As an ecologist, my primary focus has been on understanding the interrelations between aquatic organisms and their environment. I'm particularly interested in wetlands and headwater stream ecosystems. Aquatic macroinvertebrates, especially insects, are the major consumers in these systems and therefore the focus of much of the work conducted by my students and me. We have also looked carefully at the role of plants in shaping the life in streams and wetlands. I think one of the greatest challenges in restoring aquatic ecosystems is to determine how systems would function without human influence. Some of the questions I have about the members of aquatic communities include who they are, what they do for a living, and what is the value of their contributuion to the community as a whole.