb.12524). [Press Release] [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M. and J.B. Cotner. 2017. What intrinsic and extrinsic factors explain the stoichiometric diversity of aquatic heterotrophic bacteria? ISME Journal. (DOI:10.1038/ismej.2017.195). [Press Release] [Altmetric Score]
  • Duffy, J.E., C.M. Godwin and B.J. Cardinale. 2017. Biodiversity effects in the wild are common and as strong as key drivers of productivity. Nature. (DOI:10.1038/nature23886). [Press Release; Press Release] [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M., D.C. Hietala, A.R. Lashaway, A. Narwani, P.E. Savage and B.J. Cardinale. 2017. Ecological stoichiometry meets ecological engineering: using polycultures to enhance the multifunctionality of algal biocrude systems. Environmental Science and Technology. 51:11450-11458, (DOI:10.1021/acs.est.7b02137). [Altmetric Score]
  • Phillips, K., C.M. Godwin and J.B. Cotner. 2017. The effects of nutrient imbalances and temperature on the biomass stoichiometry of freshwater bacteria. Frontiers in Microbiology. (DOI:10.3389/fmicb.2017.01692). [Altmetric Score]
  • Hietala, D., C. Koss, A. Narwani, A.R. Lashaway, C.M. Godwin, B. Cardinale and P. Savage. 2017. Influence of biodiversity, biochemical composition, and species identity on the quality of biomass and biocrude oil produced via hydrothermal liquefaction. Algal Research. 26:203-214. (DOI:10.1016/j.algal.2017.07.020).
  • Jeyasingh, P.D., J. Goos, S. Thompson, C.M. Godwin and J. Cotner. 2017. Ecological stoichiometry beyond Redfield: An ionomic perspective on elemental homeostasis. Frontiers in Microbiology. (DOI:10.3389/fmicb.2017.00722). [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M., E.A. Whitaker and J.B. Cotner. 2017. Growth rate and resource imbalance interactively control biomass stoichiometry and elemental quotas of aquatic bacteria. Ecology. 98:820-829. (DOI:10.1002/ecy.1705). [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M., D.C. Hietala, A.R. Lashaway, A. Narwani. P.E. Savage and B.J. Cardinale. 2017. Algal polycultures enhance coproduct recycling from hydrothermal liquefaction. Bioresource Technology. 224:630-638. (DOI:10.1016/j.biortech.2016.11.105). [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M. and J.B. Cotner. 2015. Aquatic Heterotrophic Bacteria Have Highly Flexible Phosphorus Content and Biomass Stoichiometry. ISME Journal. (DOI:10.1038/ismej.2015.34). [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M. and J.B. Cotner. 2015. Stoichiometric flexibility in diverse aquatic heterotrophic bacteria is coupled to differences in cellular phosphorus quotas. Frontiers in Microbiology, special issue on “Microbial Responses to Environmental Change”. Frontiers in Microbiology. 5:159. (DOI:10.3389/fmicb.2015.00159). [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M. and J.B. Cotner. 2014. Carbon: phosphorus homeostasis of aquatic bacterial assemblages is mediated by shifts in assemblage composition. Aquatic Microbial Ecology. 74:245-258. (DOI:10.3354/ame01719).
  • Bellinger, B.J., B.A.S. Van Mooy, J.B. Cotner, H.F. Fredricks, C.R. Benitez-Nelson, J. Thompson, A. Cotter, M. Knuth and C.M. Godwin. 2014. Physiological modifications of seston in response to physicochemical gradients within Lake Superior. Limnology and Oceanography. 59:1011-1026. (DOI:10.4319/lo.2014.59.3.1011).
  • Godwin, C.M., P.J. McNamara, and C. Markfort. 2013. Evening methane emission pulses from a boreal wetland correspond to convective mixing in hollows. JGR Biogeosciences. 118. (DOI:10.1002/jgrg.20082). [Altmetric Score]
  • Godwin, C.M., M.A. Arthur and H.J. Carrick. 2009. Periphyton nutrient status in a temperate stream with mixed land-uses: Implications for watershed nitrogen storage. Hydrobiologia. 623:141-152. (DOI:10.1007/s10750-008-9654-z).
  • Godwin, C.M. and H.J. Carrick. 2008. Spatio-temporal variation of periphyton biomass and accumulation in a temperate spring-fed stream. Aquatic Ecology. 42:583-595. (DOI:10.1007/s10452-007-9133-z).
  • Carrick, H.J., C.M. Godwin, M.J. Greenwald, C. Rilk, A. Siefert and C.J. Tzilkowski. 2007. Evaluation of water quality in a spring-fed stream (Spring Creek in Centre County, Pennsylvania) based on benthic algae and macroinvertebrates. Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science. 80:71-78. (DOI:https://www.jstor.org/stable/44149600).
  • Godwin, C.M. and S.A. McCollum. 2005. “Do fathead minnows, Pimephales promelas (Cyprinidae), visually communicate that they detect alarm substances?” BIOS. 76 (2):102-106. (DOI:10.1893/0005-3155(2005)076[0102:RADFMP]2.0.CO;2).

Research
  • Impacts of nutrient loading on biogeochemical processes in the Great Lakes
  • Role of flexible biomass stoichiometry in coupling productivity and element cycling
  • Physiological adaptations of aquatic microbes to nutrient starvation and surplus
Education

Ph.D. 2013, Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota
M.S. 2006, Ecology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
B.A. 2003, Biology and Environmental Studies, Cornell College, Mount Vernon, Iowa

In the Media