Dr. William Coffman

Genetics
K. Arndt
T.-L. Ashman
G. Campbell
D. Chapman
G. Hatfull
J. Hildebrand
L. Jacobson
S. Kalisz
J. Martens
W. Saunders
B. Stronach
S. Tonsor
R. Wood

Microbiology
J. Boyle
G. Hatfull
R. Hendrix
J. Lawrence
J. Pipas
M. Popa
R.L. Duda
S. Godfrey
V. Oke

Molecular Biology
K. Arndt
J. Franzen
P. Grabowski
G. Hatfull
R. Hendrix
L. Jen-Jacobson
J. Martens
C. Peebles
J. Pipas
J. Rosenberg
A. Schwacha
C. Walsh

Plant Biology
T.-L. Ashman
W. Carson
S. Kalisz
V. Oke
C. Partanen
S. Tonsor
B. Traw

Science Education
A. Bledsoe
K. Curto
L. Daniels
S. Godfrey
N. Kaufmann
C. LaFave
J. Newman
E. Polinko
M. Popa
L. Roberts
T. Seiflein
R. Sherwin
A. Slinskey Legg

Structural Biology
M. Grabe
J. Hempel
R. Hendrix
L. Jen-Jacobson
J. Rosenberg
A. VanDemark

Former Faculty

Photo of Dr.
Coffman

Ecology and Systematics of Lotic Chironomidae

Associate Professor

Dr. Coffman received his Ph.D. in 1967 from the University of Pittsburgh and joined the Department in 1967.

Currently, Dr. Coffman is accepting graduate students in his laboratory. Dr. Coffman is accepting undergraduate researchers, and does sponsor students in other laboratories.

Professional Interests - Publications - Contact Information - Lab Personnel

Professional Interests of William Coffman

Dr. Coffman is interested in lotic ecology with a specialization in the role of Chironomidae in community structure. Chironomids are the most diverse group of aquatic insects and typically constitute at least 50 percent of the insect species in stream ecosystems. One of the directions of research in Dr. Coffman's laboratory is an attempt to describe the mechanisms by which a large number of species are able to coexist. Numerous studies on the emergence phenology of lotic chiconomid communities have been carried out by Dr. Coffman and his students. These studies have largely been made in western Pennsylvania (Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology and Powdermill Nature Reserve), but additional studies have been made in Montana, Venezuela, and India. This work has recently been expanded to include spatial and trophic partitioning by the analysis of the gut contents of larvae collected from specific inorganic and organic substrates.

Student projects in Chironomidae biology have included the seasonal phenology of emergence from ponds, the habitation of the hyporheic zone in streams, the ovarian cycles of adults, the diel drift cycles of larvae and diel emergence cycles in streams. Other student projects have dealt with production and microhabitat utilization in Trichoptera, trophic ecology, and production of lotic fish and stream insect community response to clear-cut forestry practices.

Dr. Coffman is also interested in the taxonomy, biogeography, and evolutionary history of the Chironomidae. Work in this area has centered on the faunas of North America, South America, Africa, and India.

Publication Archive
9 Citations
1 Abstracts
0 PDFs

Recent Publications of William Coffman

Coffman, W.P., and C.L. de la Rosa (1998) Taxonomic composition and temporal organization of tropical and temperate species assemblages of lotic Chironomidae . J. Kansas Entomol. Soc. 71:388-406

Coffman, W.P., and L. Ferrington (1998) Chironomidae. Pp 635-754 in An Introduction to the Aquatic Insects of North America, 3rd Edition, Merritt, R., and K.W. Cummins, Ed. Kandall-Hunt, Dubuque, Iowa

Coffman, W.P. (1995) Conclusions. Pp 436-447 in The Chironomidae: The Biology and Ecology of Non-biting Midges, Armitage, P., P.S. Cranston, and L.C.V. Pinder, Ed. Chapman and Hall, London

Coffman, W.P., C. de la Rosa, K.W. Cummins, and M.A. Wilzbach (1992) Species richness in some neotropical (Costa Rica) and afrotropical (west Africa) lotic communities of Chironomidae (Diptera). Netherlands J. Aquatic Ecol. 26:229-237

Roback, S., and W.P. Coffman (1989) Tanypodinae pupae from Southern India (Diptera: Chironomidae). P. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. 141:85-113

Coffman, W.P. (1989) Factors that determine the species richness of lotic communities of Chironomidae. Acta Biologica Debrecina, Suppl. Oecologica Hungarica 3:95-100

Coffman, W.P., L. Yurasits, and C. de la Rosa (1988) Chironomidae of South India I. Generic composition, biogeographical relationships and descriptions of two unusual pupal exuviae. Spixiana, Suppl. 14:155-165

Coffman, W.P., L. Ferrington, and R. Seward (1988) Paraboreochlus stahli sp. n., a new species of Podonominae (Diptera: Chironomidae) from the Nearctic. Aquat. Insect 10:189-200

Coffman, W.P., P.S. Cranston, D.R. Oliver, and O.A. Saether (1986) The pupae of Orthocladiinae of the holarctic region - keys and diagnoses. Ent. Scand. Suppl. 28:147-297

How to Contact William Coffman

US Mail
University of Pittsburgh
Department of Biological Sciences
165A Crawford Hall
4249 Fifth Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15260

Phone, FAX, Internet
Office : (412) 624-4277
Lab : (412) 624-6165
FAX : (412) 624-4759
Email : wcoffman+@pitt.edu
Web : http://www.pitt.edu/~wcoffman/

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